Océ document outsourcing streamlines companies’ business processes

Technical Documentation Lifecycle Services deliver benefits at every stage of the product lifecycle

Venlo, the Netherlands, 28 February 2007— Océ has further extended its Technical Documentation Lifecycle Services to streamline companies’ user and service documentation processes at every stage of the product lifecycle. Companies can gain major business benefits by outsourcing these document processes to a specialised supplier with proven competence in this field. The benefits extend from R&D right through to marketing and after-sales service, leading to higher customer satisfaction levels, shorter time to market and faster service response, stronger brand consistency and reduced exposure to potential liability issues. Key benefits: ensured legal compliance, ensured brand consistency, decrease of throughput time up to 40%, and decrease of direct and indirect costs of up to 25%.

With Océ Technical Documentation Lifecycle Services (TDLS), Océ offers much more than simply handling the origination and production of manuals and related product documentation. By introducing a controlled, end-to-end document process based on best practices at every stage, it takes out unnecessary costs, delays and other shortcomings which can lead to challenges right through the business chain. 

Mastering documentation-related manufacturing challenges

For example companies today have given a great deal of attention to perfecting their manufacturing processes. However that does not always apply to their technical documentation, which is an integral part of the product. The need for a personalised documentation approach has increased greatly as a result of globalisation, exploding product diversity, ever-shorter product lifecycles, mass customisation, multi-language product launches and the increasing range of communication channels. In fact product-related documentation now need to be available on-demand, and on a just-in-time basis, minimising time-to-market and ensuring that the correct documentation package is ready for each individual product at the end of the production line.
 
In many cases existing documentation-related approaches cannot keep pace with this fast-increasing demand, often resulting in costly delays in product shipments. At the same time documentation-related process costs are rising out of control because of increasing staffing demands and suboptimal, time-consuming working methods.  

Well controlled process with high level of automation

In contrast, Océ introduces a well controlled process with a high level of automation. Procedures for content generation and responsibility are laid down, freeing up R&D staff who were frequently asked to handle this part of the process. Extensive re-use of approved information such as text, both native and translated, photographs, charts and diagrams as well as corporate identity elements, together with a template-driven working approach, enforces consistency and optimises consistent brand presentation while reducing the manual workload to an absolute minimum. Océ developed its TDLS approach to meet its own professional documentation requirements for its range of copiers, printers, software and services and is currently implementing the same approach for major customers in a number of countries. Based on its proven competences in all document-related processes, Océ can give companies the assurance that they will be able to meet their technical documentation obligations on a continuing basis.  

Up to 25% savings in direct costs

Not only does Océ deliver significant benefits in the performance of the document process itself, these are also associated with big savings in both direct and indirect costs. Savings can be as high as 25 per cent in direct costs, and even more in indirect and consequential costs. As well as that, customers can reduce indirect staff numbers, for example by transferring documentation personnel to Océ which undertakes to retrain and reskill them to operate effectively with the new, state-of-the-art document processes.
 
A further key benefit of Océ’s document approach is that it makes costs and agreed deliverables transparent and measurable. Traditional document processes are deeply embedded in the organisation, which means they are virtually impossible to measure. For example the proportion of staff costs attributable to document processes may not be known, and resource costs may be borne at departmental level, making it almost impossible to see the overall picture. With outsourcing to Océ, costs are made visible in their totality. This not only simplifies budgeting, it also allows the introduction of metrics for meaningful performance monitoring and improvement against predefined service level agreements. The result is a built-in capability for continuous improvement, delivering ever-higher performance together with progressive cost savings.

For further information, please contact:

Nick Gale
Manager Media Relations
Océ Technologies
Tel.: +31.77.359.5628
Email: nick.gale@oce.com