The challenge
Taylor & Francis
is one of the leading academic publishers in the world. Over 1,000 journals and 35,000
books - published under the main imprints of Taylor & Francis and Routledge - present
the latest thinking in subjects as diverse as Earth Science and Cultural Studies.
The system in place to manage this vast amount of data was unsuitable for future development.
With the impending release of a completely overhauled website - which needed to draw on this data -
Taylor & Francis
had no choice but to replace their current system with one both technologically and
functionally superior.
The new system had to organise records relating to bibliographical data whilst allowing
chosen editors and contributors from around the world to add to and update it. This required
an extensive workflow to ensure good control over the information entered. Furthermore, like
any large firm with many projects on the go
Taylor & Francis
needed all information about the project made available to them at all times without request.
The solution
The first step was to extract and reformat the data from the old system. This was achieved
with a text based export which was then imported, with transformation algorithms decided on
through close collaboration between our project team and the client, into a new Microsoft SQL
Server 2000 database.
With global users a website was the sensible choice for the system’s interface. The
workflow needed to account for many users in several roles and these users all needed
to be managed by administrators of the system. Our solution was based on the Microsoft
.Net 2.0 Framework as it includes role and membership support.
An XML export of the records published by the new system was required by the new client-facing
website. It was designed in accordance with an XML DTD produced by Taylor & Francis’ US
DTD team who worked closely with us to perfect the result.
We used Microsoft SharePoint Services to effectively manage and distribute all information
relating to the project. Incremental releases were clearly laid out with each containing a
detailed breakdown of the components included along with information such as resource
allocation, estimated time to completion and task status. Throughout the project
Taylor & Francis
could examine “Issue” lists and test the functionality provided by releases ensuring they
were not only aware of but included in all aspects of the project delivery.
The result
A well thought out project delivered on time to a detailed release schedule with over one
hundred users already actively contributing soon after launch.
Taylor & Francis
can now effortlessly gather the quality controlled information they require from around the world.
This information can then be exported in a predetermined format and made available to their
clients via their new website. Furthermore,
Taylor & Francis
were so pleased with our management of the project they have since adopted Microsoft SharePoint
Services internally!