Convert IBM Zoned-Decimal EBCDIC data to NUMBER format

We're importing IBM mainframe data to an 8i database via the UTL_FILE package. The data is produced on an IBM in COBOL, as zoned-decimal (COBOL PICture S9(10)V999). Because this format of data has letters in the last byte of the number, which denotes the numbers's sign, Oracle doesn't like it.

The TO_NUMBER function works with display numbers (no sign), but not with the signed data.

How do we communicate the fact that this data is 'zoned', not dislpay to the TO_NUMBER function? None of the NLS_PARAMS I've seen account for the 'zone' or 'overpunch' byte that represents both the least significant digit, and the sign of the number itself.

Is there a direct way to translate this type of data into an understandable form for Oracle?

  I could write a procedure to parse the number (replacing the letter with the approprate number, and signing the entire number accordingly). But there must be a better way.

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