Case Study: Achieving Operational efficiency at SAS via a fully supported document management solution

Author: Carina Dahlqvist, Publishing Manager, SAS Group Operations

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Achieving Operational effi­ciency at SAS via a fully supported document management solution

Carina Dahlqvist, Publishing Manager at SAS Group Operations outlines the benefits of implementing a fully supported document management solution for the maintenance, publication and distribution of flight operations manuals at SAS.

Introduction

Carina Dahlqvist works as a publishing manager at SAS, where she has been working for thirty years. In 2017 she took on her current role and responsibilities ensuring that the publications and information are always correct and available for end users. As well as supporting the airline, Carina’s team of three co-workers supplies publishing and information support for other companies within the group’s operations. The team now works in partnership with Vistair to ensure the efficiencies of revisions production for publications and all of SAS’s manuals.

About SAS

SAS has a vision to make life easier for Scandinavia’s frequent travellers, with SAS, users becoming part of a community experiencing easy, joyful and reliable services, delivered the Scandinavian way. The airline’s DNA is to be Scandinavian by name and by nature, through three operational priorities: with safety always, always first followed by punctuality and then, care. The business’s CEO has coined a new word to describe the philosophy and ethics that underpin that vision and DNA, ‘Scandibility’. It stands for Scandinavian (to value cooperation, creativity, equality and mutual respect between people), abilities (to feed a steady appetite for innovation and technological progress) and sustainability in all its aspects, as the core of what SAS does.

As at August 2018, the SAS fleet included 65 Boeing 737-600/700/800; 38 Airbus A320 family (a fleet which is scheduled to grow in the next few years as further aircraft are delivered); eight A330 and A340 and, also scheduled for delivery between 2019 and 2021, eight Airbus A350s. SAS publishing co-ordinates about 200 documents, most of them being SAS Scandinavia including documents on safety, security, flight operations and crew training, ground operations and CAMO. The team also supports other units with, for example, a Safety Feedback magazine and working with the internal communications system.

Document Management challenges

Before SAS started working with Vistair and DocuNet, the publications team was using a legacy document management process to manage its airline documentation which resulted in a number of challenges:

1. Multiple Editing Tools

The SAS publications team worked in-house using multiple tools to support a range of different formats (PDF, XML, SGML and Paper). This resulted in inconsistency in manual editing and distribution across the group.

• Duplication of Content

A mismatch of tools meant that Technical Manuals and Ground Operations Manuals were published on a different system than that used for Flight Operations Manuals, making it difficult to collaborate between departments.

• Multiple Distribution Platforms

SAS wanted the publications team to be able to publish on multiple platforms such as iPads and PCs and mobile phones: however, with the legacy document management system, this was not possible.

As a result of these challenges, SAS recognised the need for an enterprise-wide document management solution to enable a seamless process for the maintenance, publication and distribution of flight operations manuals throughout their operation.

The approach to improvement

Having identified the issues that resulted from a legacy document management process, SAS needed a solution that satisfied the following requirements:

1. SAS wanted to control all document content and distribution via a single, user-friendly and usable platform
2. A solution that supported multi-platform delivery was essential to eliminated confusion, increase consistency and ensure regulatory compliance at all times.
3. The ability to distribute to online viewers such as those using EFBs (both online and offline)
4. SAS also wished to improve time, effort and efficiency across the technical publications team

Transition to DocuNet

By selecting a fully supported document management solution such as DocuNet, all of the above requirements were met. Balancing cutting-edge technology with publishing expertise, DocuNet is an efficient and effective document management system that combines both software and service. Whilst DocuNet software enables a simple and interactive process for SAS to control the intellectual content of manuals, Vistair’s DocuNet service implements these changes to the master structured data within the manuals. SAS and Vistair now work in a partnership to ensure the delivery of mission-critical content across all platforms.

Update, Maintenance and Future-Proof Technology

As part of the on-going partnership with Vistair, SAS will continue to benefit from DocuNet’s future proof technology. This involves updates and enhancements to make sure that DocuNet service supports their operational needs both now and in the future. One of DocuNet’s recent enhancements – The Compliance and Regulation Matrix – will allow SAS to benefit from sophisticated regulation tagging within their operating manuals, providing direct linkage to both global and local regulatory documents, such as EASA Air Ops and IOSA Standards, across their manual suite.

Control and visibility

DocuNet allows SAS to have full control and visibility of their documents. Features such as DocuNet compliance dashboard means that SAS can determine, at a glance, who has and who has not updated their manuals. This feature also provides assurance that new processes or procedures have been distributed and delivered to SAS operational crews.

Contributor’s Details

Carina Dahlqvist

Since joining SAS in 1989, Carina was spent 30 years in different positions including Ground Handling at Arlanda airport. In 2017, she became publishing manager, responsible for SAS Scandinavia’s manuals, ensuring publications and information are always correct and available to end users and responsible for regulatory compliance for SAS Group Companies and production partners.