Philips 12NC code numbers (on request and as requested)

[Maarten]

Philips210 asked for some information on Philips code numbers in https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/showpost.php?p=1225464&postcount=6

Since such questions come up from time to time, it may be better to answer them in a common thread. Requests for information or explanation can also be posted here.

The 12NC coding system was implemented starting in 1963 and is still in use in some Philips and former Philips locations. It was thought up to reflect the matrix business model that Philips used to have but is quite versatile and well thought out.

[Maarten]

The first two digits are called "code group" and started out corresponding to a main industry group or industry group so they indicate the kind of product the number refers to.

The interpretation of the remaining 10 digits is determined by the code group, even though the meaning is relatively consistent between code groups.

Code groups 01 through 82 mostly follow the same pattern, with the exception of 48 and 53. Code groups from 85 through 98 are commercial numbers, what we would call SKU's in modern jargon and may or may not follow similar patterns.

Most relevant for this forum are code groups
31 for consumer electronics (originally main industry group "radio, gramophone and television")
35 for telecom
39 for electro acoustics
40 for professional electronics
42 for appliances and large appliances
46 (later) for large appliances

48 and 53 for service parts (not an industry group but straight under the core organisation)

85 (later) for large appliances
86 and 90 for consumer electronics
88 for appliances and large appliances
95 for telecom

[Maarten]

The third and fourth digits are called "coding centre". This often corresponds to a national organisation (read: country), but can be a product group or business unit (I don't know the official jargon for that case).

These numbers also correspond to the first two digits of model numbers as often used (but sometimes omitted) from 1966 on. This is because the model number corresponds/maps to the SKU and the SKU is a 12NC.

Though it often correlates, this is NOT meant to indicate the country of manufacture! Rather, it indicates the origin of the design or of the commercial specification (especially in SKU's).

It started out as an alphabetical listing (with some flaws in bold, if anyone knows why, I'd like to know), but as national and other organisations were added, the assignment happened in order of appearance. Numbers up to and including 37 were taken from a 1967 internal list from Philips. I haven't spotted all of them in the wild. Some may have never been used or only used much later (I'm not aware of any Polish activity before 1989, though Philips might have had some kind of organisation in Yugoslavia).

01 Argentina
02 Australia
03 Austria
04 Belgium
05 Colombia
06 Brasil
07 Canada
08 Denmark
09 Chile
10 Finland
11 France
12 Germany
13 Great Britain
14 Greece
15 India
16 Indonesia
17 Nigeria
18 Ireland
19 Italy
20 Japan
21 Mexico
22 Netherlands
23 New Zealand
24 Norway
25 Peru
26 Salvador
27 Polen
28 Portugal
29 South Africa
30 Spain
31 Sweden
32 Switzerland
33 Turkey
34 Uruguay
35 USA
36 Venezuela
37 Yugoslavia
38 Taiwan
39 Singapore
40 Hong Kong
41 China?
42 China?
43 Hungary

Then some higher numbers were assigned mostly used for audio related stuff, often seen in SKU's and not often in the lower numbered code groups.

66 (seen on hifi from Sweden)
67 (seen on a portable radio from Japan)
69 (seen on various car radios)
70 (central product range from Eindhoven, still in use)
74, 75 Marantz
90 Far East (seems to have also been used for Singapore before 39 was assigned and for Hong Kong before 40 was assigned)

[Jac]

Maarten, from what I know, the following was used:

countries:

41 Peoples Republic of China
42 Republic of Korea
44 Romania

Jac

[Maarten]

Thanks Jac, that's a very good addition!

[paulsherwin]

Thread reopened by request.

[Maarten]

As an addition to post number #2, I'll list the code groups (1st and 2nd digit of the 12NC) below 30 as they were in use in 1967. Those code groups aren't tied to industry groups or business units, but to basic product categories instead.

01 Iron, steel and alloys
02 Nickel, chrome, kobalt and alloys
03 Copper, noble metals and alloys
04 Light metals and alloys
05 High melting point metals and alloys
06 Welding and soldering materials, low melting point metals and alloys
07 Insulated wire, cables, cords
08 Plastics and rubber
11 Glass and ceramic
12 Various non-metallic materials
13 Chemicals, paint
19 "verbindingen en tulen" (connections and cable feedthroughs *)
20 capacitors - 3rd party production
21 resistors - 3rd party production
22 capacitors - own production
23 resistors - own production
24 various electrotechnical and electromechanical articles
25 fasteners
26 machine parts, machines, tools
27 building blocks for electrical app.
28 facilities, transport, packaging
29 building materials, hinges and locks

*) tulen or tules are longer, often flexible plastic or rubber, cable guides used where the cable enters the connector or apparatus. It can be translated to cable gland but I think feedthrough is more accurate. Is there a better word for that?

[cmjones01]

Originally Posted by Maarten

tulen or tules are longer, often flexible plastic or rubber, cable guides used where the cable enters the connector or apparatus. It can be translated to cable gland but I think feedthrough is more accurate. Is there a better word for that?

I think we'd call that a cable strain relief, or strain relief grommet if it attaches to the panel in some way.

Chris

[Maarten]

I'd think the strain relief is the part that clamps down on the cable, at least the literal equivalent part in Dutch 'trekontlasting' does that.

[Maarten]

In the code groups 01 to 82, with the exception of 48 and 53 and most notably the loudspeakers coded in the 24 group, the 12th digit is usually a revision number.

This means that it may be different but if that's the only digit that's different, the parts are mostly interchangeable.

I don't intend on posting about the 5th through 11th digit in more detail anytime soon, but (again for groups 01 through 82 except 48 and 53) the 5th and 6th digit would often indicate the location (e.g. factory) within the coding centre where the number was originated and especially with coding centre 31, the 7th and 8th digit would indicate an article group (for example 8 3 for transformers).

I'm mentioning this especially because the meaning isn't aligned with the usual spacing of the numbers.

[Joe_Lorenz]

Hello,
this may be a silly question: Is there an official publication or website by Philips themselves on that coding system?
I'm asking because e.g. Siemens Germany - in the good old days - had lots of printed internal publications on their abbreviation jungle and numbering systems, so why wouldn't Philips do so as well?
Joe

[dazzlevision]

Originally Posted by Joe_Lorenz

Hello,
this may be a silly question: Is there an official publication or website by Philips themselves on that coding system?
I'm asking because e.g. Siemens Germany - in the good old days - had lots of printed internal publications on their abbreviation jungle and numbering systems, so why wouldn't Philips do so as well?
Joe

Philips isn't the huge company it was when this system was introduced in the 1960s, so they may well have ditched any documentation. Apart from medical electronics, most Philips branded items nowadays are made by former Philips divisions that have been sold off and some have been licensed to continue to use the Philips name.

[Cobaltblue]

Originally Posted by Joe_Lorenz

Hello,
this may be a silly question: Is there an official publication or website by Philips themselves on that coding system?
I'm asking because e.g. Siemens Germany - in the good old days - had lots of printed internal publications on their abbreviation jungle and numbering systems, so why wouldn't Philips do so as well?
Joe

That might have been the case we had lots of Siemens GPT and Plessey information across multiple business units but they didn't make it from paper (and microfiche) onto computer based systems. Over time more and more was lost and by 2010 on our site (and many others I imagine) the remaining microfiche readers and records were disposed of the management arguing that there was no need to maintain records over 30 year old products.
Originally it was envisaged that the records would be scanned and computer files created but the cost was prohibitive so it was quietly dropped.

I imagine that's happened to a lot of company's.

Cheers

Mike T

[Maarten]

Philips probably still has lots of information, but it would likely be somewhat fragmented and mostly unpublished/inaccessible.

I have built my own database (of >15000 non-unique 12NC and >7000 non-unique old codes) from observations and sometimes fragments of information. Part of the information in this topic was verified against and derived from a double sided A4 sheet that was published internally by Philips ELA (electroacoustics) in 1967 to help users understand the somewhat newfangled system (it was first introduced in 1963, by 1967 most divisions would have largely switched over to the 12NC system).