Question 1

What exactly does EU Machinery Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 require in terms of documentation?

Accepted Answer

The Regulation requires OEMs to provide digital Instructions for Use (IFU), safety information, and a Declaration of Conformity (DoC) for every machine sold into the EU. Documentation must be version-controlled, available in the official language(s) of the country where the machine is installed, accessible digitally for the machine's full service life (minimum 10 years), and available in print format on request. The Regulation replaces the Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC and becomes mandatory January 20, 2027. It applies to all OEMs regardless of where they are headquartered, including US, Chinese, Japanese, and other non-EU manufacturers selling into the EU market.

Question 2

Does the Regulation apply to us if we are not based in the EU?

Accepted Answer

Yes. EU Machinery Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 applies to every manufacturer placing machinery on the EU market, regardless of where the manufacturer is located. If you sell machinery into the EU, even through an importer or authorized representative, your documentation must comply. Non-compliant machinery cannot receive CE marking and cannot legally be sold in the EU after January 20, 2027.

Question 3

What is the Sharing feature and how does documentation distribution work?

Accepted Answer

The Sharing feature lets you create dedicated Soply accounts for your end-customers. You control which documents each customer can access, organized by machine model, serial number, installation site, or any other criteria. When you publish a new document version, it automatically becomes available to the relevant customer accounts. Customers do not need to manage the documentation themselves; they simply access their portal to find the current, correct documentation for their machines.

Question 4

How does the video-to-document capability work?

Accepted Answer

You record any work process on video, using a smartphone, tablet, industrial camera, or any video device. You upload the video to Soply. Our AI processes the footage, detects discrete work steps, extracts tool usage, safety-critical moments, and verbal instructions, and generates a structured document draft. A subject matter expert reviews and finalizes the draft in Soply's editor. The process typically takes a few hours from recording to a publishable document, compared to days or weeks with traditional documentation methods.

Question 5

Which languages does Soply support?

Accepted Answer

Soply supports 35+ languages for documentation generation and delivery, including all EU official languages. Our translation engine is specifically trained on industrial and manufacturing terminology, which means technical terms, safety labels, and procedural language are translated accurately, not just literally. New languages are added quarterly.

Question 6

How does Soply handle compliance requirements beyond the EU Machinery Regulation?

Accepted Answer

Soply is designed for machinery sold into regulated environments. The platform supports IATF 16949, ISO 9001, AS9100, ISO 13485, and FDA 21 CFR Part 11 requirements. Features include complete document version control with immutable audit logs, configurable approval workflows with full audit trails, document retention policies, and role-based access controls. These capabilities support compliance across multiple regulatory frameworks simultaneously.

Question 7

Can Soply integrate with our ERP, PLM, or LMS systems?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Soply offers connectors for SAP S/4HANA, Microsoft Dynamics, Siemens Teamcenter, PTC Windchill, Workday, Cornerstone OnDemand, and major MES platforms. Export formats include DOCX, PDF, PPTX, and SCORM for LMS integration. For other systems, our REST API and webhooks support custom integrations. Enterprise plans include a dedicated solutions engineer for integration support.

Question 8

How is our documentation data protected?

Accepted Answer

Soply is SOC 2 Type II audited and ISO 27001 certified, with ISO 42001 certification in progress. All data is encrypted at rest (AES-256) and in transit (TLS 1.3). We are Netherlands-based and offer EU data residency for customers who require it under GDPR. Single-tenant cloud deployment is available for customers with strict data isolation requirements. Data Processing Agreements are available for all customers.

Question 9

How long does implementation take?

Accepted Answer

Most customers are fully live the same day when their accounts are created. This includes account configuration, template setup, integrations, and initial user training. For OEM compliance use cases, we typically start with one machine family or documentation type as a pilot, establish the workflow, and then scale across the full product portfolio.

Question 10

Who owns the documentation created with Soply?

Accepted Answer

Your organization retains full ownership of all content created on the Soply platform, including uploaded videos, AI-generated drafts, and finalized documents. Soply does not use customer content to train shared AI models. Data processing agreements are available for GDPR compliance, and we support customer-managed encryption keys for Enterprise plans.

Question 11

How does documentation from CAD work?

Accepted Answer

Upload your CAD model. Soply reads the assembly structure, generates an exploded view, and drafts an assembly guide with the part hierarchy already in place. You review, adjust, and approve like any other document.

Question 12

How are spare parts lists connected to documentation?

Accepted Answer

Parts extracted from CAD are linked to the procedures and manual sections that reference them. A technician viewing a maintenance procedure sees exactly which parts it involves, and a parts list always points back to the relevant instructions.

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