A common source database, or CSDB is used to store the items that go to make up the project’s documentation data. So this may include data modules, illustrations or multimedia, common information and management information. S1000D does not define a CSDB in detail; instead, it defines the objectives for a CSDB:

~ support the technical publication process
~ support the controlled authoring
~ support the QA process
~ support the data exchange with partners, suppliers and customers
~ support the delivery of technical publications on various media independent from the source storage format

There are several reasons you may need a CSDB, but you also need to look at the type of CSDB. Start by thinking about your project:

Are you producing S1000D data modules for just one component, or for a whole product?

A product might be an aircraft, a ship, or any type of product that needs lots of complex documentation. We use S1000D to document our software products as it helps save us time when updating components. The bigger the project the more items that will need documenting. The more complex the documentation the more you will need a CSDB to manage the modules and version.

How many data modules do you need to produce and manage?

If it is just a few data modules and illustrations, you may get away with a folder in a file system. However, think about author control, version management, links between different modules and media content. All these add complexity to managing your data modules. A CSDB should help you both manage the content and the processes – for example authors checking in documents, a formal review system and history tracking. The CSDB will also help show the relationships between items – for example, an illustration used in multiple data modules; this tracking can save huge amounts of time and prevent costly mistakes, ensuring all related content is updated when a change is required in one of the linked items.

Does your prime manufacturer require you to use a CSDB for S1000D?

If you are producing S1000D data for someone else, for example when your component is installed in their product, they may require you to use a CSDB. There are added benefits to this – your project rules, numbering, and delivery can all be synchronised with the Prime, helping you deliver to specification first time round. Saving re-work saves money.

Will you have multiple authors or authoring teams working on the documentation?

One of the hardest things without a management tool, is monitoring workflow. Who is working on each data module? Who has spare capacity? Who has done the review and Quality Assurance work? Are your data modules (and all their linked content) ready to issue / deliver?

Can you show the history and validity of your data?

Sadly sometimes things go wrong and one of the costliest items in the production of modern equipment can be re-working mistakes and correcting badly specified material. The CSDB provides you with multiple tools to help prevent errors and mitigate problems: detailed history shows who changed what content, who approved it, and who issued it, ensuring duly qualified and authorised team members complete the work. Additionally, the management of attachments with work instructions, engineering certificates and such like, shows that any necessary governance steps have been completed. Finally, at the point of issue, you can ensure only correctly verified and issued data goes into your technical publications.

Contiem’s aerospace and defence team have worked with several CSDBs over the years, supporting customers to manage their S1000D content in an efficient way. Many of these CSDBs are very sophisticated and capable, but that brings complexity and a high price tag. Having spoken to many component manufacturers, where often smaller teams are managing the authoring process, we have identified the need for a lower cost, easy to deploy CSDB to end the struggle to justify the large budget and complexity of other systems.

In response to this need we have developed notusCSDB using a tried and tested CMS platform. This light weight system has all the functionality needed to manage your S1000D content but without the high price tag and complex setup found with the larger systems on the market. We did not want to produce yet another complicated, high-end S1000D CSDB just because we could. For us, it is always about solving real life problems. All this is backed by the high standard of support provided by Contiem’s in-house support team.