Reference Projects

To get a feeling for the type of work we do, check out the brief descriptions of projects below. This is only a sampling of the kind of work we do, but we hope you will be able to get an idea of our scope. Of course, references are available on request. Just give us a call.

Airline Manufacturer and Service Provider

Architag analysts and programmers have designed and implemented several subsystems for a commercial aircraft manufacturer, and a provider of services for the airline industry.

For a commercial airline manufacturer, Architag personnel designed and implemented a work card system to extract A-, B-, and C-check cards for regular aircraft maintenance procedures. This was done by developing a DTD for work cards, implementing a multi-level configuration management design, and writing OmniMark programs to extract a work card for a specific configuration. The system is designed to deliver to airline carrier customers so they can save money and increase accuracy by automating their work card production system.

For a service provider of information for the airline industry, Architag analysts and programmers converted an Aircraft Maintenance Manual (AMM) from Interleaf to SGML using OmniMark.

In another project, we created programs to convert two FAA publications from WordPerfect to SGML. We created a FrameMaker+SGML element definition document (EDD) optimized for conversion cleanup and editing. We created a second EDD for publishing a paper document, and a third EDD for creating a looseleaf deliverable. The SGML from the editing system is transferred to another subsystem for creating CD-ROMs without any manual intervention.

Commercial Airline

For an international airline, a Senior Publishing Consultant was involved in the early design of a system to integrate maintenance data, including work cards and the Aircraft Maintenance Manual (AMM). This project involved preparation for accepting data for the Boeing 777 aircraft. The carrier was also expanding to another maintenance operations center, which required all paper documentation to be converted to SGML documents adhering to the ATA-2100 specification. The Senior Publishing Consultant worked with the airline to create specifications for the conversion and implementation of an SGML-based editorial, document maintenance, and distribution system.

Legal Publishing

Architag' analysts have assisted legal publishing companies in converting printed books into electronic products. The data include proprietary typesetting files, word-processing documents, on-line data feeds, government-supplied electronic data, and even typewritten paper.

Architag helped the publishers convert all of this data into an SGML database, and then wrote translation programs to convert the SGML data into Folio infobase files that were delivered to customers on CD-ROM.

Our systems approach to SGML translation provides the customer with a set of programs that will allow push-button operation when the data is to be translated into various deliverables. This allows our clients to react quickly to market trends by providing an information asset that can be turned into products.

Medical Publishing

Architag' programmers and analysts helped a re-publisher of medical journals design a system to convert SGML files into a proprietary format for loading into the client's CD-ROM delivery environment, then wrote the programs and procedures for monthly production. Several medical journals are now received each month as SGML files for conversion.

Architag' involvement in the process allowed the re-publisher to concentrate on content and marketing, while we provided high-quality data to their production process on a monthly basis.

Government Publishing

Architag is a major subcontractor on the huge U.S. Department of Defense Joint Continuous Acquisition and Lifecycle Support (JCALS) project. Our analysts have been involved in every part of the JCALS SGML system design and implementation for the past five years.

Architag was a critical partner in the design and implementation of the JCALS Quest initiative, which was the first CALS-based system to publish loose-leaf legacy data.

Software Publishing

Architag performed a corporate wide publishing system needs assessment for a major software manufacturer. This was brought about by their acquisitions of smaller companies that all had their own publishing systems. The goal was to come up with a common, "federated" publishing architecture that would allow for intelligent storage, authoring, re-use, and consistent look and feel for their documents corporate-wide.

Another advantage that our client sees as a result of such an intelligent system is the ability to publish on many different media, including paper, CD-ROM, on-line help files, on-line documentation, and internet delivery.

Academic Publishing

Architag has assisted publishers of scientific journals to manage submissions from authors who use word processors and various forms of the TeX typesetting language. The dynamics of the academic publishing environment precluded these publishers from mandating a single authoring environment. The task was to allow authors to use their favorite authoring platform while producing documents that could be submitted electronically.

Architag designed style sheets for popular word processors, and a system to accept these electronic submissions and convert them with a combination of automatic programming and clerical clean-up. The database of SGML-tagged information was then used to provide multiple output forms including paper, HTML, and CD-ROM delivery.

Manufacturing Publishing

Architag has been involved in several large manufacturers' efforts to convert their documents into SGML-based information management systems. We assisted a manufacturer of ship-board defense systems to convert their Interleaf data to SGML so they could deliver their documentation as an interactive electronic technical manual (IETM).

For a consumer products manufacturer, we conducted document analysis, DTD development, and translation programming for technical documentation, press releases, and product catalogs that were to be delivered on the World Wide Web. We also assisted this company in the development of a centralized information repository methodology for corporate-wide information assets.

Data Conversion

Architag converted a year's worth of technical papers to SGML for a semiconductor industry group. About half of the pages were converted from electronic form, and the other half was keyed offshore. An Architag analyst was the single point-of-contact for the client, and took sole responsibility for receiving the raw data from the client, sending the converted data back to the client, and providing weekly status reports.

One of the values we added to the process was to prepare the hard-copy data before sending it offshore. Then, when SGML data came back from the data capture house, we assured that it parsed to the DTD and that the content was semantically correct.

We also pioneered several methods to allow the data capture personnel to take shortcuts while keying the data. We wrote programs to expand these shortcuts into valid tags. The net result of this procedure was to lower the total number of keystrokes, which reduced the data capture cost for the customer.

Training

Through our Architag University division, Architag offers public training courses in topic areas such as SGML and XML syntax and implementation, OmniMark programming, Text Database design, SGML Applications development, Framemaker+SGML implementation, and other topics required by our clients. Our pre-defined modules can be put together in any configuration to provide customized training at a lower cost. Several popular configurations are available. Architag University works closely with vendors of SGML-related products and tools to offer up-to-date training materials, and Architag University is an approved training vendor for Adobe Systems and OmniMark Technologies. In keeping with Architag' commitment to vendor neutrality, we use the vendors' training materials when appropriate, and add our own when necessary to give our students a true, objective view of how each vendor's product can work in their environment.

Architag University was founded to expand the business case, technical training, and practical uses for SGML, XML, and related technologies and the tools that support them. Courses have been presented through the University of Wisconsin at Madison; California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo; University of California at Los Angeles; and directly to end-users at client sites.

Architag University also offers private "in-plant" courses customized for your people and delivered at your site.