This supplement provides general information about surveys and the content of the typical survey. The content of this supplement is purely an example of a typical survey, and in no way limits the content that may appear in a specific Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS)-issued survey. Procedures and content vary from survey to survey, and as such, there is no set template to follow. Nonetheless, BIS is offering this information as a basic guide to some elements of a survey.
Survey Structure
Most surveys include the following sections: Cover Page; Table of Contents; General Instructions; Glossary of Terms; Organizational Information, and sector-specific sections.
—The cover page typically includes the title of the survey, its scope, an explanation of the legal requirement to comply, the burden estimate for compliance with the survey, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number, and the survey date of expiration.
—The General Instructions section normally includes process steps necessary for a person's survey submittal. These include but are not limited to instructions for survey completion, survey support staff point-of-contact information, the name and address of the presiding BIS official, and instructions for both survey certification and submittal.
—The Glossary of Terms section explains terms contained in the survey. Terms contained in the survey may be unique to the subject matter of the industry assessment, and therefore may change in meaning from survey to survey. Therefore, it is important to follow the specific instructions and defined terms contained in the specific survey you receive, regardless of any previous survey you might have completed.
—The Organization Information section requests information related to the person in receipt of the survey, including address information, the source level of response (e.g., facility, business unit, division, corporate consolidated, etc.), point of contact details, and other pertinent contact information.
The survey is generally organized in a question and answer format and is presented on an electronic survey system. Each survey is specially tailored to collect the specific information requested. Therefore, specific detailed information is what should be submitted in response to a survey requesting such information.
—For example, if we ask for a listing of your customers that order widget A, your response should not be a listing of your entire customer base. Only the information pertaining to customers' ordering widget A is responsive to that kind of question.
Also note that your reply to a survey request is compulsory, unless you meet the criteria for exemption set forth in the body of the regulation. Therefore, any non-disclosure agreements or similar agreements you may have with your customers or clients are not applicable to a survey's request for information. Compliance with the survey is required by the DPA. Accordingly, compliance with that statutory requirement is paramount to any private agreement you have with your customers or other parties.
In addition to the aforementioned sections, each survey contains sections tailored to the specific scope of the study, including but not limited to Facility Locations, Products and Services, Inventories, Suppliers and Customers, Challenges and Organizational Outlook, Employment, Operations, Financial Statements, Sales, Research and Development, and Capital Expenditures.
Examples of survey terms.
Certification: A section of the survey in which a person (an authorizing official) certifies that the information supplied in response to the survey is complete and correct, to the best of the person's knowledge.
Facility: A building or the minimum complex of buildings or parts of buildings in which a person operates to serve a particular function, producing revenue and incurring costs for the person. A facility may produce an item of tangible or intangible property or may perform a service. It may encompass a floor or group of floors within a building, a single building, or a group of buildings or structures. Often, a facility is a group of related locations at which employees work, together constituting a profit-and-loss center for the person, and it may be identified by a unique Dun and Bradstreet number.
Sole source: An organization that is the only source for the supply of parts, components, materials, or services. No alternative U.S. or non-U.S. based supplier exists other than the current supplier.
Survey template: The data collection instrument supplied by BIS to persons by which survey information is recorded and submitted to BIS. The survey is generally organized in a question and answer format and is presented on an electronic survey system.
Supplier: An entity from which your organization obtains inputs. A supplier may be another firm with which you have a contractual relationship, or it may be another facility owned by the same parent organization. The inputs may be materials, products or services.