Many companies experience employees storing off-line copies of operational documents that are important to their job. The desire to create these “personal off-line libraries” stems from employees trying to solve valid challenges:

  • finding the correct PDF files on the company shared drive can sometimes be challenging

  • when the correct PDF file is found, it usually contains a lot of information that is not relevant to the employee’s role

  • bulky shared drives and PDF files are not mobile. Railway conductors and field engineers simply need the information as close as their pocket.

 

Naturally any company operating in regulated industries is concerned about “personal off-line libraries” because:

  • documentation evolves over time and employees often forget to update off-line libraries

  • employees following outdated procedures may put the company, equipment, customers, or fellow employees at risk

  • and (unfortunately) “personal off-line libraries” tend to get shared

How are railways and other highly regulated industries addressing this?

Organizations that manage critical infrastructure (such as railways, airlines, etc.) are adopting documentation management tools that deliver employees always up-to-date content, to whatever device they use, and display only the information relevant for the employees’ role and task.

 

Figure 1: Importing legacy documentation into Yonder allows users to limit the visible content within documents to their particular role and mission.

Information is converted from static PDFs (or any source) into “information modules” which are tagged.  This allows quick searching and filtering that delivers end-users only the information they need for their role and task which saves time, and reduces errors.

Consider this short example:

A commuter railway conductor receives information that unforeseen winter conditions resulted in hazardous track conditions ahead.


The train conductor has limited time to verify the correct procedure and adjust speed. On their mobile device, the conductor filters procedures for the train type and weather-related risk, and instantly sees only the information relevant to a conductor for the type of train and trailing tonnage being operated.

An example from the aviation industry illustrates how this is achieved in just a few clicks:

 

 

Displaying the right information at the right time to frontline employees.

When employees have a modern documentation management solution on their desktop or mobile device, there is no possibility for them to build “personal off-line libraries”.  That is just one reason why organizations operating critical infrastructure in railways, the aviation industry, national power grid operators, and armed forces adopt solutions using “information modules” rather than static PDFs.

Yonder is a leading provider of a documentation management solution that leverages the full potential of digitalization by offering a solution built around dynamic content rather than static documents, creating a modern, user-centric experience. To see how Yonder works, click the demo link (top right) or join us in a webinar.

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