Service master data standardization: how to describe a new service

Descriptive standardization of services (PDS, the acronym 4MDG uses for this practice) means describing a new service through attributes defined per service family (nature, object, scope, unit of measure, frequency, type of site and service level) instead of free text. Both the short and the long description are generated from those attributes by a fixed rule. Whatever changes with each engagement (address, dates, price) belongs in the contract or purchase order, not in the master record.

A common scene: a requester opens a master data request and types "maintenance of the AC at headquarters, as per quote". The master data clerk cannot tell whether it is preventive or corrective, how many units are covered, whether parts are included or how the work will be measured. The code gets created anyway, because a purchase is waiting.

Six months later, another department asks for "prev. maint. split air cond." and nobody finds the first code, because search cannot match a word that was spelled differently. Service master data standardization exists so that a service is born described the same way, by anyone, in any business unit.

What is descriptive standardization of services?

As defined on the 4MDG PDS page, PDS applies to the service catalog the same discipline used for materials in PDM (descriptive standards for materials): taxonomy by family, attribute templates, rule-based descriptions, deduplication and tax classification. Each service family has its own attributes, such as scope, specialty, unit of measure, frequency, site and SLA, and the template makes the short name, the long description and the scope always come out in the same format.

The Brazilian public sector offers an open reference. CATSER, the service catalog of SIASG (the Brazilian federal government's procurement system), is the database that identifies the services contracted by Brazil's federal public administration. According to the CATSER and CATMAT manual published by Compras.gov.br (the federal procurement portal), CATSER services are grouped by a CPC code, a hierarchical code based on the United Nations Central Product Classification (CPC) as adapted by SIASG, and the catalog keeps a support table of service units of measure. In short, a hierarchical classification and a controlled unit of measure are the foundation of the federal catalog.

Do not mix CATSER up with the Electronic Standardization Catalog of PNCP, Brazil's national public procurement portal. According to the portal's own FAQ, that catalog standardizes documents for the internal phase of a tender (preliminary designs, terms of reference, basic designs, draft documents) and is not CATMAT/CATSER.

What does a service need so it is described, not narrated?

A service has no weight, color or part number. It is defined by what is done, to what, how far and how it is measured. These are the attributes that usually define a service:

• Nature (the action, written as a noun): preventive maintenance, repair, installation, cleaning, rental, consulting, calibration.
• Object: what the service is performed on (split air conditioner, office area, industrial scale).
• Specialty: when the same nature calls for different trades (electrical, mechanical, refrigeration).
• Included and excluded scope: what the price covers and what it does not. "Includes filter cleaning; excludes parts" prevents disputes at measurement time.
• Unit of measure: how the service is measured and paid.
• Frequency: how often the service happens, when it is recurring.
• Type of site: office, industrial plant, outdoor area. The specific address goes in the contract.
• Service level: response time or execution window, when it changes what is being bought.

Not every family uses all of them. Calibration usually needs the measured quantity and the instrument range; cleaning needs the area and the floor type. That is why templates are defined per family, not as a single form for every service.

What goes in the master record and what stays in the contract or purchase order?

A useful rule: if a data point changes every time the same service is contracted, it does not define the service. It goes in the contract or the purchase order. If two different suppliers can deliver exactly the same thing, the service code is the same.

Attribute	What it is for	Example	Where it lives	Who defines it
Nature	Separate different services that use similar words	PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE	Master record	Data governance, with the technical area
Object	State what the service is performed on	SPLIT AIR CONDITIONER	Master record	Technical area
Included and excluded scope	Avoid doubt at measurement and acceptance	Includes filter cleaning; excludes parts	Master record (standard scope); exceptions in the contract	Technical area and procurement
Unit of measure	Measure and pay the same way on every order	Each (unit serviced)	Master record	Procurement, with the technical area
Frequency	Tell recurring services from one-off services	Monthly	Master record, when it defines the service; schedule in the contract	Technical area
Type of site	Separate services with different requirements	Office building	Master record	Technical area
Specific site	State where to perform the work	Unit address, floor, building	Contract or purchase order	Requester
Service level	Tell scheduled service from emergency service	Scheduled window	Master record, if it changes the service; deadlines and penalties in the contract	Technical area and contracts
Price, quantity, dates	Execute and pay for that engagement	Price per unit, contract term	Contract or purchase order	Procurement and contracts
NBS (Brazil only)	Brazilian tax classification of the service	Nine-digit code	Master record, as a verified attribute	Tax team

How do you build the short and long descriptions from the attributes?

1. Set the attribute order for each family

The short description always follows the same sequence: nature, object, distinguishing attribute, frequency. Anyone reading a spend report recognizes the service without opening the record. The logic is similar to writing material descriptions, with one difference: for a service, the first word is the action, written as a noun (MAINTENANCE, CLEANING, CALIBRATION), not a physical object.

2. Use a controlled list of abbreviations

If the ERP short text field cannot hold the full text, abbreviate the same way every time: MAINT for maintenance, PREV for preventive, CORR for corrective. The list is one for the whole company. Abbreviations invented on the spot by the clerk are exactly what keeps search from finding the service later.

3. Respect your ERP character limit

Every ERP has a fixed length for the short text. The assembly rule must fit it without cutting the attribute that distinguishes the service. Many ERPs keep separate fields: the service master documentation of Senior, a Brazilian ERP vendor, lists description, invoice description, complement, family, unit of measure and NBS code as distinct fields. Use that separation: the short text identifies, the long text details.

4. Generate the long description from the same attributes

The long description spells out the attributes and adds the included and excluded scope. It is not a field for pasting the supplier's proposal. A proposal is a contract document.

5. Do not let the requester type free text

The requester picks the family and fills in the attributes from lists. The description comes from the rule. Free text stays, at most, as a note for the clerk to review.

How do you choose the unit of measure for a service?

The unit has to reflect how the service is measured and paid. If the supplier is paid per hour worked, the unit is hour. If paid per area cleaned, it is square meter. If paid a fixed monthly fee, it is month. If paid per unit serviced, it is each. If paid a lump sum for the deliverable, it is lump sum (or service).

Two common mistakes:

• Confusing unit of measure with frequency. "Monthly" says when the service happens. If measurement is per unit serviced, the unit is each, even if the visit is monthly.
• Using the same generic unit for everything. When every service is recorded as "SV" or "EA" with no criterion, price comparison across contracts loses meaning, because nobody knows what was measured.

A lump sum service can still have a master record. What changes is that the included and excluded scope must be well written, because that is what tells you what the fixed price buys.

Where do NBS, NCM, UNSPSC and CEST fit?

NBS. NBS is Brazil's official nomenclature for services, intangibles and other operations that change equity (Nomenclatura Brasileira de Serviços). In version 2.0, published in Annex I of Joint Ordinance RFB/SCS No. 1,429/2018 (Portaria Conjunta RFB/SCS nº 1.429/2018), the code has nine digits: the first is 1, and the following digits indicate chapter, heading, subheadings, item and sub-item. Rule 2a of that version states that when a service seems to fit two headings, the more specific heading prevails over the more generic one.

This is where a standardized description helps the tax team. In the notes to chapter 20 of NBS 2.0, "maintenance" means preventive and "repair" means corrective, and the installation of air conditioning equipment appears under a heading in the construction services chapter. If the record only says "air conditioning service", the tax team cannot choose. If it states the nature, they can. Classification remains a decision for the tax team, who also check which NBS version is currently in force. NBS only applies to operations in Brazil.

NCM and CEST. NCM is the Brazilian classification for goods, not services. It shows up when a contract is mixed and includes supply of materials: the material supplied has its own master record, with its NCM and, where applicable, its CEST, a Brazilian tax attribute for goods that the tax team verifies. The service keeps its NBS. Mixing both under one service code hides the material from inventory management and from tax review.

UNSPSC. Some companies use the UNSPSC classification for procurement spend analysis. If your company uses it, it becomes one more service attribute, tied to the family. It does not replace NBS or the internal taxonomy.

How do you avoid creating a service that already exists?

Before creating, search by attribute, not by word. Filter by family, nature and object, and check what already exists. Text search fails exactly where the old records were written carelessly.

The request workflow needs an owner at each step: the requester asks and fills in the attributes; the clerk checks for duplicates and applies the rule; the technical area validates scope and unit; the tax team verifies the classification; data governance approves any new family or attribute. If your current base is already full of generic and duplicate services, that is a different job: start with cleansing the existing service master data and apply the standard described here to everything created from now on.

Hypothetical example: preventive maintenance of air conditioners

The example below is illustrative. It does not represent a client or a real record.

Template attribute	Selected value
Family	HVAC equipment maintenance
Nature	Preventive maintenance
Object	Split air conditioner
Capacity range	Up to 36,000 BTU/h
Included scope	Filter and coil cleaning, operation check, visit report
Excluded scope	Supply of parts, refrigerant recharge, repair
Unit of measure	Each (unit serviced)
Frequency	Monthly
Type of site	Office building
Service level	Execution in a scheduled window

Generated short description: PREV MAINT SPLIT AC UP TO 36000 BTU MONTHLY

Generated long description: Preventive maintenance of split air conditioners, capacity up to 36,000 BTU/h, monthly frequency, in an office building, performed in a scheduled window. Includes filter and coil cleaning, operation check and visit report. Excludes supply of parts, refrigerant recharge and repair. Measured per unit serviced.

Note what was left out: address, number of units, price and contract term. All of that goes in the contract. If another business unit hires the same service from a different supplier tomorrow, the code is the same. If they need repair, that is a different service, with a different nature and, most likely, a different tax classification.

Where should you start?

1. List the service families the company buys most and pick a few to start with.
2. For each family, define the template: mandatory attributes, allowed values and the assembly order for the short and long descriptions.
3. Build the controlled list of abbreviations and the list of service units of measure, with the criterion for each.
4. Write down the boundary between master record and contract, with what goes on each side, and agree on it with procurement and contracts.
5. Bring the tax team into the workflow to verify the classification before the code is created.
6. Replace the free text field in the request with attributes and make search by attribute mandatory before creating.
7. Once the model is in place, see how service catalog standardization works at scale.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between PDS and a service catalog?

The service catalog is the list of services the company buys, with their codes. PDS is the standard that defines how each service in that catalog is described: family, attributes and the description assembly rule. A catalog without a descriptive standard grows with repeated codes and descriptions nobody can compare.

Can a lump sum service with no measurable unit have a master record?

Yes. The unit becomes lump sum (or service), and the included and excluded scope carries more weight, because it tells you what the fixed price buys. If the same service is sometimes bought by the hour and sometimes as a lump sum, check whether it really is the same service.

Who approves a new service code?

It depends on the company's governance model, but the workflow usually has a clerk who checks for duplicates and applies the rule, a technical area that validates scope and unit, and a tax team that verifies the classification. A new family or attribute should go through data governance, because it changes the standard for everyone.

Can a private company use CATSER as a basis?

CATSER is the service catalog of Brazil's federal public administration, used in purchases through Compras.gov.br. For a private company, it is a reference for how to organize services (hierarchical classification and service units of measure), not an obligation. The company's taxonomy should reflect what it actually buys.

How many attributes should a service family have?

As many as needed so that two different services never get the same description, and no more. Attributes that change with each engagement (address, date, price) stay out. If requesters often leave an attribute blank, check whether it really defines the service.

For operations in Brazil, does the NBS code go in the master record or in the order?

When the service is well described, the classification follows the service and can live in the master record as an attribute verified by the tax team, as in ERPs that include an NBS field in the service master. Situations specific to one operation are handled by the tax team on that operation's document. The classification decision always belongs to the company's tax team.

How 4MDG can help

4MDG applies to the service catalog the same discipline used in PDM: taxonomy by family, attribute templates, rule-based descriptions, deduplication and tax classification. Requesters choose attributes instead of typing free text. ADAM, 4MDG's AI, interprets the free text description, proposes a standardized description, suggests the tax classification and shows the equivalent service already registered; the final decision stays with the team, with an audit trail. See how it works on the service PDS page or request a free diagnostic of your service catalog, which shows duplicates, insufficient descriptions and price dispersion for the same scope. If you would rather talk first, use the contact page.

Disclaimer: NBS classification and other Brazilian tax codes (NCM, CEST and others) are decisions for the company's tax team, who check the version of each table currently in force. This article is about master data standardization and is not legal or tax advice.

Sources

• Brazilian Ministry of Economy, Compras.gov.br. "Manual CATSER e CATMAT" (CATSER and CATMAT manual), version 1, 20 August 2020. gov.br/compras. Accessed 9 November 2026.
• Brazilian Ministry of Management and Innovation in Public Services, PNCP. "Catálogo Eletrônico de Padronização: perguntas frequentes" (Electronic Standardization Catalog: FAQ). gov.br/pncp. Accessed 9 November 2026.
• Brazilian Federal Revenue Service and Secretariat of Trade and Services. Portaria Conjunta RFB/SCS nº 1.429/2018 (Joint Ordinance RFB/SCS No. 1,429/2018), Annex I, NBS version 2.0 (MDIC repository). gov.br/mdic. Accessed 9 November 2026.
• Senior Sistemas. Gestão Empresarial ERP 5.10.4 documentation, "F080SER: Cadastro de Serviços" (service master). documentacao.senior.com.br. Accessed 9 November 2026.
• 4MDG. "Service PDS". 4mdg.com.br/en/pds-servicos. Accessed 9 November 2026.