What is the role of version control and change tracking in safety-critical documentation using DITA?

November 10, 2023
|By Bryan Tipper

In safety-critical documentation using DITA, version control and change tracking play a vital role in ensuring the integrity, traceability, and compliance of documentation. The aerospace industry, in particular, relies heavily on safety-critical documentation, and DITA provides essential capabilities for managing versioning and tracking changes.

Version control is crucial for keeping track of document revisions and ensuring that the correct, approved version is used. DITA supports version control by allowing organizations to maintain a clear record of document versions, whether for safety assessments, compliance reports, or other critical documents. This ensures that documentation aligns with the most up-to-date standards and requirements, a key consideration in the aerospace industry.

Change tracking in DITA helps organizations monitor modifications made to safety-critical documentation. By highlighting and recording changes, it becomes easier to review and validate revisions. This capability is essential in the aerospace sector, where even minor changes can have significant implications for safety. DITA’s structured approach enables granular change tracking, providing insight into what was modified, when, and by whom.

Example:

Here’s an example of how change tracking can be implemented in DITA:

<!-- Example of change tracking in a DITA topic -->
<topic id="safety-assessment-report" domains="aerospace safety">
  <title>Safety Assessment Report</title>
  <body>
    <section id="introduction">
      <title>Introduction</title>
      <p>This is the introduction section of the Safety Assessment Report.</p>
      <revision date="2023-11-03" author="John Doe">
        <change>Updated introduction for clarity.</change>
      </revision>
    </section>
    <section id="hazard-analysis">
      <title>Hazard Analysis</title>
      <p>Details of hazard analysis go here.</p>
      <revision date="2023-11-04" author="Jane Smith">
        <change>Revised hazard analysis based on new data.</change>
      </revision>
    </section>
    <section id="safety-evidence">
      <title>Safety Evidence</title>
      <p>Evidence for safety compliance is documented here.</p>
      <revision date="2023-11-05" author="David Johnson">
        <change>Added new evidence documentation.</change>
      </revision>
    </section>
  </body>
</topic>

In this example, changes to a safety assessment report are tracked at a granular level, recording who made the change and when. This detailed change tracking helps organizations maintain compliance and ensures the safety of aerospace systems.