By Glenn Gallop, President, forProject Technology, Inc.
TL;DR: The Department of War approved Revision D of the IPMDAR Data Item Description (DI-MGMT-81861D) on March 12, 2026. The file formats are unchanged. What changes is the content: several items that were optional are now defaults or required, and a new Table 1 lets the CDRL spell out exactly which options apply.
Read the source: DI-MGMT-81861 Rev D, ASSIST QuickSearch
Rev D keeps the IPMDAR file formats as they are. The changes are in what you report and how plainly the CDRL can ask for it.
Note: Rev D applies when a contract’s CDRL calls for it. Contracts already reporting under an earlier revision follow the revision their CDRL names.
What changed
| Change | What Rev D requires |
|---|---|
| New Table 1: CDRL options | The CDRL picks from defaults and alternates: reporting level (control account, or work package/planning package), to-date detail, indirects add or non-add, elements of cost, custom fields, delivery, variance selection and more |
| Dollars and hours | Both required for direct-reporting contractors. Rev C allowed tailoring this out |
| Same As-of Date | The cost data, schedule and narrative share one As-of Date and the same contract information |
| Monthly, single delivery | Monthly, due within 16 government business days. A single delivery unless the CDRL says incremental |
| Comprehensive EAC | A bottom-up estimate at least annually, reported as the Most Likely EAC when developed. Best Case and Worst Case EACs are defined |
| Variance analysis | By default, variance analysis on the 15 control accounts with the most significant variances |
| Staffing and rates | Now required in every monthly Executive Summary. In Rev C they were optional |
| Schedule risk assessment inputs | Three-point durations, distributions and risk links go in custom fields in the IMS, listed in the Data Dictionary |
| Custom fields | The CDRL may explicitly require custom fields on control accounts, work packages, planning packages and SLPPs, plus custom summary elements such as indirects, UB and MR. The government may reserve specific schedule fields at the task level. These were already optional under earlier revisions |
| Heading data | Adds contract number, contract type, effort name and contractor location |
| Signature statement | Prescribed wording: the data is accurate, authoritative and matches the EVMS of record |
| File formats | Unchanged. The March 2020 File Format Specifications and Data Exchange Instructions still apply |
What this means for you
For most contractors, Rev D is a setup and process change rather than a systems change. Your exports should still validate. The work is in reading your CDRL’s Block 16 against Table 1 and adjusting your monthly routine to match.
Two items will touch the monthly cycle right away: the Executive Summary now has to cover staffing and rates every month, and the 16-day deadline leaves little slack in the close.
EVMS forProject already supports the Rev D requirements, so no software update is needed.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happened? The DoW approved IPMDAR DID Rev D (DI-MGMT-81861D) on March 12, 2026. It supersedes Revisions A, B and C.
Does this affect me? Yes, if you report IPMDAR on a contract whose CDRL cites Rev D. New contracts and modifications are the most likely to call for it.
Is any action required? Compare your CDRL with Table 1, confirm you report both dollars and hours, and update your narrative template for staffing and rates.
Where can I learn more? Read the DID on ASSIST, and see the DoW’s IPMDAR file format page linked above.
Sources and further reading
- DI-MGMT-81861 Rev D (12-MAR-2026), ASSIST QuickSearch
- IPMDAR DEI and FFS, DoW API Integrated Program Management
- forProject Encyclopedia: IPMDAR, IPMR, Estimate at Completion, Control Account, Work Package, Summary Level Planning Package, CDRL, Integrated Master Schedule, Variance Analysis Report, Schedule Risk Assessment
Added to our news archive on October 7, 2026.