The system is a batch process that retrieves part numbers from input files, applies transformations to the numbers based on a set of business rules and reference data contained in a database, and then writes the transformed part numbers to output files. The process runs daily. The Scope of this component includes common utility subroutines, which will be used by other parts of the system. This component defines the util.pm Perl module which defines the common subroutines to be used by the other components of the system, like getting the database connection , closing the database connection, getting the current time stamp and so on. Keywords: Perl, software, programming, contest, competitive, code, development, topcoder