"Our peak loads have been reduced and the customer benefit of our technical documentation sustainably increased"
Successful collaboration between Siemens SI BP and kothes.
Intelligent building infrastructure requires intelligent documentation...
kothes has supported Siemens Smart Infrastructure Building Products (SI BP) in technical documentation since 2011. The company was looking for a service provider with a high level of authoring expertise, experience with modern content management systems, short lines of communication and fast response times. kothes also meets these requirements through kothes Schweiz GmbH, which has been advising Swiss clients since 2006.
The cooperation began with individual projects. In the process, kothes became familiar with Siemens requirements and processes. These positive experiences led to the development of a trusting partnership. As capacity bottlenecks increased, kothes took on ever more extensive tasks – eventually from all business areas of building automation.
... and smart content management.
Creating, managing, and publishing complex technical documentation projects requires smart content management – especially when information from different source systems is to be combined into an attractive and easily accessible information offering. Building Products was faced with the challenge of introducing a new system that could perform precisely this task. Specifically, the goal was to create a central information platform for the world of Building Products. The technical information should be accessible to all user audiences – from service technicians to customers and external partners – with just a few clicks.
Content delivery for high demands
Which system best suits these requirements? This isn't an easy question to answer, in view of the confusing market for Content Delivery Portals.
The good news is that Siemens was able to rely on kothes' expertise in selecting and implementing the new system.
The approach was as follows: In a joint kick-off meeting, the central milestones for the system launch were first defined as part of a roadmap. Important questions in this context were: Which individual use cases must the new system cover?
How should the information be organised in the system in the future? Which interfaces to other systems are required?
With the central requirements in hand, the hot phase of system selection began.
Vendor-neutral system consulting – from selection to implementation
In this case, we supported Building Products in our role as neutral and independent consultants and moderators. For example, we helped with the pre-selection of suitable system providers and established contact with the preferred vendors, who in turn presented their solutions in the form of short demos.
From an empty portal to a usable information architecture
After the system had been selected, the portal had to be brought to life – in other words, with clearly structured and user-oriented content.
Step 1: Define the metadata concept
To do this, we first developed a metadata concept for the new system, along with the BP team. Technical editorial metadata is the key to efficient content management and a prerequisite for ensuring that content can be reliably found, thanks to navigation and faceting.
Quick emergency assistance and sustainable added value
Following numerous successfully completed documentation projects and a successful system rollout: How does the technical writing team at Building Products reflect upon its cooperation with kothes to date?
In addition to the flexibility and short response time of the service provider, Rolf Schumacher specifically appreciates the fact that Building Products has found, in kothes, a point of contact for all questions relating to technical documentation. kothes quickly adapts to changing circumstances, as they are part of the day-to-day business with the large number of Building Products projects – which can vary greatly in terms of content, scope and deadline pressure. The close cooperation in the short-term provision of resources has proved to be particularly successful. "When the going gets tough", says Rolf Schumacher, "a short telephone call and a minimal briefing are all it takes, and we have competent support at our side within the shortest possible time. kothes has often cushioned our peak demands."
"In kothes, we've found a service provider that we've come to know and appreciate as a professional partner for technical documentation. Our business relationship has developed very positively and promisingly, and kothes can provide us with further valuable input, especially with regard to the strategic planning of the future direction of our technical documentation."
Rolf Schumacher
Head Technical Communication
Siemens SI BP
