IEC 81346-1-2022 PDF

Full title and description

St IEC 81346-1:2022 — Industrial systems, installations and equipment and industrial products — Structuring principles and reference designations — Part 1: Basic rules. This international standard establishes general principles and rules for structuring technical systems and for creating unambiguous reference designations to identify objects and retrieve information across documentation and disciplines.

Abstract

IEC 81346-1:2022 defines basic rules and guidance for formulating reference designations for objects in any technical system. It covers principles for system structuring, an information model for a reference designation system, introduction of a type aspect, metadata recommendations for design-structure management, rules for designating relations and sub-objects, and requirements for sector-specific parts and documentation of application. The 2022 edition cancels and replaces the 2009 edition and constitutes a technical revision.

General information

• Status: Published.
• Publication date: March 2022 (Edition 2, published 2022-03).
• Publisher: International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) — published as IEC 81346-1:2022.
• ICS / categories: 01.110 (Technical product documentation); 29.020 (Electrical engineering in general).
• Edition / version: 2 (second edition, 2022).
• Number of pages: 227 pages (official IEC publication page lists the full document length).

Scope

This part of the 81346 series establishes general structuring principles for systems and information about systems and gives rules and guidance for producing unambiguous reference designations for objects across technical disciplines (mechanical, electrical, construction, process engineering, etc.). It is a horizontal publication intended for use by technical committees when preparing sector-specific reference-designation documents and for organizations implementing consistent designation and information-retrieval schemes.

Key topics and requirements

• General principles for structuring systems and related information.
• Rules and syntax for formulating unambiguous reference designations (object occurrence identification).
• Introduction of a type aspect to distinguish object occurrence from object type.
• An information model for a reference designation system and a framework information model for the 81346 series.
• Recommendations for metadata to support design-structure management and information retrieval.
• Rules and methods for designating relations between objects and incorporation of sub-objects into object structures.
• Requirements for development of sector-specific parts of the 81346 series and recommendations for documenting how the series is applied.

Typical use and users

Used by system architects, electrical/mechanical/construction engineers, technical authors, CAD/PDM/PLM and asset-information specialists, maintenance and operations personnel, and standards committees. Typical applications include drawing and document annotation, product data management, asset tagging, cross-disciplinary information exchange, and the development of sector-specific designation rules.

Related standards

IEC 81346-1:2022 is part of the IEC/ISO 81346 series. Key related parts include IEC 81346-2 (Classification of objects and codes for classes, edition 2019) and ISO 81346-12:2018 (construction works and building services), among other sector- or application-specific parts in the 81346 family. The series is intended as a horizontal framework where parts provide classification schemes, domain rules and examples for specific industries.

Keywords

reference designation, structuring principles, object designation, information model, type aspect, metadata, design structure management, IEC 81346, system structuring, classification of objects.

FAQ

Q: What is this standard?

A: IEC 81346-1:2022 is the part‑1 basic‑rules document of the 81346 series that defines principles and rules for creating unambiguous reference designations and for structuring information about technical systems.

Q: What does it cover?

A: It covers the basic rules and information-model concepts for reference designations, the introduction of the type aspect, metadata recommendations, designation of relations and sub-objects, and requirements for sector-specific extensions and documentation.

Q: Who typically uses it?

A: Engineers (electrical, mechanical, process, construction), technical documentation teams, PLM/PDM/CAD implementers, asset-management staff and standards committees creating domain-specific designation rules.

Q: Is it current or superseded?

A: IEC 81346-1:2022 is the current (published) second edition; it cancels and replaces IEC 81346-1:2009. Consult national adoption or publication notices for any country-specific implementation dates.

Q: Is it part of a series?

A: Yes — it is Part 1 of the IEC/ISO 81346 series. Other parts (for example Part 2: classification of objects and ISO 81346-12 for construction/building services) supply classification schemes and domain rules that work with Part 1.

Q: What are the key keywords?

A: Reference designation, structuring principles, object classification, information model, type aspect, metadata, design-structure management.