Customer Case Study: Epson America

keywords: technical documentation, technical publishing, DITA CMS, end-user documentation, content reuse, translation, tech docs, DocZone DITA Publisher

The History

Epson America, Inc. is the U.S. affiliate of Japan-based Seiko Epson Corporation, a global technology company at the forefront of technological revolutions in imaging, robotics, precision machinery, and electronics. Epson offers an extensive array of award-winning image capture and image output products for the consumer, photographic, business, and graphic arts markets. The company is also a leading supplier of value-added point-of-sale (POS) printers and transaction terminals for the retail market.

The Challenge

The documentation team at Epson America produces end-user documentation in English, French, Spanish, and Portuguese for U.S., Canada, and Latin American markets. The team creates user guide kits for approximately 90 products a year, including printed guides and setup sheets, online HTML and PDF manuals, and videos. Content is delivered in print, on CDs, and via the web, and translated to four languages simultaneously.

The Solution

To keep up with the growing workload, Epson America selected DocZone DITA Publisher to manage its publishing process from content creation through delivery. Epson America needed to move from unstructured to structured content and establish an environment where authors could work on the topic level rather than the document level. To streamline editorial assignments and workflow, Epson America also required that multiple authors contribute to multiple projects. Critical to the success of its CMS initiative, Epson America demanded no interruption in its documentation process, and the entire project had to be completed without the assistance of in-house IT or programming staff.

The Results

Epson America now uses DocZone DITA Publisher to produce online web help and PDF manuals. The team documents 90 products a year and publishes all of them simultaneously in four languages. Confirming that Epson America’s committment to quality documentation was upheld, one of its online web help manuals received a “Best of Show” award at a regional competition by the Society for Technical Communications. Having used the system for more than 3 years, Epson America has acheived significant cost savings and time reduction results:

• 100% reduction in time spent formatting output separately in each of the four languages

• 70% to 100% component reuse from project to project

• 70% reduction in translation time

• 50% reduction in time spent researching resource content and revision histories

• 40% more product documentation with the same staff

"We selected DocZone because it is the only DITA-specific CMS available as a hosted solution that met all of our requirements. Now our Documentation team can focus on the content, while the system brings translation and output formats together."
--Nancy Thompson, CMS Implementation Specialist, Epson America