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Re: Average time to Remediate PDFs in bulk?

for

From: Chagnon | PubCom
Date: Oct 10, 2014 10:39AM

I'd use a page rate rather than a document rate.
Maybe something like this:

Each page of basic text: x$ per page (starting base rate)

Each graphic/Alt-Text: Additional x$ for each graphic

If footnotes, superscripts, and other cross-references, Additional x$ per
page

Per document fee: Additional x$ to cover testing, metadata, etc. per
document

And other items.

So, start with the base rate of a page of solid text and headings. Then add
in the additional labor costs for fixing all of the other things that could
be in a document--sidebars, tables, cross-references, etc.

--BJC
— PubCom.com — Trainers, Consultants, Designers, and Developers.
— Print, Web, Acrobat, XML, eBooks, and U.S. Federal Section 508
Accessibility.
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-----Original Message-----
> If I was to take a guess at this I¹d say something like: Simple
> documents: .5 an hour Intermediate documents: 1-4 hours

It really depends on the number of pages in the document, the level of
accessibility desired (e.g. Section 508, WCAG, PDF/UA, etc.), the person
doing the work, the tools you have available, the native document format,
etc.

Form based documents, documents with multiple columns, or documents with
math, footnotes, superscripts, etc. can vary widely. Perhaps a better way
of looking at it is the types of elements each document contains along with
the number of pages.

Jonathan

-----Original Message-----
Thanks,

I don¹t need it to be perfect - rather looking for an average that I can use
for a low and high boundary for my estimate. As far as the size of the
batch, approximately 1000 documents. Most are simple, some are intermediate
and a few are complex.

Perhaps it would be more helpful if I took a stab myself and asked if it
made sense to others:

If I was to take a guess at this I¹d say something like:

Simple documents: .5 an hour
Intermediate documents: 1-4 hours
Complex documents: 4-8+ hours

Does that mesh (on average, and without needing to be perfect) with other¹s
experiences or it too high/too low?

On 10/10/14, 11:42 AM, "Chagnon | PubCom" < <EMAIL REMOVED> > wrote:

>Jordan wrote: "Does anyone recommend an average time (in hours) they
>use for remediating a PDF?
>I'm trying to semi-accurately estimate an hourly effort for large
>batches of documents."
>
>Define "large." It means different things to different people. Is a
>large batch 10 documents or 100 documents? Are the documents 5 pages
>long, 50 pages, or 500 pages?
>
>In our contracts to agencies for PDF remediation, we specifically do
>not place an estimate on how long it will take to remediate a PDF. It's
>just not possible because there are too many variables.
>
>The biggest factor is how well the original source document was made,
>which then affects the underlying structure and coding of the PDF,
>which of course directly affects accessibility.
>
>The version of the originating software is critical; Word 2013 makes a
>better document than Word 2007. Same with Adobe InDesign. And which
>version of Acrobat was used to convert the document affects the
>accessibility in the PDF.
>
>You can't see any of these items by visually looking at the PDF, so how
>do you know what you'll run into when you start remediation?
>
>And then there's Alt-text; is the graphic a complex statistical chart
>or a garden-variety photo for window-dressing the document's visual
appearance?
>Big difference in what has to be written for Alt-text, and statistical
>Alt-text has to then be approved by the author or SME.
>
>Summary: sometimes we can remediate a 100-page PDF from Word faster
>than a 4-page PDF brochure from InDesign. It's all about the code, the
>source document, the software versions, and the skills of the person
>who made the document.
>
>WTHK ... Who the heck knows!
>
>--BJC
>
>- PubCom.com - Trainers, Consultants, Designers, and Developers.
>- Print, Web, Acrobat, XML, eBooks, and U.S. Federal Section 508
>Accessibility.
>- 508 Workshop: www.workshop.pubcom.com
>- US Federal Training: www.gpo.gov/customers/theinstitute.htm