I recently saw a new specification for sheet numbering from a large EPC company. It defined separate sheet numbering conventions for different types of documents. The supplier must first identify whether the document is text-centric (or "Textual" - funny choice of...

Document control doesn’t mean the same thing to every company. Maybe it’s a department (with staff and management), or maybe it’s someone who handles all the clerical work, or maybe it’s just part of everyone’s job –a process like everything else. Your software...

While not the ideal solution, many companies manage project documentation using Excel. Here are 5 quick tips to consider if you are among them: Build the entire document register upfront.Without this step, you are just flying by the seat of your pants.   In DocBoss,...

I recently watched a presentation by Kathy Sierra at the Business of Software conference (start at 22:18). Her core message was to “make software that makes experts”. If a software application moves the user from capable to expert, it should succeed. I love the...

As a supplier you rely heavily on your project document process to keep organized and on top of critical projects and timelines. What if you could be spending less time manually creating, tracking and submitting documents and more time on writing proposals writing...

No, this is not a take-off on the old “how many engineers does it take to change a light bulb” but rather how do we determine how many Document Controllers it takes to staff a project. In some senses, this question does not have an empirical answer but it is common to...

Many years ago, near the end of a job interview, the interviewer asked me “How many people I had worked for?” I wondered for a moment if he was serious before calmly answering, “Two”. Seeing the puzzled look on his face, I proceeded to explain that one of the ‘two...

As discussed earlier, integrity of our documents is important for many reasons. Reviews and updates might make changes to a specification for example that might correct an otherwise erroneous set of instructions, calibration or other data. It is therefore important...

Microsoft released Word for Windows in 1989 at about $500 a copy and the product has quickly become a desktop standard for many computer users as their offline tool of choice for writing documents. Many companies have invested in MS Word and other products for...

Many Document Controllers use solutions that have evolved over time and people continue to use them because they are adept with Excel, Word, Adobe and other good tools. Apologies to Willie Nelson, but are we “Aging with time like yesterday’s wine” or perhaps should it...

Writer Tony Kryzanowski, in his article in the September 2012 ProcessWest magazine, spoke about the growing trend towards digitization of information being a major contributor to reduced demand for paper. In a Pulp & Paper International magazine survey of young...

The entry of new people to the Document Controller profession was the topic of recent discussion in the LinkedIn Document Control Specialist group. Comments focused on the level of training and experience one should have before their peers consider them a true...