Commercial and Government Entity
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The Commercial And Government Entity Code, or CAGE Code, is a unique identifier assigned to suppliers to various government defense agencies. CAGE codes provide a standardized method of identifying a given facility at a specific location.
CAGE Codes are used internationally as part of the NATO Codification System (NCS), where they are sometimes called NCAGE Codes. Within the NCS, the CAGE Code is used along with the supplier's part number to form a reference which is held on the NATO Stock Number (NSN) record. This reference enables users of the NCS to determine who supplies any given part.
Within the US, any organization wishing to be a supplier to the DoD is issued a CAGE Code by the Defense Logistics Information Service (DLIS). An entity issued a cage code must reapply annually to renew it.
Within the UK, CAGE codes are allocated by the UK National Codification Bureau (NCB).
CAGE is sometimes expanded as "Commercial Activity/Government Entity", "Contractor And Government Entity", or other, similar variations. According to the DLIS website, "Commercial And Government Entity" is proper. CAGE was previously known as Federal Supply Code for Manufacturers, or FSCM.
[edit] Syntax
CAGE codes are all five characters in length. There is no meaning encoded in the code itself; it is simply a unique identifier.
- United States
- The first and last characters must be digits; the remaining characters can be digits or any letter except for I or O. Example: 1ABC2
- France
- The first character is the letter F followed by four digits. Example: F1234
- United Kingdom
- The first character is either the letter U or K followed by four digits. Example: K1234
[edit] See also
- Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) - Issued by Dun & Bradstreet. Required for certain US government contractors and Federal grant recipients.
- Employer Identification Number (EIN) - Issued by US IRS. Identifies organizations and employers.
- Trading Partner Identification Number (TPIN)
