LONDON, UK – December 21, 2011 – Ixxus today announced that it has successfully developed and implemented a new Enterprise Document Management system for the University for Creative Arts (UCA). UCA is a specialist creative arts university, and is one of the biggest providers of art and design education in Europe, with over 7000 students from 76 countries.

Creation and launch of the Document Management System, ‘Docshare’, is the first step towards improving UCA’s Staff Portal. The system was built using Alfresco technology as a base for the Document Management system. With a proven track record of successfully delivering similar projects for Higher Education organisations, and offering the largest pure Alfresco consultancy in the world today, Ixxus were ideally placed to provide UCA with an effective solution.

The challenge was to replace legacy software, which was struggling to cope with the demands now placed on it by a 5-campus organisation, and introduce a system which make working life easier, more productive and more rewarding for UCA staff. The new Document Management System needed to integrate with both the current system and other applications, allowing for easy transfer of existing content. Ixxus leveraged Alfresco Enterprise Content Management (ECM) system to provide a unified content solution catering to the needs of staff across the University.

After detailed discussion with the client to identify the specific requirements of UCA staff, Ixxus delivered a robust content management solution, Docshare, along with custom workflows and approval processes in order to allow content to be published efficiently and easily. A pilot was conducted with IT Services and the Human Resources department. The project included the migration of other departments on to Docshare and incorporated training as required.

Content can now be published from an internal Alfresco repository into the public domain; a custom categorisation structure was also implemented to allow for enhanced browsing and searching. The solution has the ability to scale with the needs of the wider University and is allowing staff to work more collaboratively through sharing their work.

This has ensured that staff can locate relevant content quickly and easily when it is required, and share it to the appropriate platforms.

Hilary Sellars, Head of IT Services said: “The support, knowledge and skills Ixxus provided were invaluable and they were very responsive throughout the project. With the launch of the our new document management system UCA staff can finally work together no matter where they are and no matter what device they use sharing ideas and collaborating in a better way.”

Christine Woerner-Dolley, IT Business Development Manager said: “It was like going from riding a bicycle to driving a Ferrari.”

About Ixxus

With headquarters in London, Ixxus is an experienced global consultancy and systems integration organisation. The company specialises in the design, development and operational support of enterprise content management and search solutions, with a modern and innovative approach to project delivery.

Ixxus is Alfresco’s only UK platinum partner and has gained unrivalled implementation experience over the last four years with a team now of over 30 Alfresco consultants, the largest dedicated team globally outside Alfresco iteslf. The company has worked across all industry sectors; including publishing finance, higher education, government, legal and manufacturing. Customers include Yell.com, Virgin Money, Amnesty International, Clifford Chance and 118.com.

About UCA

With around 7,000 students enrolled on more than 80 different courses, the University for the Creative Arts (the University) is one of the biggest providers of specialist art and design education in Europe.

The University has students from 76 countries worldwide, based on campuses at Canterbury, Epsom, Farnham, Maidstone and Rochester.

UCA is a specialist creative arts university with courses in art, design, architecture, media and communication.

Notable alumni include Turner Prize nominee Tracy Emin, Oscar winners Daniel Greaves and Suzie Templeton, fashion designers Zandra Rhodes and Karen Millen and the portrait painter Humphrey Ocean.