# Manuals (MAN)
Navatom Manuals writes, approves and releases ISM and company manuals section by section, sends each ship what applies to it, and tracks who read it.

URL: https://navatom.com/products/manuals
Category: [Documentation](https://navatom.com/products/category/documentation)
Runs on: Office, Ship

## Overview
Navatom Manuals is the controlled document management system built for maritime operations — covering ISM manuals, safety management system documentation, company policies, standard operating procedures, and third-party reference libraries in a single cloud-based platform. It replaces filing cabinets of ring-binders, scattered PDFs, and uncontrolled email attachments with a structured, version-controlled document hierarchy that ensures every crew member on every vessel reads the latest approved content.
Built around three manual types (Simple PDF, Comprehensive Company, and Third Party), a hierarchical chapter-section-subsection structure, and a seven-stage content lifecycle with formal approval workflows, the module delivers the document control discipline that ISM Code and classification societies demand. A built-in collaborative document editor lets multiple authors work on the same section simultaneously with real-time visibility of changes, track-changes markup, and five revision classification types — all without leaving the platform.
Ship-specific visibility controls ensure each vessel sees only the sections relevant to its type and trade area. Crew assignment and completion tracking confirm that every required person has read every required section.
Three dashboard widgets show the fleet's read share, the sections waiting for approval and the sections released, and periodic reviews keep every manual current, turning document management from a compliance checkbox into a measurable fleet intelligence tool. Released manuals assigned to a vessel are kept on the crew's devices, so crew can read them with no connection.

## Key figures
- 3 Manual Types
- 7 Content Lifecycle Stages
- 5 Revision Types
- 3 Dashboard Widgets

## Features
- **Real-Time Co-Authoring**: Multiple authors can work on the same section simultaneously with real-time visibility of each other's changes. Two collaboration modes adapt to different working styles: Fast Mode shows every keystroke from co-authors in real time, while Strict Mode locks the paragraph each author is editing to prevent conflicts on critical documents. Each collaborator's cursor and selections are visible in the editor with user attribution. An in-editor comment thread lets co-authors discuss changes without switching contexts. The system tracks who wrote what, when — every modification is attributed to a specific user for full accountability.
  - Fast Mode — see every keystroke from co-authors in real time
  - Strict Mode — paragraph locking prevents conflicts on critical documents
  - Live cursor and selection visibility with user attribution
  - In-editor comment threads for contextual discussion
  - Every modification attributed to a specific user with timestamp
- **Crew Assignment & Completion Tracking**: Assign each released section to ships or ship groups and the ranks that must read it, with the days they have to read it. Crew in those ranks get a newsfeed item, read the section on the ship app and confirm by typing "read and understood". The section's reading assignments show each ship's read share and, for every crew member in those ranks, whether they have read it and by when. A new version asks them to confirm again. PDF and third-party manuals are assigned as a whole. The fleet's average read share sits on the dashboard, so shore management can see at a glance which crews are up to date on critical procedures and which need follow-up.
  - Assign sections to ships, ship groups and ranks
  - Days to read, with a due date per crew member
  - Crew confirm "read and understood" for each version
  - Read share per ship, down to each crew member
  - Fleet read share on the dashboard
- **Ship-Specific Visibility Control**: Control which manual sections are visible to each vessel in your fleet. Visibility can be set at the manual level (which ships can access the manual) and at the section level (which ships see specific sections within a manual). This ensures tanker-specific procedures don't appear on bulk carriers, and vice versa. Visibility can name ship groups too, so a ship that joins a group sees its manuals. Each vessel sees only the sections it is authorized to see, and visibility changes take effect without republishing the manual.
  - Manual-level visibility: which ships can access the entire manual
  - Section-level visibility: which ships see specific sections
  - Tanker procedures appear only on tankers, bulk on bulk carriers
  - Visibility by ship group, including ships that join later
  - A vessel PDF per ship with only its sections
- **Multi-Stage Draft Approval Workflow**: Section drafts move through a structured approval pipeline: authors create and edit drafts, then submit for approval. Designated reviewers evaluate the content and either approve it for release or reject it with feedback. Approved content is released to the fleet; rejected content returns to the author for revision. Each manual names its approvers and whether all of them or any one must approve, and only they can approve and release its sections. Approval and rejection actions record the reviewer's identity, timestamp, and comments. The approval queue dashboard widget shows reviewers how many sections await their attention, preventing bottlenecks in the publication pipeline.
  - Authors create drafts and submit for approval
  - Reviewers approve or reject with recorded comments
  - Approvers named per manual, all or any one
  - Approval queue dashboard widget prevents bottlenecks
  - Full audit trail of every approval and rejection decision
- **Periodic Manual Review**: Schedule a review for each published manual: first due on a date, then every set number of months after each review, with an optional notice before each due date. Reviews sit on the office calendar, and the manual's approvers get a notice when one is due soon and again when it is overdue. Record what each review found: no change, revision needed, or withdraw, which deprecates the manual. Each manual keeps its review history, with every due date, who reviewed it and when, what they found, or the new version that closed it.
  - Reviews every set number of months
  - Notices before the due date and when overdue
  - Outcomes: no change, revision needed, withdraw
  - Review history ready for auditors
  - Navatom AI lists the reviews coming due
- **Ask Your Manuals with Navatom AI**: Ask Navatom AI what your manuals say, and it answers from your own manuals and circulars, naming the document each answer comes from. It answers only from the documents you are allowed to read. It also tells you who on a vessel has not read a section, compares two released versions, lists the sections waiting for your approval and the reviews coming due, and drafts a release, a comment or a review outcome for you to confirm. On board, it tells each crew member which sections they still have to read.
  - Answers from your manuals and circulars, with sources
  - Only from the documents you may read
  - Who has not read a section, per vessel
  - Compares any two released versions
  - Every draft waits for your confirmation
- **Manual Changes Circulars Require**: When a circular changes how the fleet works, record which manuals or sections it requires to change. The manual's owners see the pending update, and the section's next release completes it, recording the version that made the change. Navatom AI lists the changes circulars still require, and records them from the circular you are viewing.
  - Circulars name the manuals and sections to change
  - Pending updates listed until they are done
  - The section's release completes them
  - Navatom AI lists and records them
- **Track Changes & Revision Classification**: When a section is released, Navatom compares it with the version before and marks every change by kind: insertions, deletions, format changes, style definition changes and moved text. This gives auditors and DPAs a precise record of what changed between versions. Track changes markup highlights insertions, deletions, and modifications with user attribution and timestamps. Accept or reject individual changes during the review process. Each version's change log opens that marked-up comparison beside its release notes, so classification societies see exactly what changed in each version and why.
  - Five revision types: Insertion, Deletion, Format Change, Style Change, Moving
  - Track-changes markup with user attribution and timestamps
  - Accept or reject individual changes during review
  - A marked-up comparison for every release
  - Classification societies see exactly what changed between versions
- **Version History & Release Notes**: Every section maintains a complete version history with numbered versions, release timestamps, author attribution, and release notes. Browse any previous version, compare changes between versions, and understand the evolution of every document in your safety management system. Release notes document the rationale behind each revision: not just what changed, but why. Version numbers increment automatically on each release, unless a correction keeps the number. The full history chain from first draft to current release is preserved permanently, providing the documentary evidence that ISM auditors require.
  - Complete version chain from first draft to current release
  - Numbered versions with auto-increment on each release
  - Release notes document the rationale behind each revision
  - Each version's changes marked up against the one before
  - Permanent audit trail for ISM compliance verification
- **Seven-Stage Content Lifecycle**: Every section version follows a controlled lifecycle through seven stages — Draft, Waiting for Approval, Completed, Rejected, Released, Revised, and Deprecated. Only Released content is visible to crews on vessels. The lifecycle enforces that every change goes through review before reaching ship personnel. Draft versions can be edited freely by authors. When ready, the draft is sent for approval, moving to Waiting for Approval status. Reviewers can approve (Completed → Released) or reject (back to Draft with feedback). Released content can be revised, creating a new draft while the current version remains active. Deprecated versions are archived but never deleted.
  - Draft → Waiting for Approval → Completed → Released
  - Rejected content returns to Draft with reviewer feedback
  - Released content can be Revised (new draft, current version stays active)
  - Deprecated versions archived permanently, never deleted
  - Only Released content visible to ship crews
- **Hierarchical Document Structure**: Organize complex manuals with a four-level hierarchy — Manual, Chapter, Section, and Subsection. Each chapter contains ordered sections; each section can nest subsections. Custom ordering labels let you follow your organization's numbering scheme (1.2.3.a) rather than forcing a flat structure. Chapters and sections can be created, moved, and reordered without disrupting the version history of their content. The table of contents is generated automatically and updates in real time as sections are added, moved, or deprecated. Print the table of contents or the revision list as a PDF, with your legal entity's details and a watermark if you need one.
  - Four-level hierarchy: Manual → Chapter → Section → Subsection
  - Custom ordering labels to match your numbering scheme (1.2.3.a)
  - Auto-generated table of contents updates in real time
  - Move and reorder sections without losing version history
  - Print table of contents or revision lists as formatted PDFs
- **Built-in Collaborative Document Editor**: Edit manual sections directly in the browser with a full-featured document editor — no desktop software required. The editor supports rich formatting, tables, images, headers, lists, and page layout controls with the same fidelity as desktop word processors. Documents are saved automatically and continuously. Start a section in the editor, or from a Word (DOCX) file you already have. The editor checks spelling as you type and saves continuously, and a forced save keeps the draft even if the browser closes. No file downloads, no version confusion.
  - Full rich-text editing: tables, images, headers, lists, page layout
  - Browser-based — no desktop software or plugins required
  - Saves as you type
  - Start a section from a Word (DOCX) file
  - Released versions open read-only
- **Three Manual Types**: Not all documents have the same complexity. Navatom supports three distinct manual types — Simple (PDF) for single-file uploads like third-party reference documents, Comprehensive (Company) for structured multi-chapter manuals with section-level version control, and Third Party for external document libraries that need tracking without internal editing. Simple manuals are uploaded as a single PDF and distributed as-is. Comprehensive manuals unlock the full hierarchical editor with chapters, sections, subsections, approval workflows, and collaborative editing. Third Party manuals provide a controlled repository for vendor documentation, classification society guidelines, and regulatory publications.
  - Simple (PDF) — single-file upload for quick distribution
  - Comprehensive (Company) — structured multi-chapter manuals with full editing
  - Third Party — controlled repository for external documents
  - Each type has its own workflow, editor, and management interface
- **PDF Export & One-PDF Consolidation**: Export a company manual as PDF or DOCX, with headers and footers carrying your legal entity's details, for every released section or only those one ship receives. Navatom builds the file in the background and emails you a link, ready for printing, archival, or submission to classification societies and regulatory authorities. The One-PDF feature consolidates an entire manual into a single PDF per ship, including only the sections visible to that specific vessel. Once the office builds them, they are rebuilt whenever what a vessel receives changes, and crew open theirs from the manual on board, ready for bridge use or a port State control inspection.
  - Export as PDF or DOCX, with your headers and footers
  - One-PDF consolidation per ship with visibility-filtered content
  - Vessel PDFs rebuilt when a ship's sections change
  - Formatted for submission to classification societies
  - Print revision lists for controlled document registers
- **Audit & Compliance Integration**: Audit and inspection findings become deficiencies or non-conformities in Navatom, and each of those records can reference the manual or section involved, so a finding against a procedure leads straight to it. Navatom AI reads the root cause and proposes the change the section needs, as a comment for its owner. For the auditor, each manual shows its periodic reviews and what they found, each section its versions with the marked-up changes and release notes, and each reading assignment who has read the current version. When a circular requires a manual to change, the change stays listed against the manual until the section's next release completes it.
  - Findings and issues reference the manual section involved
  - Navatom AI proposes the change a root cause calls for
  - Review, version and reading records ready for auditors
  - Circular-required changes tracked to release
- **Full-Text Search**: Navatom Search finds manual sections by any words in them, with suggestions as you type, in the office and on board. Find specific procedures, policy references, or regulatory citations across your entire document library in seconds, regardless of how many manuals and sections your organization maintains. To ask a question instead of searching for words, Navatom AI answers from the same manuals and names the document it took the answer from.
  - Search every manual section
  - Suggestions as you type
  - In the office and on board
  - Navatom AI answers from the same manuals
- **Internal Cross-References**: Link related sections across different manuals and chapters with formal internal references. A reference names the manual, the section and its version, and opens the section it points to. Cross-references create a navigable web of interconnected documentation. Cross-references are particularly valuable for ISM manual structures where safety procedures reference operational manuals, emergency plans reference crew training documents, and maintenance procedures reference equipment specifications.
  - Formal links between sections across manuals and chapters
  - Each reference names the manual, section and version
  - Open the referenced section in one click
  - Navigate between related procedures and specifications
  - Essential for ISM manual structures with regulatory cross-links
- **Manual KPIs: Reviews, Releases and Reads**: 27 KPIs follow how your manuals are kept under control: revisions released and withdrawn, days from section draft to release, how long approvers hold a section and how often they reject it, and whether scheduled reviews are done on time. Release quality KPIs show how many releases carry release notes and how many kept the previous version number. On board they follow whether crew read what is assigned to them, by vessel: the share of assigned sections read, reads made by each person's deadline and re-reads after a revision. They also time the Master's reading of a new revision and check whether new joiners read their sections in their first week. Distribution KPIs show how soon a released section reaches a vessel and which sections were never assigned.
  - Reviews done on schedule, and overdue reviews
  - Draft to release, approval wait and rejection rate
  - Sections read by crew, and read by their deadline
  - The Master's time to read a new revision
  - Share of releases with release notes
- **Section-Level Comments & Annotations**: Add threaded comments to any section for collaborative review and feedback. Comments support replies, edits, and deletion — creating a structured discussion thread attached to the specific content being discussed. Comments sit on the manual, on the section and on its open draft. Use comments during the approval process to provide specific feedback on content, request clarifications, or document review decisions. Comment history is preserved as part of the section's audit trail, providing evidence of the review process for compliance auditors.
  - Threaded comments attached to specific sections
  - Support for replies, edits, and deletion
  - Comments on the manual, the section and its draft
  - Used during approval process for structured feedback
  - Comment activity recorded in the audit trail
- **Dashboard & Analytics**: Monitor your document management program with three dashboard widgets: the average read share of your published company manuals on the ships you choose, the sections waiting for approval, and the sections released. Place them on any dashboard beside other modules' widgets. A section's reading assignments then show which ships and crew members have not read it, and Navatom AI tells you who on a vessel is still to read it.
  - Average read share across published manuals
  - Sections waiting for approval
  - Sections released
  - Filtered by the ships you choose
- **Document Security & Permissions**: Access rights decide who may create manuals, who may write sections, and who may approve and release them, and each manual names its own approvers. Ships see only the manuals and sections made visible to them, and crew read released versions only. Every editing session is opened with a signed token for that user and that document, a released version opens read-only, and every action is recorded with who did it and when.
  - Separate rights to create, write, and approve and release
  - Approvers named per manual
  - Ships see only what is visible to them
  - Signed editing sessions
  - Released versions open read-only
- **Word & PDF Documents**: Start a section from a Word (DOCX) file, or upload a simple manual as one PDF. Tables, images, headers and formatting come through, so existing manuals move into Navatom without retyping. Edit in the browser, then export the manual as PDF or DOCX without ever installing desktop software.
  - Start a section from a Word (DOCX) file
  - Simple manuals as one PDF
  - Export as PDF or DOCX
  - No desktop software installation required

## Technical abilities
- **Server-Side Document Grids with Advanced Filtering**: All manual, chapter, and section views use server-side pagination and filtering to handle thousands of documents without performance degradation. Filter by manual type, status, ship assignment, author, and date range with instant response times regardless of library size.
- **Seven-Stage Content Lifecycle State Machine**: Section versions follow a formal state machine through Draft, Waiting for Approval, Completed, Rejected, Released, Revised, and Deprecated stages. Each transition enforces validation rules, records the actor and timestamp, and triggers downstream events including notifications and synchronization.
- **Signed Document Editing Sessions**: Every collaborative editing session is opened with a signed token that carries the user and the document, so only authorized personnel can edit, comment on, or view each document.
- **Real-Time Collaborative Editing Engine**: The document editor lets several authors edit a section at once, each seeing the others' changes. It saves continuously, and a forced save keeps the draft after any interruption, such as a closed browser.
- **Full-Text Indexing for Navatom Search**: Manual sections are indexed for Navatom Search, with suggestions as you type, on the company app and the ship app. Their content also feeds Navatom AI, which answers only from the documents each user may read.
- **Office-Ship Synchronization**: Released manuals and sections assigned to a vessel are kept on the crew's devices for reading with no connection, and reading confirmations are sent when the connection returns. Manuals are written, approved and released on the company app.
- **One-PDF Consolidation Engine**: The PDF engine compiles ship-specific manual versions by resolving visibility rules, ordering chapters and sections, and generating a single consolidated PDF per vessel. Once the office first builds them, each ship's PDF is rebuilt automatically whenever the sections it receives change.
- **Complete Event History**: Every action on a manual or section is recorded as it happens, with who did it and when. The same record feeds the audit trail, notifications and dashboards.

## Benefits
- **One Platform for Every Manual Type**: Simple PDF uploads, structured multi-chapter company manuals, and third-party reference documents all live in a single system. No more scattered file shares, email attachments, or separate tools for different document types.
- **Document Control Ready for ISM Audits from Day One**: A seven-stage section lifecycle, named approvers, version history with release notes, a marked-up record of every change, periodic reviews and a complete event history deliver the document control discipline that the ISM Code, classification societies and port State inspectors expect, without manual record-keeping.
- **Real-Time Collaboration Without Third-Party Tools**: Multiple authors edit the same section simultaneously with a built-in collaborative editor — no file downloads, no version conflicts, no external software licenses. Track changes, comments, and co-authoring are all native to the platform.
- **Ship Crews Always Read the Latest Version**: Ship-specific visibility controls and crew assignment tracking ensure that every vessel has the current approved content and every crew member reads what they need to read. Completion dashboards confirm it.
- **Fleet-Wide Document Intelligence**: Dashboard widgets show the fleet's read share, the sections waiting for approval and the sections released, and each section's reading assignments show who has not read it. Identify documentation gaps, measure crew engagement, and continuously improve your safety management system with data, not assumptions.
- **Scales from Single Vessel to Global Fleet**: Fast lists and a secure multi-tenant architecture mean the system performs identically whether you manage one vessel or five hundred. Grow your fleet without outgrowing your document management platform.

## Frequently asked questions
### What types of manuals does the module support?
Navatom Manuals supports three types: Simple (single PDF upload for quick distribution), Comprehensive (structured multi-chapter company manuals with section-level version control, approval workflows, and collaborative editing), and Third Party (a controlled repository for external documents like vendor manuals, classification society guidelines, and regulatory publications). Each type has its own workflow and management interface.

### How does collaborative editing work?
The built-in document editor supports real-time multi-user editing directly in the browser. Two collaboration modes are available: Fast Mode shows every keystroke from co-authors in real time, while Strict Mode locks the paragraph each author is editing to prevent conflicts on critical documents. All changes are attributed to specific users with timestamps, and each release is compared with the version before, marking every insertion, deletion, format change, style change and moved passage.

### Can different ships see different manual sections?
Yes. Visibility can be controlled at both the manual level (which ships can access the entire manual) and the section level (which ships see specific sections within a manual). This is essential for fleet operators with mixed vessel types — tanker-specific procedures appear only on tankers, bulk carrier procedures on bulk carriers, and common safety procedures on all vessels. Vessel PDFs give each ship one consolidated document with only the sections visible to it, rebuilt whenever that changes.

### How does the approval workflow work?
Section content follows a seven-stage lifecycle: authors create drafts, then submit for approval (Waiting for Approval). Designated reviewers evaluate the content and either approve it (Completed → Released) or reject it with feedback (back to Draft). Only Released content is visible to ship crews. Released content can be revised, creating a new draft while the current version stays active. Deprecated versions are archived permanently. Each manual names its approvers and whether all of them or any one must approve, and only they can approve and release its sections.

### What file formats are supported?
Sections are written in Navatom's browser editor or started from a Word (DOCX) file, and a simple manual is uploaded as one PDF. A company manual exports as PDF or DOCX, and each ship can have its own vessel PDF.

### Does the module work offline on vessels?
Yes. The manuals and sections assigned to a vessel are kept on the crew's device, so crew can read them and open their vessel PDF with no connection, and their reading confirmations are sent when the connection returns.

### How does the module integrate with audits?
Audit findings become deficiencies or non-conformities, and those records can reference the manual or section involved, so a finding against a procedure leads straight to it. Navatom AI can read the issue's root cause and propose the change the section needs. For the audit itself, each manual shows its periodic reviews, each section its versions with the marked-up changes, and each reading assignment who has read the current version.

### How do we keep manuals reviewed on schedule?
Schedule a periodic review for each published manual, every set number of months, with a notice before each due date. The manual's approvers are notified when a review is due and when it is overdue. Each review records what it found: no change, revision needed, or withdraw, and the manual keeps its review history for the auditor.

### Can Navatom AI answer questions from our manuals?
Yes. Ask what your manuals say, and Navatom AI answers from your own manuals and circulars and names the document each answer comes from. It answers only from the documents you may read. It also tells you who on a vessel has not read a section, and compares any two released versions of it.

### How do circulars and manuals work together?
A circular can record which manuals or sections it requires to change. The change stays listed against the manual until the section's next release completes it, and the release records which version made the change.

## Related modules
- [Circulars](https://navatom.com/products/circulars): Distribute company circulars and notices with read-receipt tracking and acknowledgements.
- [Certificates](https://navatom.com/products/certificates): Track vessel certificates, the surveys behind them, expiry dates and renewals.
- [Forms](https://navatom.com/products/forms): Design and deploy custom digital forms for inspections, checklists, and reporting.

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