Structured content
Technical Publications & Structured Content
Aviation, defence and industrial documentation is not a writing problem — it is an engineering one. Content has to carry its own revision, configuration and entitlement, publish to several destinations from one source, and prove what applied on a given date. This is the practice our US entity leads on, and the work behind the aviation publications platforms we build and run for SES.
- 2018
- building since
- 70+
- designers, engineers and product people
- 5
- regionsAustralia, Europe, the Philippines, the Middle East and the USA
- 6,500+
- commits across six repositoriesthe three SES aviation platforms we build and still run
What the practice covers
Analysis and strategy
Content audits, architecture assessment, platform selection and readiness planning — including whether your content is in a state where AI could be grounded in it. This is usually where an engagement starts, and it is deliberately an assessment rather than a pitch: sometimes the answer is that the current setup is fine and the problem is elsewhere.
Standards-based content engineering
S1000D across issues 2.1 to 6, MIL-STD-40051 and MIL-STD-3001 for Army and NAVAIR manuals, ATA iSpec 2200, Spec 1000BR and Spec 2300 for civil aviation, plus DITA, DocBook, SGML and the W3C XML family. Content architecture, authoring and publishing pipelines, automated composition and quality assurance against the relevant DTDs.
Integrating the engineering toolchain
Technical publications do not sit on their own. We have exported ACT and PCT XML compatible with PTC Windchill and synchronised product and document metadata with the Oracle Agile database, so the publication record and the engineering record stay in step rather than drifting apart between releases.
Legacy migration
Converting documentation that exists as Word, FrameMaker, older SGML or PDF into structured, single-source content. Conversion quality depends entirely on how consistently the source was written, so we audit first and tell you what is genuinely automatable versus what needs editorial work — rather than discovering it halfway through.
The platforms underneath
Publications databases, service request portals, parts catalogues, dealer and operator portals. Documents that carry revisions, configurations and audit trails, with entitlement enforced at the data layer so a query can only ever return what that operator is allowed to see.
AI grounded in approved content
Retrieval and search built on versioned, entitlement-aware source, so answers cite where they came from and stay inside what has been signed off. Structured content is the prerequisite for this, not a competing project — a model pointed at a folder of PDFs cannot show its working.
Training and ongoing operations
Hands-on training in DITA, S1000D and MIL-STD-40051 aimed at building internal capability rather than permanent dependency, plus ongoing support, content refresh and escalation once a platform is live.
Shakewell LLC — our US entity
One team, two front doors. shakewellusa.com is the site for the US market, where the deepest standards specialism sits and where aerospace, defence and next-generation aviation programs are served. If you are buying from the US, start there.
The proof
Work we have shipped, not a capability deck.
- SES (formerly Intelsat)Three connected platforms for aviation technical publications — a publications database as the source of truth, a service request portal for airlines, and the content portal that delivers the right revision to the right operator. Around 6,500 commits across six repositories, still under active development.Read the case study
- SES — legacy Access to web applicationMigrating the technical publications database off Microsoft Access to SQL Server with a web front end, role-based access for administrators, writers and reviewers, ACT and PCT XML export compatible with Windchill, and metadata synchronisation with the Agile database.Read the case study
- SES — entitlement-based content portalPurchase-driven entitlement, role-based views separating technical content from marketing material, and the administrative reporting to run it at scale.Read the case study
- Standards AustraliaThe Digital Standards Web App — dynamic XML rendering using the NISO STS framework, permissioned access, bookmarks and annotations, built as part of the Modular Standards Architecture initiative and delivered 2022–2023.Read the case study
- Australian Energy Market CommissionStructured publishing for a regulator, where the output has to be exact and the people writing it are lawyers and engineers rather than XML operators.Read the case study
- American Chemical SocietyAn AI and machine-learning journal recommender matching researchers to the right journal from a large catalogue — structured content as the foundation for a retrieval problem.Read the case study
Common questions
What is structured content, and why does it matter?
Content written as discrete, typed components with meaning marked up in the source, rather than as formatted documents. It matters because it is what makes everything downstream possible: publishing the same source to a manual, a portal and a device without rewriting it; reusing a procedure in forty places and correcting it once; proving which revision applied on a given date. It is also the difference between an AI system that answers from your approved content and one that improvises.
Which standards do you work with?
S1000D across issues 2.1 to 6, MIL-STD-40051 and MIL-STD-3001 for US Army and NAVAIR technical manuals, ATA iSpec 2200, ATA Spec 1000BR and ATA Spec 2300 for civil aviation, plus DITA, DocBook, SGML, NISO STS and the W3C XML family — NISO STS is what renders the standards catalogue in the Standards Australia platform. Standards work is delivered largely through our US entity, Shakewell LLC, which is where the deepest specialism sits.
Have you actually built this, or is it consulting?
Both, and the build side is public. We build and run three connected platforms for SES covering aviation technical publications — a publications database where documents carry revisions, configurations and a full audit trail, a service request portal for airlines, and the content portal that delivers the right revision to the right operator. Around six and a half thousand commits across six repositories. Read the SES case study, plus the entitlement-based content portal and the migration off a Microsoft Access database in detail.
Can you migrate our legacy documentation?
Yes — legacy conversion into structured, single-source formats is routine work, including from unstructured Word and FrameMaker, older SGML, and content that only exists as PDF. The honest part: conversion quality depends on how consistently the source was written, and an audit up front tells you how much is automatable versus how much needs editorial work. Nobody can answer that from a sample of three pages.
How does this relate to AI?
Structured content is the prerequisite rather than a competing project. An AI system grounded in approved, versioned, entitlement-aware source can cite where an answer came from and be constrained to what has been signed off. One pointed at a folder of PDFs cannot. This is why we treat the content architecture as the foundation and the AI layer as what it enables.
Do you offer training?
Yes — hands-on training in DITA, S1000D and MIL-STD-40051 for technical writers, content managers, program managers and engineering teams. The aim is internal capability rather than permanent dependency on us. Training is run through Shakewell LLC.
Are Shakewell and Shakewell LLC the same team?
Yes. Shakewell LLC is our US entity and shakewellusa.com is the site for that market, particularly aerospace, defense and next-generation aviation programs. It is one team across both, working in the same repositories. If you are in the US, start there; if you are in Australia or Asia-Pacific, start here — the people are the same either way.
Trusted by
“I’ve worked with Michael and the Team for a number of years now on a web development project of strategic value to the University. Michael and the team work in deep partnership and are genuinely invested in the success of the project and the maximising the impact it can deliver to end users. Always exceeding expectations, you will not find a more amiable, grounded and technically proficient team!”
Kelly Whitney
WSU Associate Director; Careers, Talent & Organisational Success
Engagement models
How we work
Four straightforward ways to engage us. Pick the one that fits, or mix them as your needs change.
Staff Augmentation
Add experienced Shakewell developers, designers or specialists directly to your own team. Engagements typically run three to twelve months, but can be as short or long as you need — you get the skills without the commitment and cost of hiring full-time.
About staff augmentationFixed-Scope Projects
Have a defined outcome in mind? We scope it, price it and deliver it as a project — a clear timeline, agreed milestones and a single point of accountability from kickoff to handover.
Embedded Delivery Teams
For larger or longer-running work, a cross-functional Shakewell team — development, design and delivery management — plugs in as your delivery arm, working to your priorities and your reporting cadence.
Support & Maintenance
Already live? We keep websites, stores and apps secure, updated and performing through ongoing retainers — business-hours support as standard, with 24/7 coverage available for critical issues.
About support & maintenance