Picking the best primary key + numbering system

Question

We are trying to come up with a numbering system for the asset system that we are creating, there has been a few heated discussions on this topic in the office so I decided

Answer 1

While natural keys may have great meaning to the business users, if you do not have the agreement that those keys are sacred and should not be altered, you will more than likely be pulling your hair out while maintaining a database where the "product codes have to be changed to accommodate the new product line the company acquired." You need to protect the RI of your data, and integers as primary keys with auto-increment are the best way to go. Performance is also better when indexing and traversing integers than char columns.

While not appropriate as primary keys, natural keys are very appropriate for user consumption and you can enforce uniques via an index. They bring a context to the data that will make it easier for all parties to understand. Also, in the advent that you need to reload data, the natural keys can help verify that your lookups are still valid.