The principles of CM shall be applied to the acquisition of defence materiel throughout all phases of the acquisition cycle. The level of application of CM should be defined in the contract and detailed in the CM Plan (CMP)

This Standard specifies generic CM requirements, which may be tailored to suit individual contract/project needs, taking into account the complexity and nature of the work.

In addition to the generic CM requirements this Standard also specifies CM requirements particular to the acquisition of Air (Annex G), Land (Annex H) and Maritime (Annex I) platform/equipment.

CM policy and practices shall be in place and effective from the earliest phase of a contract/project through to the archiving of records following final product disposal. This Standard has been written from the viewpoint of CM throughout the acquisition cycle. It requires that a CM policy be in place at all times but allows for any part of the implementation of that policy to be delegated by the Authority, through contract action and in a controlled manner.