A Common Sense Advisory Study: XML Content Management System SCHEMA ST4 Scores with Content Management and Process Optimization

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April 15 2010 - SCHEMA ST4 is the only technical documentation oriented product from Germany that was represented in the study "Global Content Management" by the US consulting company Common Sense Advisory. Altogether, 16 different solutions, from open-source products to component-based content management systems (CCMS), were examined. Among other areas, SCHEMA ST4 convinced analysts in the area of content management. The study covered four different factors necessary for successful global content management. In the multilingual content support category, SCHEMA's software came in third together with EMC Documentum, behind DocZone and IBM FileNet.

 

For international companies to successfully position themselves, global content management strategies, i.e. adapting product information and company presentation to individual target markets, are the decisive factors. According to assessments by the Common Sense Advisory consultants, last year in Germany alone more than a billion US dollars were spent on language services. In their study on global management, viable solutions, along with the most common content management systems, were presented and evaluated in this context. Web content management and technical content management emerged as the most important areas of application.

 

System Requirements for Global Content and Processes

For the creation of content and texts it is important in global content management that systems comfortably support the capture of content as well as subsequent processing, translation, and management. Texts in various languages – including those with non-Latin alphabets – should be easy to publish. Typically, translation and localization are integrated into workflows, so that the exchange of content between systems needs to work seamlessly. Data standards such as TMX or XLIFF, as well as other text standards such as DITA (Darwin Information Typing Architechture) ensure this. In this area, SCHEMA ST4 achieved one of the highest scores with 3.25 of a possible 4.00 points, on the same level as EMC Documentum and behind DocZone and IBM FileNet.

SCHEMA ST4 also scored extremely well in the area of process support. Comparing systems, the consultants examined how integrated the workflows are, how easy the exchange of project data, and how well the integration with language technologies are handled. Here SCHEMA ranked only 0.63 points behind the front-runner.

 

Services and Support by System Providers

Another central aspect of the study was the services and support by the providers. For software interface and user guide localization and customer service and technical support, among doc-oriented systems the global players EMC Documentum and IBM FileNet had the highest scores, followed by SCHEMA ST4.

In regards to multiregional rollout scenarios, SCHEMA still has one or two tasks to accomplish. "We are in the process of implementing our internationalization strategies," comments Stefan Freisler, CEO and responsible for marketing at SCHEMA GmbH. "We are very well prepared for the English-language regions. In the US, for example, SCHEMA ST4 is in use at Philips Healthcare."

 

Future Developments in Global Content Management

Where are we headed? No IT solution is an island, say the Common Sense Advisory consultants. This is especially true for content management systems, the content and texts of which can be used in various departments, or even across an entire company. When selecting a system, therefore, it is very important to ensure an easy integration into the IT environment. Above all, the system should possess standard interfaces to professional translation management solutions.

 

Also very important for the future is the ongoing integration of content component management into the complete product lifecycle management portfolios of classical DMS and ERP providers.

 

SCHEMA – Complex Documents Made Easy!

SCHEMA GmbH was founded in 1995 by a team of IT and documentation spe[censored]ts in Nürnberg, and is represented by over 60 employees in four locations. SCHEMA's flagship standard software is the XML-based editing and content management system SCHEMA ST4, offering efficient features for all aspects of creating, managing, and publishing complex and large amounts of documentation. Its scalability makes it suitable for small editing teams as well as for company-wide solutions for information logistics.

SCHEMA ST4 is successfully deployed across a wide range of industries to manage all tasks around complex documentation including technical documentation, software documentation and help systems, catalogs, labeling for pharmaceutical companies, solutions for specialized publishers, contract and bid management. Integrating SCHEMA ST4 into modern IT environments is simple: implemented in Microsoft .NET Framework, it supports the entire bandwidth of documentation-relevant standards (XML, XSL:FO, DITA, etc.) and boasts a wide range of interfaces (MS Office, Adobe CS, SAP, Documentum, SharePoint). A wide network of partners enables SCHEMA to offer specifically tailored solutions for the various needs of customers and industry.

Among the numerous customers already using SCHEMA ST4-based solutions are: ABB, Agilent, Avaloq, Bosch, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bundesanzeiger Verlagsgesellschaft, Carl Zeiss, Daimler, InterComponentWare, Lindauer Dornier, Lufthansa Systems, MAN, Reifenhäuser, Schaeffler Gruppe, Siemens, Österreichische Bundesbahnen, Philips, STOLL, T-Systems, Voith and Wolffkran.

For more information please visit: http://www.schema.de

 

Press Contacts:

SCHEMA GmbH

Jessica Forster

Marketing

Tel: +49 911 58 68 61-39

Fax: +49 911 58 68 61-70

jessica.forster[at]schema[dot]de

www.schema.de

 

good news! GmbH

Dr. Claudia Rudisch

Tel: +49 451 88199-21

Fax: +49 451 88199-29

claudia[at]goodnews[dot]de

www.goodnews.de

 

Reader Contact SCHEMA

info[at]schema[dot]de

Tel: +49 911 58 68 61-0

 

Distributed on behalf of SCHEMA GmbH by NeonDrum (http://www.neondrum.com)

Nicky Denovan

Tel: +44 7747 017654

nicky[at]neondrum[dot]com