Facilitating the reuse of standardized mining documentation modules across different mining projects, equipment types, and geological contexts is one of the key advantages of using DITA (Darwin Information Typing Architecture). DITA’s modular and structured approach to content creation allows mining organizations to create reusable and adaptable content components that can be leveraged across various projects and contexts.

Modular Content Components

In DITA, mining documentation can be broken down into modular content components such as safety procedures, equipment specifications, geological classifications, and more. Each component is authored as a standalone DITA topic. These topics can then be reused in different documentation sets, projects, or contexts without duplication. For instance, a safety procedure for one mining project can be reused in another project with minimal effort, ensuring consistency in safety documentation.

Conditional Processing

DITA allows for conditional processing, where content modules can be included or excluded based on specific criteria. This feature is valuable in the mining industry, where different projects or equipment types may have unique requirements. With conditional processing, mining organizations can create a single documentation source that contains variations for different contexts. For example, safety procedures can be tailored to specific equipment types or geological conditions, streamlining the documentation process while maintaining relevance.

Example:

Here’s an example of how DITA facilitates content reuse using conditional processing:

<topic id="safety_procedure">
  <title>Safety Procedure for Excavation</title>
  <content>...
  <conditional-processing>
    <condition audience="project_A">Project A Specific Information</condition>
    <condition audience="project_B">Project B Specific Information</condition>
  </conditional-processing>

In this example, a DITA topic represents a safety procedure for excavation. Conditional processing allows the inclusion of project-specific information based on the audience criteria, ensuring that the same safety procedure can serve different projects with tailored content.