Everyone knows that when a situation gets out of hand and the first responders are in over their heads, sometimes you’ve got call in SWAT. 

Police work? No, something far more adrenaline-fueled and dangerous. Documentation.

Picture this:

A manufacturer is scrambling to finish up and prepare for delivery the latest iteration of one of their most popular pieces of equipment. Three weeks before it is scheduled to ship, someone realizes they forgot to prepare the operator and service documentation that is required to accompany the equipment to their customer overseas.

Internal resources are tapped. Engineers and technicians work day and night preparing the machine for shipment and delivery. In an office adjacent to the assembly floor,  the engineering manager and product line manager furrow their brows with growing concern. Completing the documentation on time is only one-half the problem. The other half is doing so in such a way that corresponds favorably with the quality and innovation of this new piece of equipment. A hastily assembled three-ring binder full of notes and photocopied vendor-supplied spec sheets just weren’t going to cut it this time.

What do they do?

They call in a SWAT team. Well, ok. Maybe not the guys with the bullet proof vests and flash-bang grenades, but a documentation SWAT team. (Which, let’s face it, is almost as cool.) This team shows up in khakis and button-down shirts, armed with notebooks, digital cameras and laptops loaded with high-power publishing software.

And like the real SWAT, this documentation team is equipped with special training.  Armed with the education and real-world experience of mechanical and electrical engineering as well as computer science and communications, a well-rounded team of specialists that is singularly focused on the mission of getting in and getting back out with minimal long-term cost.

When the team shows up on site, they rapidly assess the situation and map out a plan. In short order, a project scope is hammered out, and the team goes to work.

The team descends on the equipment and rapidly determine how it works, what the major components are, and what needs to be included in the documentation. Encounters with engineers and technicians might prove troublesome for some teams, but not this one. They speak the language; fluent in “engineer” and well-versed in the world of equipment manufacturing. At the same time, the teams’ offsite support are already preparing a template to house the content.

The team supplies everything. Need a picture of this component? No problem. Need to facilitate the inclusion of  CE warning labels but can’t find all of them? They’ll find them. Need an engineering drawing converted or modified? They’ve got you covered. Need to facilitate the upload of  large files for inclusion into the documentation? The team will have a secure file transfer site up for you in minutes. Want to design a completely new documentation layout to better represent your company? The team will provide you with samples to choose from, or create a completely new one. Have a requirement for an additional language? They have specialists for that, too.

Digital cameras flash. The rapid firing of keystrokes punctuates the noise of the assembly floor. Notepads are exhausted and pens run dry.

It’s the end of day one, and the team is ready to present a working outline. By the end of week one, the team will have draft content ready for review. By the end of week three, the documentation has been completed and delivered. Along the way, the team has reported daily and weekly progress, organized and facilitated review meetings, and managed the process of seeking out, capturing, and maintaining content edits.

Wouldn’t it be great if such a team existed? A team of specialists that you could call in to respond to your product documentation needs without having to hold their hands? A team that has the skills, know-how and appreciation for your time and resources? A team that could get in, get out and provide you with a quality and on-time deliverable with no long-term investment? Sound too good to be true?

Some questions for equipment manufacturers out there:

Have you ever wished for a documentation “SWAT” team? What would prevent you from utilizing such a team? What questions or concerns might you ask or want to discuss with this team?

I’d love to hear your thoughts. Drop us a note here or feel free to use the comments feature.