Serial numbers indicate the placement of an item in a series and are generally used as a means of identification. Although serial numbers do not have to be unique to a system tree configuration, using them in this way allows you to track specific physical items. You can then easily discover whether an abnormally high percentage of incidents is associated with a single serial number, thereby revealing a faulty item rather than a design issue.

If you want to use serial numbers, you enter them in the Serial Numbers (FRACAS) field, which you can insert in the System Tree Items table and/or on its forms. You do not have to enter serial numbers for all system tree items. Prior to beginning entry, you might want to select the Force Unique Serial Numbers to be Entered checkbox under FRACAS in the Project Properties window. Assigning unique values to system tree configurations and items is highly recommended. For more information, see FRACAS Project Properties.

In a newly created Project, the Serial Number field appears in the FRACAS Incidents table by default. This field, which you can also insert on the forms for this table, displays serial numbers for system tree items with incidents. The values entered in Serial Numbers (FRACAS) are shown.

You can import or export serial numbers for system tree items from the Serial Numbers table. The target file for an import or the source file for an export must include data for all three fields in this table: Configuration (Serial Number), Serial Number (FRACAS), and System Tree Item (Serial Number). For more information, see Importing and Exporting.