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CFIHOS — the Capital Facilities Information Handover Specification — is an industry standard developed by major owner-operators, EPCs, and suppliers in oil and gas, energy, chemicals, and utilities. It defines what structured asset data must be delivered at project handover, how equipment attributes should be named and structured, and what reference data should be used to describe equipment classes and their technical properties.
At its simplest, CFIHOS is about helping computers talk to other computers — so that information handover on capital projects doesn't have to be complex, costly, and time-consuming. Without CFIHOS, every project handover requires bespoke data mapping between contractor and owner-operator systems. With CFIHOS, all parties share a common language for asset data from the start.
CFIHOS was created to solve one of the most persistent problems in capital projects: asset information delivered at handover that is incomplete, inconsistently structured, or incompatible with owner-operator systems.
CFIHOS stands for Capital Facilities Information Handover Specification. It is maintained as an open collaborative industry initiative, with major owner-operators including Equinor, Shell, bp, and TotalEnergies participating in its governance. The standard is used across oil and gas, energy, chemicals, utilities, and renewables, and has been adopted as a baseline for asset data requirements by many leading operators globally.
CFIHOS is managed under JIP36 — a Joint Industry Project organised by IOGP (the International Association of Oil and Gas Producers). JIP36 was established to develop and maintain practical standardised specifications for information handover across the capital facilities lifecycle. Member organisations include major owner-operators, EPC contractors, equipment manufacturers, and software vendors.
CFIHOS defines multiple conformance levels that reflect the scope and depth of a handover. Owner-operators specify which conformance level is required in the project's Asset Information Requirements (AIR) document:
Understanding the required conformance level is the first step for any EPC or supplier entering a CFIHOS-mandated project. Requirements flow down the supply chain: if the owner-operator mandates Level 3, the EPC must mandate the same from major equipment suppliers.
The CFIHOS Reference Data Library (RDL) is the technical core of the standard. It provides a standardised, hierarchical catalogue of equipment classes — from generic categories like "Rotating Equipment" down to specific types like "Centrifugal Pump" — with defined sets of technical attributes for each class.
For each equipment class, CFIHOS defines the list of required technical attributes, standardised names and definitions, units of measure, and permitted value lists. This enables EPCs and suppliers to structure asset data using the same attribute names and definitions as the owner-operator's systems — eliminating the mapping work that typically consumed weeks on every handover project.
Owner-operators adopting CFIHOS typically mandate delivery of: a complete tag register for all tagged items; technical attribute data structured against CFIHOS RDL equipment classes; engineering documentation linked to the correct equipment tags; and validation evidence demonstrating completeness against agreed thresholds.
These requirements are typically expressed in the project's Asset Information Requirements (AIR) document, which specifies which CFIHOS equipment classes and attributes are in scope.
CFIHOS adoption is contractually mandated on major capex projects across a growing list of owner-operators globally:
EPCs and suppliers who cannot demonstrate CFIHOS compliance are increasingly excluded from projects run by these operators. This makes CFIHOS readiness a commercial prerequisite, not just a technical preference.
CFIHOS 2.0 introduced a substantially expanded Reference Data Library, improved alignment with ISO 15926, clearer guidance on communicating data requirements in contracts, and enhanced support for digital handover workflows. Adoption is accelerating as major operators update their standard contract documents to reference it. EPCs and suppliers who cannot demonstrate CFIHOS 2.0 compliance are increasingly excluded from projects run by leading operators.
In practice, CFIHOS provides the operational content (which attributes, which equipment classes) while ISO 15926 provides the semantic framework that makes the data machine-readable and interoperable.
CFIHOS 2.0 is natively supported by the major asset information management platforms used by owner-operators globally, including AVEVA AIM, Hexagon HxGN SDx, Bentley iTwin, and Cognite Data Fusion.
Owner-operators use Sharecat to manage CFIHOS-compliant asset data and documentation throughout the project lifecycle. The platform consolidates all tagged equipment in a Master Tag Register structured against CFIHOS requirements, receives and validates incoming data from EPCs and suppliers, and links engineering documentation to the correct equipment tags — giving operations teams a complete, audit-ready handover package.
Sharecat integrates directly with enterprise systems including SAP, IBM Maximo, and IFS, ensuring CFIHOS-structured data flows accurately into maintenance and operations workflows from day one.
Is CFIHOS mandatory?
CFIHOS is not a legal requirement but is increasingly mandated contractually by major owner-operators. EPCs and suppliers not capable of delivering CFIHOS-compliant data are being excluded from major capital projects.
Who must comply — EPCs or suppliers?
Both. EPCs are the primary responsible party, but compliance requirements flow down through the supply chain to major equipment suppliers and package vendors.
What is the difference between CFIHOS 1.x and CFIHOS 2.0?
CFIHOS 2.0 introduced a substantially expanded Reference Data Library, improved ISO 15926 alignment, clearer conformance levels, and better support for digital handover workflows. Most major operators are now contracting against CFIHOS 2.0.
How does CFIHOS relate to VDI 2770?
VDI 2770 governs the structure of digital documentation packages; CFIHOS governs the structured attribute data. A complete digital handover typically requires compliance with both.
What is the CFIHOS RDL?
The CFIHOS RDL (Reference Data Library) is the core technical component of the CFIHOS standard. It contains the hierarchical equipment class library, attribute definitions, units of measure, and permitted value lists that make CFIHOS-compliant data exchange possible.
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