ERP cutover validation
ERP migration data validation for maintenance records
ERP migration data validation checks that the maintenance and inventory data carried into a new enterprise system still supports the records that depend on it. It is run during or after a cutover, by or for the operator who now relies on the new system. It covers part numbers, serial numbers, time and cycle counters, release references, and the field mappings that link inventory to the maintenance history. You receive a validation register, a list of fields that did not migrate cleanly, and the records affected by each error.
When this review is needed
- Maintenance and inventory data is moving into a new enterprise system and records depend on the fields surviving.
- A cutover completed and the part master or counters look inconsistent in the new system.
- Serialized component history has to stay intact across the migration for trace.
- An audit will rely on data the new system holds and its integrity is unconfirmed.
The problem
An ERP migration is a field-mapping exercise, and the fields that matter for records are easy to lose in a project measured by inventory and finance. A serial number that lands in the wrong field, a counter that resets, or a release reference that does not carry across breaks the link between a part and its history, often without an obvious error.
What gets reviewed
- Part number and serial number master data integrity after migration
- Time and cycle counters carried without reset or drift
- Release certificate references preserved against the right components
- Inventory-to-history mappings that keep parts linked to their records
- Component installation records intact across the cutover
Scope this review
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Send a representative, redacted record set and we will scope the review.
What gets validated
- Serial numbers land in the correct field and match the prior master data
- Time and cycle counters carry across without reset or unit change
- Release references resolve to the same component they did before migration
- A part's maintenance history remains reachable from its inventory record
- Component installation records still point to the airframe position they held before the cutover
Evidence normally required
- Pre-migration and post-migration data extracts
- The field-mapping specification for the cutover
- A sample of serialized components with known history for spot-checking
- Release certificate references on file
Common discrepancies
- A serial number mapped into the wrong field, breaking the part's identity
- A counter that reset or changed units during the migration
- A release reference that no longer resolves to its component
- A part whose maintenance history cannot be reached from the new inventory record
What is at stake
Broken part-to-history links surface when someone needs a component's trace and the new system cannot produce it. Reconstructing the mapping after go-live, with the old system decommissioned, is far harder than validating the fields during the cutover window.
How the work runs
Compare the extracts
Diff pre- and post-migration data for the records-relevant fields.
Spot-check known parts
Trace a sample of serialized components through the new system end to end.
Test the mappings
Confirm inventory records still reach their maintenance history and release references.
Register the breaks
List fields that failed and the records each error affects.
What the buyer receives
- A validation register comparing pre- and post-migration data
- A list of fields that did not migrate cleanly
- The records affected by each migration error
Who uses the output
- Records teams who must produce a component's trace from the new system
- IT and systems staff correcting the field mappings that broke a link
- Continuing-airworthiness teams relying on the migrated data at audit
How the work fits into the transaction or program
Validation runs against the cutover, while both extracts and the old system are still available, so the records-relevant fields are checked before the source is retired. It closes the gap that a count-based vendor load check leaves open on traceability fields.
Start with a single asset
Prove the review on a single tail, then scale across the fleet.
Regulatory limits
Validation confirms that records-relevant fields survived the migration intact. It does not approve the enterprise system, restore any regulatory acceptance, or determine airworthiness from the migrated data.
What this review does not cover
- Performing the ERP migration or building its field mappings
- Configuring or supporting the enterprise system
- Any airworthiness determination from the migrated records
Specific to this review
- Records-relevant fields are easy to lose in an ERP project scoped around inventory and finance rather than traceability.
- A serial number in the wrong field breaks a part's identity even when every other value migrated correctly.
- The old system is usually decommissioned soon after go-live, so the cheap window to validate the fields is the cutover itself.
Sources
U.S. Government (eCFR). Records an owner or operator must keep, including total time in service, current status of life-limited parts, and AD compliance.
Federal Aviation Administration. FAA acceptance criteria for electronic recordkeeping systems and electronic signatures.
Federal Aviation Administration. Completion and use of FAA Form 8130-3, Authorized Release Certificate, for new and used parts.
Frequently asked questions
Doesn't the migration vendor already validate the data?
Vendor validation usually confirms record counts and that the load succeeded. This check is scoped to the records fields, such as serial numbers, counters, and release references, that a count-based check will pass even when the link to a part's history is broken.
Relevant glossary terms
Related pages
Where this fits
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We will walk through your current state, the records or evidence involved, and a scoped first engagement.
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