Case Study 7.8: University of Sydney Press—A Monograph Publisher Workflow

In “Journey to Accessibility,” Sydney University Press describes how, over time, they began incorporating accessibility considerations earlier in their publication workflows. For instance, initially they added alternative text at the end of the production process. However, after observing delays in their workflows, they began to contractually require that authors write their own alt text.

After receiving feedback from the Australian Inclusive Publishing Initiative (AIPI), the press also worked with its digital publishing platform to incorporate ARIA attributes into their XHTML workflow. As a result, they were able to export EPUB 3 files that were WCAG 2.0 Level AA compliant. They also incorporated accessibility testing into their regular workflow using the Ace by DAISY App.

The press noted in their 2020 post that, while their EPUBs have become much more accessible, their PDFs still need work. This observation again draws attention to the fact that publishers may need to prioritize accessibility endeavors depending on available resources, skills, and personnel at particular moments in time.