#top procurement software

[mjpro]

mjPRO | The Ultimate Procurement System for Reducing Costs and Enhancing Efficiency

In today’s fast-paced digital world, businesses are looking for tools that can streamline their processes, enhance efficiency, and minimize costs. Procurement, a critical function for every organization, is no exception. Choosing the right procurement software can make all the difference in managing supply chains effectively, improving governance, and cutting procurement costs. Among the numerous procurement software companies, mjPRO stands out as a robust, AI-powered solution that offers scalability, cost-efficiency, and enhanced profitability.

In this blog, we’ll explore the best features of mjPRO, why it’s considered the best procurement software, and how it supports businesses in managing procurement processes seamlessly.

What Is Procurement Software?

Before we dive into mjPRO, let’s first define procurement software. In simple terms, procurement software is a digital tool that automates and manages the entire procurement process—from requisitioning to payment. It helps organizations track their purchases, manage suppliers, and ensure compliance, reducing manual intervention and boosting overall efficiency. Today, eProcurement software solutions are often cloud-based, providing businesses with flexibility, scalability, and advanced data-driven insights.

Why mjPRO Is the Best Procurement Software

mjPRO is not just another procurement software; it’s a comprehensive eProcurement software platform that digitizes the entire procurement process from planning to payment. Whether you’re managing simple purchases or complex projects, mjPRO provides a unified solution that reduces procurement costs, enhances supplier management, and ensures near 100% delivery compliance. Here's why mjPRO is considered one of the top procurement software solutions in the market:

1. Cloud-Based, Pay-Per-Use Model

One of the most attractive features of mjPRO is its pay-per-use, cloud-based model. Unlike traditional procurement systems that require significant upfront investment and infrastructure, mjPRO offers a flexible, cloud-based solution that allows for scalability based on your business needs. This ensures a faster ROI and eliminates the need for costly hardware or software upgrades.

2. Intelligent Platform with AI-Powered Automation

At its core, mjPRO is an intelligent procurement platform powered by AI. It leverages advanced technologies like AI and NLP-based analytics to offer real-time insights, such as category and supplier recommendations. By learning from your procurement patterns and suggesting suppliers based on past purchasing behavior, mjPRO takes the guesswork out of sourcing, making it the best procurement software for both small and large enterprises.

3. Strong Supplier Base and Smart Decision-Making Tools

With mjPRO, you’ll have access to an ever-growing supplier base. The platform continuously adds new suppliers to the ecosystem, giving businesses more options and competitive pricing. What’s more, mjPRO integrates AI-based decision-making tools to provide real-time supplier recommendations, enabling procurement teams to make informed decisions quickly.

4. End-to-End Procurement Chain Digitization

mjPRO digitizes the entire procurement chain, from planning to payment, making it one of the top procurement software platforms available today. Let’s break down how mjPRO handles each step of the procurement process:

a. Plan

The planning phase is critical to ensuring the procurement process runs smoothly. mjPRO helps streamline this process by allowing users to categorize items up to four levels, aggregate or split requirements, and manage budgets more effectively. With features like eBriefcase and category-specific insights, businesses can easily plan for both routine and complex procurements.

b. Source

Supplier management is one of the most challenging aspects of procurement. mjPRO excels in this area by offering a comprehensive supplier management module. The system helps businesses survey, rate, and profile suppliers before they are approved. mjPRO also automates RFQs (Request for Quotations) and integrates RPA-based bidding, which enhances supplier negotiations and ensures competitive pricing.

c. Procure

Once suppliers have been approved, mjPRO facilitates the creation and management of purchase orders (POs). The platform automates the post-PO process by handling tasks such as PO acceptance, ASN (Advanced Shipping Notice) generation, PI (Proforma Invoice) approval, and eCatalogues management. This automation reduces the risk of human error and accelerates procurement times by as much as 40%.

d. Pay

Finally, mjPRO ensures that payment processing is seamless. The platform performs thorough three-point checks before invoice approval and integrates with payment gateways to automate payments. The result is a faster, more efficient payment process that ensures suppliers are paid on time, minimizing disruptions in the supply chain.

How mjPRO Benefits Your Business

Now that we’ve covered the key features of mjPRO, let’s take a look at how this procurement software can benefit your business:

1. Reduces Procurement Costs by 7%

Procurement costs can take up a significant portion of a company’s budget. By using mjPRO, businesses can reduce these costs by up to 7%. This is achieved through better supplier negotiations, automated procurement processes, and more efficient resource management.

2. Makes Procurement 40% Faster

One of the most compelling advantages of mjPRO is its ability to speed up the procurement process. The platform reduces manual tasks and automates the creation and management of POs, invoices, and supplier communications, making procurement up to 40% faster. This is a game-changer for businesses that operate in fast-paced environments and need to meet tight deadlines.

3. Limits Supply Risk with 100% Delivery Compliance

Supply chain disruptions can have serious consequences for businesses. mjPRO mitigates these risks by ensuring nearly 100% delivery compliance. With advanced supplier profiling, automated RFQs, and integrated payment gateways, mjPRO ensures that your supply chain operates smoothly and without delays.

4. Strengthens Governance and Ensures Zero Frauds

In the digital age, governance and compliance are more important than ever. mjPRO strengthens governance across the procurement process by offering real-time insights into supplier performance and ensuring that all procurement activities are auditable. This procurement software also helps prevent fraud by enforcing strict supplier approval and payment processes.

Unlock the Full Potential of eProcurement with mjPRO

If you're searching for a procurement software company that offers a comprehensive, scalable solution for your business, look no further than mjPRO. This eProcurement software not only digitizes the entire procurement process but also enhances it with AI-powered tools, robust supplier management, and seamless payment integration.

With mjPRO, businesses can gain full control over their procurement activities while reducing costs, accelerating procurement timelines, and ensuring compliance across the board.

Key Features of mjPRO:

Pay-Per-Use Cloud-Based Solution: Achieve faster ROI without heavy investment.

AI-Powered Automation: Make data-driven decisions with category and supplier recommendations.

Strong Supplier Base: Access to a continuously growing supplier network.

Comprehensive Digitization: Manage everything from planning to payment on one platform.

Faster Procurement: Reduce procurement times by 40% through automation.

Enhanced Governance: Ensure zero frauds and full compliance with real-time monitoring.

If you're ready to take your procurement processes to the next level, mjPRO is the best procurement software for businesses of all sizes. Contact us today to learn more and unlock the full potential of eProcurement software for your organization!

[eprocurementsoftwaresolutions]

Effortlessly Choose Your Vendors with BusinessBid's Smart RFI Software

At BusinessBid.com, we offer robust RFI software that transforms the Request for Information process into a smooth experience. It accelerates vendor communication, ensuring it’s faster, clearer, and more organized. Aimed at procurement teams and project managers, our platform simplifies the way you collect, evaluate, and compare vendor responses—saving you time and enhancing your decision-making. With easy-to-use tools and real-time collaboration features, BusinessBid makes sure your sourcing process gets off to a strong start.

[ms-demeanor]

I had a straight up delightful moment at work yesterday when a new member of the management team asked me how we were tracking warranties and I explained that we kind of aren't and he asked why we aren't and that meant he got a 30-minute rundown of how top-to-bottom fucked the procurement process is here.

First I explained the process for sending a quote (i am assigned a ticket in system A1, I create an opportunity in system A2, from the opportunity i can generate a quote in system B - if I start with the quote I can't associate it back to the opportunity or the ticket, if we need to change the quote after it was approved we need to generate a new quote from the opportunity to overwrite the old one - and send the quote from system B.)

Then I explained the process of getting approval (system B sends the quote and receives the approvals but does not communicate that to system A, so until it is manually updated system A sends a daily reminder about the quote to the client and after three days with no response will close the ticket even if the client approved the quote in system B. System B will send an email if a quote is approved but it comes from our generic support email so to make sure that I don't miss approvals I have filtering rules set up and a folder I check twice a day. Because there are 4 people who use this system I also check twice daily in system B to see if anyone else's quotes were approved).

Then I explained how I place the orders (easy! I'm a pro! We have a standardized PO pattern that tracks date, vendor and client, it's handy)

Then I explained how I document the orders (neither system A nor B has a way of storing information about orders in progress, only orders that are complete; as such I have created a PO Documentation spreadsheet that lists the PO number, vendor, line of business, client, items ordered, order total, order date, ETA, tracking numbers, serial numbers, delivery confirmation, ticket number for install, ticket title for install, shippong cost, and close confirmation, which all have to be entered individually and which require a minimum of three visits to the spreadsheet per order: entering initial info, entering tracking and SN info, then once more to get that info to close the opportunity)

Then I explained how we close an order (confirm hardware delivery or activate software, use system A2 to code hardware/software/non-taxable products appropriately, run wizard to add charges from A2 to ticket in A1; because the A2 charges were locked by approval in system B, use system A3 to add shipping or other fees or to remove any parts that were approved but not actually needed or ordered - THIS WEEK I got permission to do this bit on my initial A1 procurement ticket instead of generating an A1 post-procurement ticket for fees and shipping. Once all of that is done it's moved into system A4 and is no longer my problem).

If there is a warranty involved it *should* automatically have the expiration tracked in system C, but system C doesn't have any way to pull order info so there's no way it can track warranty *start* dates without somebody manually entering it or without using API data from the manufacturer, which some manufacturers don't provide (fuck you, Apple).

But me and my trainee are happy to add the start date to the configuration once a tech tells us that the device is enrolled in system C. If the techs will tell us that we can add that info no problem.

Until then, I have unfortunately been forced to start a spreadsheet.

The manager was appalled, it was great. I got to say the words "part of the reason things sometimes fall through the cracks is because we have so many cracks" and his response was "no shit." I'm talking to vendors about a procurement system now :) :) :) :)

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Lina Khan’s future is the future of the Democratic Party — and America

On OCTOBER 23 at 7PM, I'll be in DECATUR, presenting my novel THE BEZZLE at EAGLE EYE BOOKS.

On the one hand, the anti-monopoly movement has a future no matter who wins the 2024 election – that's true even if Kamala Harris wins but heeds the calls from billionaire donors to fire Lina Khan and her fellow trustbusters.

In part, that's because US antitrust laws have broad "private rights of action" that allow individuals and companies to sue one another for monopolistic conduct, even if top government officials are turning a blind eye. It's true that from the Reagan era to the Biden era, these private suits were few and far between, and the cases that were brought often died in a federal courtroom. But the past four years has seen a resurgence of antitrust rage that runs from left to right, and from individuals to the C-suites of big companies, driving a wave of private cases that are prevailing in the courts, upending the pro-monopoly precedents that billionaires procured by offering free "continuing education" antitrust training to 40% of the Federal judiciary:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/08/13/post-bork-era/#manne-down

It's amazing to see the DoJ racking up huge wins against Google's monopolistic conduct, sure, but first blood went to Epic, who won a historic victory over Google in federal court six months before the DoJ's win, which led to the court ordering Google to open up its app store:

https://www.theverge.com/policy/2024/10/7/24243316/epic-google-permanent-injunction-ruling-third-party-stores

Google's 30% App Tax is a giant drag on all kinds of sectors, as is its veto over which software Android users get to see, so Epic's win is going to dramatically alter the situation for all kinds of activities, from beleaguered indie game devs:

https://antiidlereborn.com/news/

To the entire news sector:

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2023/06/save-news-we-must-open-app-stores

Private antitrust cases have attracted some very surprising plaintiffs, like Michael Jordan, whose long policy of apoliticism crumbled once he bought a NASCAR team and lived through the monopoly abuses of sports leagues as an owner, not a player:

https://www.thebignewsletter.com/p/michael-jordan-anti-monopolist

A much weirder and more unlikely antitrust plaintiff than Michael Jordan is Google, the perennial antitrust defendant. Google has brought a complaint against Microsoft in the EU, based on Microsoft's extremely ugly monopolistic cloud business:

https://www.reuters.com/technology/google-files-complaint-eu-over-microsoft-cloud-practices-2024-09-25/

Google's choice of venue here highlights another reason to think that the antitrust surge will continue irrespective of US politics: antitrust is global. Antitrust fervor has seized governments from the UK to the EU to South Korea to Japan. All of those countries have extremely similar antitrust laws, because they all had their statute books overhauled by US technocrats as part of the Marshall Plan, so they have the same statutory tools as the American trustbusters who dismantled Standard Oil and AT&T, and who are making ready to shatter Google into several competing businesses:

https://www.theverge.com/2024/10/8/24265832/google-search-antitrust-remedies-framework-android-chrome-play

Antitrust fever has spread to Canada, Australia, and even China, where the Cyberspace Directive bans Chinese tech giants from breaking interoperability to freeze out Chinese startups. Anything that can't go on forever eventually stops, and the cost of 40 years of pro-monopoly can't be ignored. Monopolies make the whole world more brittle, even as the cost of that brittleness mounts. It's hard to pretend monopolies are fine when a single hurricane can wipe out the entire country's supply of IV fluid – again:

https://prospect.org/health/2024-10-11-cant-believe-im-writing-about-iv-fluid-again/

What's more, the conduct of global monopolists is the same in every country where they have taken hold, which means that trustbusters in the EU can use the UK Digital Markets Unit's report on the mobile app market as a roadmap for their enforcement actions against Apple:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/63f61bc0d3bf7f62e8c34a02/Mobile_Ecosystems_Final_Report_amended_2.pdf

And then the South Korean and Japanese trustbusters can translate the court documents from the EU's enforcement action and use them to score victories over Apple in their own courts:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/04/10/an-injury-to-one/#is-an-injury-to-all

So on the one hand, the trustbusting wave will continue erode the foundations of global monopolies, no matter what happens after this election. But on the other hand, if Harris wins and then fires Biden's top trustbusters to appease her billionaire donors, things are going to get ugly.

A new, excellent long-form Bloomberg article by Josh Eidelson and Max Chafkin gives a sense of the battle raging just below the surface of the Democratic Power, built around a superb interview with Khan herself:

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2024-10-09/lina-khan-on-a-second-ftc-term-ai-price-gouging-data-privacy

The article begins with a litany of tech billionaires who've gone an all-out, public assault on Khan's leadership – billionaires who stand to personally lose hundreds of millions of dollars from her agency's principled, vital antitrust work, but who cloak their objection to Khan in rhetoric about defending the American economy. In public, some of these billionaires are icily polite, but many of them degenerate into frothing, toddler-grade name-calling, like IAB's Barry Diller, who called her a "dope" and Musk lickspittle Jason Calacanis, who called her an all-caps COMMUNIST and a LUNATIC.

The overall vibe from these wreckers? "How dare the FTC do things?!"

And you know, they have a point. For decades, the FTC was – in the quoted words of Tim Wu – "a very hardworking agency that did nothing." This was the period when the FTC targeted low-level scammers while turning a blind eye to the monsters that were devouring the US economy. In part, that was because the FTC had been starved of budget, trapping them in a cycle of racking up easy, largely pointless "wins" against penny-ante grifters to justify their existence, but never to the extent that Congress would apportion them the funds to tackle the really serious cases (if this sounds familiar, it's also the what happened during the long period when the IRS chased middle class taxpayers over minor filing errors, while ignoring the billionaires and giant corporations that engaged in 7- and 8-figure tax scams).

But the FTC wasn't merely underfunded: it was timid. The FTC has extremely broad enforcement and rulemaking powers, which most sat dormant during the neoliberal era:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/01/10/the-courage-to-govern/#whos-in-charge

The Biden administration didn't merely increase the FTC's funding: in choosing Khan to helm the organization, they brought onboard a skilled technician, who was both well-versed in the extensive but unused powers of the agency and determined to use them:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/10/18/administrative-competence/#i-know-stuff

But Khan's didn't just rely on technical chops and resources to begin the de-olicharchification of the US economy: she built a three-legged stool, whose third leg is narrative. Khan's signature is her in-person and remote "listening tours," where workers who've been harmed by corporate power get to tell their stories. Bloomberg recounts the story of Deborah Brantley, who was sexually harassed and threatened by her bosses at Kavasutra North Palm Beach. Brantley's bosses touched her inappropriately and "joked" about drugging her and raping her so she "won’t be such a bitch and then maybe people would like you more."

When Brantley finally quit and took a job bartending at a different business, Kavasutra sued her over her noncompete clause, alleging an "irreparable injury" sustained by having one of their former employees working at another business, seeking damages and fees.

The vast majority of the 30 million American workers who labor under noncompetes are like Brantley, low-waged service workers, especially at fast-food restaurants (so Wendy's franchisees can stop minimum wage cashiers from earning $0.25/hour more flipping burgers at a nearby McDonald's). The donor-class indenturers who defend noncompetes claim that noncompetes are necessary to protect "innovative" businesses from losing their "IP." But of course, the one state where no workers are subject to noncompetes is California, which bans them outright – the state that is also home to Silicon Valley, an IP-heave industry that the same billionaires laud for its innovations.

After that listening tour, Khan's FTC banned noncompetes nationwide:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/04/25/capri-v-tapestry/#aiming-at-dollars-not-men

Only to have a federal judge in Texas throw out their ban, a move that will see $300b/year transfered from workers to shareholders, and block the formation of 8,500 new US businesses every year:

https://www.npr.org/2024/08/21/g-s1-18376/federal-judge-tosses-ftc-noncompetes-ban

Notwithstanding court victories like Epic v Google and DoJ v Google, America's oligarchs have the courts on their side, thanks to decades of court-packing planned by the Federalist Society and executed by Senate Republicans and Reagan, Bush I, Bush II, and Trump. Khan understands this; she told Bloomberg that she's a "close student" of the tactics Reagan used to transform American society, admiring his effectiveness while hating his results. Like other transformative presidents, good and bad, Reagan had to fight the judiciary and entrenched institutions (as did FDR and Lincoln). Erasing Reagan's legacy is a long-term project, a battle of inches that will involve mustering broad political support for the cause of a freer, more equal America.

Neither Biden nor Khan are responsible for the groundswell of US – and global – movement to euthanize our rentier overlords. This is a moment whose time has come; a fact demonstrated by the tens of thousands of working Americans who filled the FTC's noncompete docket with outraged comments. People understand that corporate looters – not "the economy" or "the forces of history" – are the reason that the businesses where they worked and shopped were destroyed by private equity goons who amassed intergenerational, dynastic fortunes by strip-mining the real economy and leaving behind rubble.

Like the billionaires publicly demanding that Harris fire Khan, private equity bosses can't stop making tone-deaf, guillotine-conjuring pronouncements about their own virtue and the righteousness of their businesses. They don't just want to destroy the world - they want to be praised for it:/p>

"Private equity’s been a great thing for America" -Stephen Pagliuca, co-chairman of Bain Capital;

"We are taught to judge the success of a society by how it deals with the least able, most vulnerable members of that society. Shouldn’t we judge a society by how they treat the most successful? Do we vilify, tax, expropriate and condemn those who have succeeded, or do we celebrate economic success as the engine that propels our society toward greater collective well-being?" -Marc Rowan, CEO of Apollo

"Achieve life-changing money and power," -Sachin Khajuria, former partner at Apollo

Meanwhile, the "buy, strip and flip" model continues to chew its way through America. When PE buys up all the treatment centers for kids with behavioral problems, they hack away at staffing and oversight, turning them into nightmares where kids are routinely abused, raped and murdered:

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/they-told-me-it-was-going-be-good-place-allega-tions-n987176

When PE buys up nursing homes, the same thing happens, with elderly residents left to sit in their own excrement and then die:

https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2023/12/24/nursing-homes-private-equity-fraud-00132001

Writing in The Guardian, Alex Blasdel lays out the case for private equity as a kind of virus that infects economies, parasitically draining them of not just the capacity to provide goods and services, but also of the ability to govern themselves, as politicians and regulators are captured by the unfathomable sums that PE flushes into the political process:

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2024/oct/10/slash-and-burn-is-private-equity-out-of-control

Now, the average worker who's just lost their job may not understand "divi recaps" or "2-and-20" or "carried interest tax loopholes," but they do understand that something is deeply rotten in the world today.

What happens to that understanding is a matter of politics. The Republicans – firmly affiliated with, and beloved of, the wreckers – have chosen an easy path to capitalizing on the rising rage. All they need to do is convince the public that the system is irredeemably corrupt and that the government can't possibly fix anything (hence Reagan's asinine "joke": "the nine most terrifying words in the English language are: 'I'm from the Government, and I'm here to help'").

This is a very canny strategy. If you are the party of "governments are intrinsically corrupt and incompetent," then governing corruptly and incompetently proves your point. The GOP strategy is to create a nation of enraged nihilists who don't even imagine that the government could do something to hold their bosses to account – not for labor abuses, not for pollution, not for wage theft or bribery.

The fact that successive neoliberal governments – including Democratic administrations – acted time and again to bear out this hypothesis makes it easy for this kind of nihilism to take hold.

Far-right conspiracies about pharma bosses colluding with corrupt FDA officials to poison us with vaccines for profit owe their success to the lived experience of millions of Americans who lost loved ones to a conspiracy between pharma bosses and corrupt officials to poison us with opioids.

Unhinged beliefs that "they" caused the hurricanes tearing through Florida and Georgia and that Kamala Harris is capping compensation to people who lost their homes are only credible because of murderous Republican fumble during Katrina; and the larcenous collusion of Democrats to help banks steal Americans' homes during the foreclosure crisis, when Obama took Tim Geithner's advice to "foam the runway" with the mortgages of everyday Americans who'd been cheated by their banks:

https://www.salon.com/2014/05/14/this_man_made_millions_suffer_tim_geithners_sorry_legacy_on_housing/

If Harris gives in to billionaire donors and fires Khan and her fellow trustbusters, paving the way for more looting and scamming, the result will be more nihilism, which is to say, more electoral victories for the GOP. The "government can't do anything" party already exists. There are no votes to be gained by billing yourself as the "we also think governments can't do anything" party.

In other words, a world where Khan doesn't run the FTC is a world where antitrust continues to gain ground, but without taking Democrats with it. It's a world where nihilism wins.

There's factions of the Democratic Party who understand this. AOC warned party leaders that, "Anyone goes near Lina Khan and there will be an out and out brawl":

https://twitter.com/AOC/status/1844034727935988155

And Bernie Sanders called her "the best FTC Chair in modern history":

https://twitter.com/SenSanders/status/1843733298960576652

In other words: Lina Khan as a posse.

Tor Books as just published two new, free LITTLE BROTHER stories: VIGILANT, about creepy surveillance in distance education; and SPILL, about oil pipelines and indigenous landback.

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/10/11/democracys-antitrust-paradox/#there-will-be-an-out-and-out-brawl

[thru-the-grapevine]

[3:12 AM] The bed feels more spacious than it ought to.

You crack open an eye and glance at the other side of the bed. Empty. Your mostly-asleep gaze wanders to the clock on the far nightstand; after 3 in the morning. You let your eye close again, drifting comfortably for a while in the fog of half-consciousness. And then you roll over and sit up, stumbling slowly to your feet.

A faint bluish glow emanates from the other end of the hall. When you pad into the living room, you see Chris exactly where you’d left him hours ago. Hunched at his desk, headphones on, clicking every now and then, staring at Cubase and several instrument mixers.

He startles momentarily when you drape your arms over his shoulders. He relaxes and pulls the headphones down, tapping the spacebar to pause the music.

You kiss the top of his head. “How’s it looking?”

“Better,” Chris hums, lifting his free hand and rubbing your arm. “Fixed that annoying buzzing sound.”

You hum, resting your cheek against his hair, looking at the dual monitors. “Can I hear?”

“’Course,” he says, and you can hear the pleased grin in his voice. That’s his favorite request you can make of him.

He unplugs the headphones and fiddles with the knobs on his volume box, clicks around and then taps the spacebar again.

He’s right; the buzzing noise that had hovered persistently in the corners of the track is gone. He’s nuanced the vocal effects, as well, softened the pitch corrector, and you smile, fond of how sincere his voice sounds.

“’S pretty,” you murmur, humming at a new instrument that hadn’t been there before.

“It’s closer,” he admits, not fully accepting the compliment.

You’re too sleepy to push back, make him accept the praise, so you merely bury your face in his hair.

“You should get some sleep, like I said,” Chris tells you, voice tinged with concern.

He had told you to do that…four hours ago.

You snort. “Love. Check the time.”

“Hm?” You feel his head tilt, watch his mouse slide to the bottom corner of the screen to the clock. “…Oh.”

“Was sleeping,” you say, watching his mouse trail back up over Cubase, deliberating. “’N then I woke up with too much space ‘n not enough warm.”

He hums in acknowledgment, the noise tinged with guilt.

You kiss the top of his head again. “…Please?”

He sighs, leaning his head back against your shoulder.

“You at a good stopping point?” You ask, knowing too well what his next argument will be.

He sighs again quietly, a sound of concession. “I never am…but this will do.”

You grin and give him an encouraging squeeze as he presses save three times on each software.

“Bet you’ll knock it out of the park once your brain is fresh,” you tell him as he shuts the computer down.

“And once the headache passes,” he says, pressing the heel of one hand to his eye and rubbing as he rolls the chair back.

You frown, leaning back to let him stand and stretch. “You’ve been working with a headache?”

“Just hints of one,” he insists, waving it away as he relaxes out of the stretch. “Probably eye strain.”

You give him a look. “You know, that might not happen if you’d just wear your glasses.”

It’s a lost cause and you both know it. He snorts, then gets a better look at you and smiles.

“Your hair’s cute,” he says, lifting a hand to your head and ruffling.

You scrunch your face up in protest. “’S bedhead, Chris.”

“And it’s cute,” he insists, leaning in and pressing a kiss to your forehead. “Bedtime?”

“Past bedtime,” you say, giving him a stern look when he leans back. “Long, long past.”

“Hmm,” he says, studying your face and smiling in that goopy-eyed way that you know means he’s barely listening. You roll your eyes.

He lets you take his hand and guide him back down the hall, lets you procure pajamas for him while he talks through what else he wants to do in the song, lets you help him change as he explains.

“Just want the feeling of the song to be right when you hear it, even without lyrics,” he says as you help pull on the pajama shirt.

“People will know,” you tell him, patting his shoulder and taking his hand again, guiding him to bed. “I can feel it when I hear it.”

“But what if that’s just you?” He frets, lying back and getting comfortable, drawing up the covers. “What if you just know me?”

You burrow under the covers and lay your head on his chest, wrapping an arm around him. “I do know you. But that’s not why I felt it.”

“But how do you know for sure?” He asks, his hand back in your hair, stroking softly.

You prop your chin up on his chest and look at him. “Babe. You’re not capable of making dishonest or disingenuous music. Your heart’s all the way out there in every little detail.”

He looks at you for a long moment, fingers slow and gentle in your hair. Eventually he lifts his hand and rests the pad of his forefinger on the tip of your nose.

“I like you so much,” he murmurs.

An embarrassed grin sweeps over your face. You nestle your face into his chest vigorously, and he laughs.

“Like you too,” you hum, sandwiching one of his legs between yours and snuggling in. “I’m also right.”

“Hope so,” he murmurs, and then his arm curls comfortably around you. “Go back to sleep.”

“You sleep, you need it more,” you mumble, and he chuckles.

“I’ll sleep well with my weighted blanket,” he teases you, hand squeezing your side reassuringly.

You grin and press a kiss to his chest. “Not as well as I’ll sleep with my body pillow.”

“You’re on,” he whispers, and you’re out like a light before a full minute passes.

Admin Ellie’s Masterlist

[mariacallous]

Four days before Donald Trump’s inauguration, financial technology startup Ramp published a pitch for how to tackle wasteful government spending. In a 4,000-word blog post titled “The Efficiency Formula,” Ramp’s CEO and one of its investors echoed ideas similar to those promoted by Trump and his billionaire ally Elon Musk: Federal programs were overrun by fraud, and commonsense business techniques could provide a quick fix.

Ramp sells corporate credit cards and artificial intelligence software for businesses to analyze spending. And while the firm appears to have no existing federal contracts, the post implied the government should consider hiring it. Just as Ramp helped businesses manage their budgets, the company “could do the same for a variety of government agencies,” according to the blog and company social media posts.

It didn’t take long for Ramp to find a willing audience. Within Trump’s first three months in office, its executives scored at least four private meetings with the president’s appointees at the General Services Administration, which oversees major federal contracting. Some of the meetings were organized by the nation’s top procurement officer, Josh Gruenbaum, commissioner of the Federal Acquisition Service.

GSA is eying Ramp to get a piece of the government’s $700 billion internal expense card program, known as SmartPay. In recent weeks, Trump appointees at GSA have been moving quickly to tap Ramp for a charge card pilot program worth up to $25 million, sources told ProPublica, even as Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency highlights the multitudes of contracts it has canceled across federal agencies.

[shantitechnology]

ERP solutions for engineering industries | shantitechnology

Shantitechnology (STERP) is a leading engineering ERP software company in India, delivering powerful and scalable ERP software for engineering companies of all sizes. Our advanced ERP solutions for engineering industries are designed to streamline operations, enhance productivity, and ensure real-time decision-making for growing organizations. With our cutting-edge engineering ERP software solution, businesses can seamlessly manage production, inventory, procurement, sales, finance, and project tracking from a centralized platform. Trusted by top manufacturing and engineering firms, our ERP software for engineering companies in India is fully customizable to meet industry-specific requirements and improve overall operational efficiency. If you are looking for a reliable, cost-effective, and feature-rich ERP system tailored for the engineering sector, STERP is your ideal partner.

Contact us today to transform your business with the best ERP software for engineering companies in India!

[kosher-martian]

What in tarnation has Google done to their search engine!?! I've spent the last three hours at work trying to research some software system requirements so I can procure appropriate hardware. (This actually ended up being a wash for reasons that are too stupid to get into...)

I'm going to use two immediately recognizable programs to make this easier:

Back in the day I could search "system requirements for Adobe Photoshop" or "Photoshop system requirements" and get the results I needed.

I could then follow that up with an unrelated search for "system requirements for LibreOffice" or "funny cat pictures" without any issues, all the while finding exactly what I needed.

Now? In addition to selling off the entire first page of results to advertisers and unloading an AI slop trough at the top of the page, they've also seemingly tried to implement some sort of algorithmic search system, such that every result is for some godforsaken reason tied to the previous search. But what do I mean?

I search for "system requirements for Adobe Photoshop"

The first page will of course be AI slop and ads, interspersed with links that might be helpful.

I find what I need through lots of trial and error and then move on to my next search: "system requirements for LibreOffice"

The results (setting aside the slop and ads) are now only results pertaining to how LibreOffice can work with Photoshop. Anything relevant to the topic I actually searched for is absent.

Losing hope, I search for "funny cat pictures" only to find that all my search results are for how to make those funny pictures in Photoshop and utilize them in LibreOffice

Google, why? Why Google? You used to be so functional.

[odoosoftware]

Best ERP Software: Empowering Businesses Through Digital Transformation

In today’s fast-paced digital economy, businesses are constantly challenged to improve efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance customer satisfaction. Legacy systems and disconnected processes can no longer support these evolving demands. That’s where Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software steps in — providing a unified platform to streamline all business operations.

Whether you're a small enterprise or a multinational company, choosing the best ERP software is critical to maintaining a competitive edge.

What’s ERP Software

ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) software is an integrated suite of applications that helps businesses manage core functions such as:

Accounting & Finance

Inventory & Warehouse

Sales & CRM

Procurement

Manufacturing

HR & Payroll

Project Management

With real-time data and centralized control, ERP enables informed decision-making and business agility.

Why Your Business Needs ERP

Here’s how ERP software transforms your operations:

 Eliminates Silos: Connects all departments in one system

 Boosts Productivity: Automates manual and repetitive tasks

 Enhances Visibility: Real-time dashboards and analytics

 Improves Customer Experience: Faster response times and order fulfillment

 Ensures Compliance: Built-in features to meet industry standards and tax regulations

Top Features to Look for in the Best ERP Software

To maximize ROI, ensure your ERP includes:

Customizable Modules – Tailor the system to fit your unique business model

Cloud Access – Access your data from anywhere with secure cloud hosting

User-Friendly Interface – Easy to learn and use by non-technical staff

Scalability – Grows with your business

Integration Capability – Seamlessly connects with other platforms like eCommerce, banking, or logistics

Real-Time Reporting – For informed decision-making

Mobile Access – Monitor operations from any device

Best ERP Software Options in the Market

Here are some globally recognized ERP platforms:

1. Odoo ERP

Highly customizable, open-source, and cost-effective for SMEs and large enterprises.

2. SAP Business One

Robust and ideal for large enterprises with complex needs.

3. Microsoft Dynamics 365

Flexible and integrates seamlessly with the Microsoft ecosystem.

4. Oracle NetSuite

Best for fast-growing companies looking for a cloud-based ERP.

Why Odoo ERP is the Best Fit for Most Businesses

Among the top choices, Odoo ERP stands out due to its:

Open-source flexibility

Modular structure

Lower cost of ownership

Customizability for any industry (Retail, Manufacturing, Services, Trading, etc.)

Easy third-party integrations

Fast deployment

Who Should Implement Your ERP?

Implementing ERP is as important as selecting the right software. A poor implementation can lead to cost overruns and process disruptions. That’s why choosing an experienced ERP partner is key.

Why Banibro is the Right ERP Partner for You

Banibro IT Solutions is a trusted Odoo ERP partner with over 10 years of experience in delivering digital transformation for companies across India, UAE, Qatar, and beyond.

Key Benefits of Choosing Banibro:

 End-to-end ERP implementation and support

 Industry-specific ERP customization

 Strong expertise in Odoo and cloud hosting

 Affordable and scalable solutions

 Fast deployment with ongoing support and training

 Served 300+ clients across manufacturing, trading, logistics, services, and retail

Final Thoughts

Investing in the best ERP software is no longer a luxury — it’s a necessity in a digital-first world. ERP not only automates your operations but also provides a foundation for innovation, growth, and competitive advantage.

If you’re ready to upgrade your business systems and want expert guidance on ERP selection and implementation, Banibro is here to help.

Banibro Contact Details

 Website: https://banibro.com  Phone:+91 93422 58771 Email: info@banibro.com

 Click here to contact Banibro and schedule a free ERP consultation.

[lawrbit]

Liquid Waste Management in India: Why 2025 Is a Game-Changer for Industrial Compliance

In India’s rapidly industrializing landscape, the call for environmental accountability is growing louder. From manufacturing plants to urban infrastructure, managing waste is no longer an operational add-on—it’s a legal and reputational necessity. Among the various forms of waste, liquid waste remains one of the most overlooked and mismanaged categories.

But change is coming.

The introduction of the Liquid Waste Management Rules 2025 marks a pivotal shift in how industries are expected to treat, reuse, and dispose of effluents. These rules are not just about pollution control; they’re about fostering smarter operations using modern compliance management systems, regulatory compliance software, and governance risk and compliance tools to stay future-ready.

Let’s explore what these rules entail and how compliance can become a strategic advantage for industries in India.

Why Liquid Waste Is a Serious Concern

Liquid waste is any wastewater that contains harmful substances—chemicals, oils, industrial residues—that, if discharged untreated, pollute water bodies and damage ecosystems. In India, cities and industries together generate billions of liters of liquid waste daily, but only a fraction is treated effectively.

Sectors such as:

Textile and dyeing units

Pharmaceutical plants

Chemical and pesticide manufacturers

Food processing industries

are among the top contributors. Yet, most of these sectors still rely on outdated treatment processes—or worse, don’t treat their effluents at all. That’s why the compliance management software industry is booming, providing automated solutions that help businesses track and report their regulatory duties.

What’s New in the Liquid Waste Management Rules 2025?

The 2025 rules are more than a regulatory update—they’re a transformation framework. Some key mandates include:

Effluent Treatment Plants (ETPs) are now mandatory for all industries generating wastewater.

Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) requirements for high-risk sectors.

Mandatory use of real-time monitoring linked to pollution control boards.

Guidelines for sludge management, reuse, and safe disposal.

Emphasis on water recycling and closed-loop systems within factories.

These changes mean businesses can no longer delay or avoid compliance. They must invest in compliance software that can help them adapt in real time.

Risks of Ignoring Compliance

Non-compliance isn’t just a legal problem—it can derail your entire business. Here’s what you risk if you don’t follow the Liquid Waste Management Rules 2025:

Hefty fines from State Pollution Control Boards.

Operational shutdowns for continued violations.

Loss of ESG credibility, making it harder to raise funds or enter foreign markets.

Reputational damage that affects your relationships with clients and investors.

This is where modern regulatory compliance risk management tools step in. They help monitor tasks, deadlines, audits, and inspection follow-ups, reducing the chances of missing critical obligations.

Compliance Is Your Competitive Advantage

Forward-looking organizations are beginning to realize that compliance isn’t just about avoiding penalties—it’s about building trust and staying ahead of competitors.

By implementing a scalable compliance management system, companies can:

Attract ESG-focused investors and partners.

Qualify for government incentives tied to sustainability.

Win contracts that require environmental certification.

Reduce water procurement costs by recycling treated water.

If you're unsure how to get started, this real-world case example outlines how one manufacturer turned compliance into long-term savings and operational excellence.

How Compliance Automation Is Changing the Game

One of the biggest challenges for industries is managing the ever-evolving compliance landscape. With new rules like the 2025 mandate, manual methods are no longer viable.

Here’s how compliance automation software can help:

Centralized compliance tracking: Monitor all regulatory obligations from a single dashboard.

Automated alerts: Receive reminders for submission deadlines, inspections, and audits.

Digital documentation: Store and retrieve permits, licenses, and ETP logs with ease.

Multi-location coordination: Ensure all plants, even in remote areas, stay compliant in sync.

The best compliance management solutions in India are now cloud-based and integrate seamlessly with your ETPs and monitoring devices, offering real-time visibility.

Focus Industries: Who Needs to Prioritize This Now?

If you’re in any of the following sectors, the time to act is now:

Plastic and toy manufacturers using large volumes of cooling or cleaning water.

Textile and apparel exporters facing global scrutiny on sustainability.

Food and beverage producers dealing with high organic loads in waste.

Municipal waste contractors looking to stay aligned with national guidelines.

Even tech and IT parks that host data centers must monitor their water discharge systems and cooling towers to avoid regulatory issues.

Your 2025 Action Plan for Compliance

Don’t wait until inspections or notices arrive. Prepare now with these steps:

Conduct a compliance gap audit with the help of a professional firm.

Invest in a compliance software tailored for your industry.

Train your staff on documentation and ETP operations.

Digitize your compliance workflow to increase accountability.

Monitor updates in regulations with a built-in rule tracker.

Whether you’re a small manufacturer or a large enterprise, scalable governance risk and compliance software is now available that fits your operational scale and regulatory complexity.

Final Thoughts: Don’t Just Comply—Lead

The Liquid Waste Management Rules 2025 are a wake-up call for Indian industries. But for proactive businesses, they are also a huge opportunity.

✅ To reduce operational risks ✅ To cut costs through water reuse ✅ To build a sustainable, future-ready reputation

Don’t just tick the compliance boxes—make them work for you. With the right compliance management system and team in place, you can turn regulations into rewards.

[neelgupta108]

A Successful Inventory and Billing Solution for Businesses in Saudi Arabia

One's inventory and bills can be the lifeline in a fast-paced, modern business environment within Saudi Arabia (KSA). Be it small or big enterprises, an efficient inventory and billing solution leads the way for the difference in the end. From tracking levels of stock towards generating perfect, accurate invoices, these tools enable your business to run seamlessly. Business houses in KSA prefer Tally Solutions as one of the top ones to gain complete solutions related to managing the inventory and requirements for billing.

Why inventory software is important to Saudi Arabian businesses:

Inventory software is something that cannot be avoided today as it really helps the business manage stock and optimize operations. Here are a few reasons why it becomes necessary for the businesses in Saudi Arabia:

It is real-time monitoring of the stock; thus, no overstocking and stockouts are encountered.

Improvement in the accuracy; here human errors can be completely removed, thus avoiding any kind of mismanagement of the inventory as well as missed orders.

Excess stocks are reduced so that holding costs are also low.

There is assurance the product will get delivered on the scheduled date with adequate inventory availability for customer fulfilment.

Tally Solutions is one of the leading companies, providing stockroom software across the globe including KSA.

Key Features:

Inventory Monitoring: Maintains records of various warehouses, such that stock of various items and places can easily be viewable at any time.

Barcoding and Scanning: This allows easy identification of products with barcode scanning for faster data entry.

Procurement and Sales Management: It reduces the procurement and sales process. Paperwork is eliminated, thus increasing efficiency.

Stock Valuation: It provides multiple methods of inventory valuation, including FIFO, LIFO, and Weighted Average.

Integration Capabilities: It successfully integrates with every other business application like accounting smoothly without any kinds of hurdles flowing data.

Benefits of billing software for businesses in Saudi Arabia:

Efficient Management of Invoices: The whole procedure of raising and managing the invoices is automatic for saving time and avoiding any errors.

GST Compliance: All the invoices will be as per the Saudi tax rules, and all compliance concerning VAT and other financial compliances will be taken care of.

Customization: It would allow businesses the potential to personalize their invoices in accordance with the brand identification of the businesses.

Real-time Reporting: It would give real-time financial reporting, thus reducing the complexity and increasing the productivity of tracing payments and handling accounts.

[eprocurementsoftwaresolutions]

Discover BusinessBid.com: Recognized as one of the leading procurement solution companies! When you think about the best procurement solution companies out there, BusinessBid.com really stands out — it’s all about turning traditional procurement into a smooth, strategic powerhouse. BusinessBid provides innovative tools for e-tendering, supplier management, contract automation, and spend analytics — all wrapped up in one robust cloud-based platform. Thanks to real-time insights, customizable workflows, and top-notch security, we don’t just make your procurement process efficient — we make it smart. Whether you’re expanding your operations or tightening your controls, BusinessBid is the savvy choice for organizations ready to take the lead in the digital procurement revolution.

[xneontragedyx]

Skip to main content

Skip to Table of Contents

U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Here’s how you know

Notice

The Public Right-of-Way Accessibility Guidelines (PROWAG) rulemaking has concluded. The PROWAG final rule has been published in the Federal Register. Please visit the Access Board’s PROWAG page for the guidelines.

USAB star logo

U.S. Access Board

Advancing Full Access and Inclusion for All

Information and Communication Technology

Revised 508 Standards and 255 Guidelines

PDF

About the ICT Accessibility 508 Standards and 255 Guidelines

These standards address access to information and communication technology (ICT) under Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act and Section 255 of the Communications Act.

Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act charges the Access Board with developing and promulgating this rule. The statute also charges the Access Board with providing Technical Assistance on Section 508, which is provided through webinars, trainings, and in close collaboration with GSA and materials available from Section508.gov.

Section 508 requires access to ICT developed, procured, maintained, or used by federal agencies. Examples include computers, telecommunications equipment, multifunction office machines such as copiers that also operate as printers, software, websites, information kiosks and transaction machines, and electronic documents. The Section 508 Standards, which are part of the Federal Acquisition Regulation, ensure access for people with physical, sensory, or cognitive disabilities.

The Section 255 Guidelines cover telecommunications equipment and customer-premises equipment — such as telephones, cell phones, routers, set-top boxes, and computers with modems, interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol products, and software integral to the operation of telecommunications function of such equipment.

Background

February 3, 1998 – The Board publishes the original Telecommunications Act Accessibility Guidelines.

December 21, 2000 – The Board issues the original Section 508 Standards.

July 6, 2006 – The Board organizes TEITAC, the Telecommunications and Electronic and Information Technology Advisory Committee, to assist in updating the Section 508 Standards and Telecommunications Act Guidelines.

April 3, 2008 – The Advisory Committee presents its final report to the Board.

March 22, 2010 – The Board releases a draft proposed rule for public comment, docket ATBCB-2010-0001.

December 8, 2011 – The Board issues a revised draft proposed rule for public comment, docket ATBCB-2011-0007.

February 27, 2015 – The Board ICT proposed rule for public comment, docket ATBCB-2015-0002.

January 18, 2017 – The Board issues the final rule, docket ATBCB-2015-0002-014.

January 22, 2018 – The Board issues correction to the final rule to restore provisions for TTY access, docket document ATBCB-2015-0002-0146.

Additional Resources

Section508.gov — GSA’s Government-wide IT Accessibility Program

Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act (29 U.S.C. §794d)

Final Regulatory Impact Analysis (FRIA)

Comparison Table of WCAG 2.0 to Original 508 Standards

Mapping of WCAG 2.0 to Functional Performance Criteria

ICT Testing Baseline for Web Accessibility

Appendix A to Part 1194 – Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act: Application and Scoping Requirements

508 Chapter 1: Application and Administration

E101 General

E101.1 Purpose

These Revised 508 Standards, which consist of 508 Chapters 1 and 2 (Appendix A), along with Chapters 3 through 7 (Appendix C), contain scoping and technical requirements for information and communication technology (ICT) to ensure accessibility and usability by individuals with disabilities. Compliance with these standards is mandatory for Federal agencies subject to Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (29 U.S.C. 794d).

E101.2 Equivalent Facilitation

The use of an alternative design or technology that results in substantially equivalent or greater accessibility and usability by individuals with disabilities than would be provided by conformance to one or more of the requirements in Chapters 4 and 5 of the Revised 508 Standards is permitted. The functional performance criteria in Chapter 3 shall be used to determine whether substantially equivalent or greater accessibility and usability is provided to individuals with disabilities.

E101.3 Conventional Industry Tolerances

Dimensions are subject to conventional industry tolerances except where dimensions are stated as a range with specific minimum or maximum end points.

E101.4 Units of Measurement

Measurements are stated in metric and U.S. customary units. The values stated in each system (metric and U.S. customary units) may not be exact equivalents, and each system shall be used independently of the other.

E102 Referenced Standards

E102.1 Application

The specific editions of the standards listed in Chapter 7 are incorporated by reference into 508 Chapter 2 (Scoping Requirements) and Chapters 3 through 6 to the prescribed extent of each such reference. Where conflicts occur between the Revised 508 Standards and the referenced standards, these Revised 508 Standards apply.

E103 Definitions

E103.1 Terms Defined in Referenced Standards

Terms defined in referenced standards and not defined in E103.4 shall have the meaning as defined in the referenced standards.

E103.2 Undefined Terms

Any term not defined in E103.4 or in referenced standards shall be given its ordinarily accepted meaning in the sense that the context implies.

E103.3 Interchangeability

Words, terms, and phrases used in the singular include the plural and those used in the plural include the singular.

E103.4 Defined Terms

For the purpose of the Revised 508 Standards, the terms defined in E103.4 have the indicated meaning.

Agency

Any agency or department of the United States as defined in 44 U.S.C. 3502, and the United States Postal Service.

Alteration

A change to existing ICT that affects interoperability, the user interface, or access to information or data.

Application.

Software designed to perform, or to help the user to perform, a specific task or tasks.

Assistive Technology (AT)

Any item, piece of equipment, or product system, whether acquired commercially, modified, or customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve functional capabilities of individuals with disabilities.

Audio Description.

Narration added to the soundtrack to describe important visual details that cannot be understood from the main soundtrack alone. Audio description is a means to inform individuals who are blind or who have low vision about visual content essential for comprehension. Audio description of video provides information about actions, characters, scene changes, on-screen text, and other visual content. Audio description supplements the regular audio track of a program. Audio description is usually added during existing pauses in dialogue. Audio description is also called “video description” and “descriptive narration”.

Authoring Tool

Any software, or collection of software components, that can be used by authors, alone or collaboratively, to create or modify content for use by others, including other authors.

Closed Functionality

Characteristics that limit functionality or prevent a user from attaching or installing assistive technology. Examples of ICT with closed functionality are self-service machines, information kiosks, set-top boxes, fax machines, calculators, and computers that are locked down so that users may not adjust settings due to a policy such as Desktop Core Configuration.

Content

Electronic information and data, as well as the encoding that defines its structure, presentation, and interactions.

Document

Logically distinct assembly of content (such as a file, set of files, or streamed media) that: functions as a single entity rather than a collection; is not part of software; and does not include its own software to retrieve and present content for users. Examples of documents include, but are not limited to, letters, email messages, spreadsheets, presentations, podcasts, images, and movies.

Existing ICT

ICT that has been procured, maintained or used on or before January 18, 2018.

Hardware

A tangible device, equipment, or physical component of ICT, such as telephones, computers, multifunction copy machines, and keyboards.

Information Technology

Shall have the same meaning as the term “information technology” set forth in 40 U.S.C. 11101(6).

Information and Communication Technology (ICT)

Information technology and other equipment, systems, technologies, or processes, for which the principal function is the creation, manipulation, storage, display, receipt, or transmission of electronic data and information, as well as any associated content. Examples of ICT include, but are not limited to: computers and peripheral equipment; information kiosks and transaction machines; telecommunications equipment; customer premises equipment; multifunction office machines; software; applications; Web sites; videos; and, electronic documents.

Keyboard

A set of systematically arranged alphanumeric keys or a control that generates alphanumeric input by which a machine or device is operated. A keyboard includes tactilely discernible keys used in conjunction with the alphanumeric keys if their function maps to keys on the keyboard interfaces.

Label

Text, or a component with a text alternative, that is presented to a user to identify content. A label is presented to all users, whereas a name may be hidden and only exposed by assistive technology. In many cases, the name and the label are the same.

Menu

A set of selectable options.

Name

Text by which software can identify a component to the user. A name may be hidden and only exposed by assistive technology, whereas a label is presented to all users. In many cases, the label and the name are the same. Name is unrelated to the name attribute in HTML.

Non-Web Document

A document that is not: a Web page, embedded in a Web page, or used in the rendering or functioning of Web pages.

Non-Web Software

Software that is not: a Web page, not embedded in a Web page, and not used in the rendering or functioning of Web pages.

Operable Part

Hardware-based user controls for activating, deactivating, or adjusting ICT.

Platform Accessibility Services

Services provided by a platform enabling interoperability with assistive technology. Examples are Application Programming Interfaces (API) and the Document Object Model (DOM).

Platform Software

Software that interacts with hardware or provides services for other software. Platform software may run or host other software, and may isolate them from underlying software or hardware layers. A single software component may have both platform and non-platform aspects. Examples of platforms are: desktop operating systems; embedded operating systems, including mobile systems; Web browsers; plug-ins to Web browsers that render a particular media or format; and sets of components that allow other applications to execute, such as applications which support macros or scripting.

Programmatically Determinable

Ability to be determined by software from author-supplied data that is provided in a way that different user agents, including assistive technologies, can extract and present the information to users in different modalities.

Public Facing

Content made available by an agency to members of the general public. Examples include, but are not limited to, an agency Web site, blog post, or social media pages.

Real-Time Text (RTT)

Communications using the transmission of text by which characters are transmitted by a terminal as they are typed. Real-time text is used for conversational purposes. Real-time text also may be used in voicemail, interactive voice response systems, and other similar application.

Revised 508 Standards

The standards for ICT developed, procured, maintained, or used by agencies subject to Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act as set forth in 508 Chapters 1 and 2 (36 CFR part 1194, Appendix A), and Chapters 3 through 7 (36 CFR part 1194, Appendix C).

Software

Programs, procedures, rules, and related data and documentation that direct the use and operation of ICT and instruct it to perform a given task or function. Software includes, but is not limited to, applications, non-Web software, and platform software.

Software Tools

Software for which the primary function is the development of other software. Software tools usually come in the form of an Integrated Development Environment (IDE) and are a suite of related products and utilities. Examples of IDEs include Microsoft® Visual Studio®, Apple® Xcode®, and Eclipse Foundation Eclipse®.

Telecommunications

The signal transmission, between or among points specified by the user, of information of the user’s choosing, without change in the form or content of the information as sent and received.

Terminal

Device or software with which the end user directly interacts and that provides the user interface. For some systems, the software that provides the user interface may reside on more than one device such as a telephone and a server.

Text

A sequence of characters that can be programmatically determined and that expresses something in human language.

TTY

Equipment that enables interactive text based communications through the transmission of frequency-shift-keying audio tones across the public switched telephone network. TTYs include devices for real-time text communications and voice and text intermixed communications. Examples of intermixed communications are voice carry over and hearing carry over. One example of a TTY is a computer with TTY emulating software and modem.

Variable Message Signs (VMS)

Non-interactive electronic signs with scrolling, streaming, or paging-down capability. An example of a VMS is an electronic message board at a transit station that displays the gate and time information associated with the next train arrival.

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)

A technology that provides real-time voice communications. VoIP requires a broadband connection from the user’s location and customer premises equipment compatible with Internet protocol.

Web page

A non-embedded resource obtained from a single Universal Resource Identifier (URI) using HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) plus any other resources that are provided for the rendering, retrieval, and presentation of content.

508 Chapter 2: Scoping Requirements

E201 Application

E201.1 Scope

ICT that is procured, developed, maintained, or used by agencies shall conform to the Revised 508 Standards.

E202 General Exceptions

E202.1 General

ICT shall be exempt from compliance with the Revised 508 Standards to the extent specified by E202.

E202.2 Legacy ICT

Any component or portion of existing ICT that complies with an earlier standard issued pursuant to Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (as republished in Appendix D), and that has not been altered on or after January 18, 2018, shall not be required to be modified to conform to the Revised 508 Standards.

E202.3 National Security Systems

The Revised 508 Standards do not apply to ICT operated by agencies as part of a national security system, as defined by 40 U.S.C. 11103(a).

E202.4 Federal Contracts

ICT acquired by a contractor incidental to a contract shall not be required to conform to the Revised 508 Standards.

E202.5 ICT Functions Located in Maintenance or Monitoring Spaces

Where status indicators and operable parts for ICT functions are located in spaces that are frequented only by service personnel for maintenance, repair, or occasional monitoring of equipment, such status indicators and operable parts shall not be required to conform to the Revised 508 Standards.

E202.6 Undue Burden or Fundamental Alteration

Where an agency determines in accordance with E202.6 that conformance to requirements in the Revised 508 Standards would impose an undue burden or would result in a fundamental alteration in the nature of the ICT, conformance shall be required only to the extent that it does not impose an undue burden, or result in a fundamental alteration in the nature of the ICT.

E202.6.1 Basis for a Determination of Undue Burden

In determining whether conformance to requirements in the Revised 508 Standards would impose an undue burden on the agency, the agency shall consider the extent to which conformance would impose significant difficulty or expense considering the agency resources available to the program or component for which the ICT is to be procured, developed, maintained, or used.

E202.6.2 Required Documentation

The responsible agency official shall document in writing the basis for determining that conformance to requirements in the Revised 508 Standards constitute an undue burden on the agency, or would result in a fundamental alteration in the nature of the ICT. The documentation shall include an explanation of why and to what extent compliance with applicable requirements would create an undue burden or result in a fundamental alteration in the nature of the ICT.

E202.6.3 Alternative Means

Where conformance to one or more requirements in the Revised 508 Standards imposes an undue burden or a fundamental alteration in the nature of the ICT, the agency shall provide individuals with disabilities access to and use of information and data by an alternative means that meets identified needs.

E202.7 Best Meets

Where ICT conforming to one or more requirements in the Revised 508 Standards is not commercially available, the agency shall procure the ICT that best meets the Revised 508 Standards consistent with the agency’s business needs.

E202.7.1 Required Documentation

The responsible agency official shall document in writing: (a) the non-availability of conforming ICT, including a description of market research performed and which provisions cannot be met, and (b) the basis for determining that the ICT to be procured best meets the requirements in the Revised 508 Standards consistent with the agency’s business needs.

E202.7.2 Alternative Means

Where ICT that fully conforms to the Revised 508 Standards is not commercially available, the agency shall provide individuals with disabilities access to and use of information and data by an alternative means that meets identified needs.

E203 Access to Functionality

E203.1 General

Agencies shall ensure that all functionality of ICT is accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities, either directly or by supporting the use of assistive technology, and shall comply with E203. In providing access to all functionality of ICT, agencies shall ensure the following:

That Federal employees with disabilities have access to and use of information and data that is comparable to the access and use by Federal employees who are not individuals with disabilities; and

That members of the public with disabilities who are seeking information or data from a Federal agency have access to and use of information and data that is comparable to that provided to members of the public who are not individuals with disabilities.

E203.2 User Needs

When agencies procure, develop, maintain or use ICT they shall identify the needs of users with disabilities to determine:

How users with disabilities will perform the functions supported by the ICT; and

How the ICT will be developed, installed, configured, and maintained to support users with disabilities.

E204 Functional Performance Criteria

E204.1 General

Where the requirements in Chapters 4 and 5 do not address one or more functions of ICT, the functions not addressed shall conform to the Functional Performance Criteria specified in Chapter 3.

E205 Electronic Content

E205.1 General

Electronic content shall comply with E205.

E205.2 Public Facing

Electronic content that is public facing shall conform to the accessibility requirements specified in E205.4.

E205.3 Agency Official Communication

Electronic content that is not public facing shall conform to the accessibility requirements specified in E205.4 when such content constitutes official business and is communicated by an agency through one or more of the following:

An emergency notification;

An initial or final decision adjudicating an administrative claim or proceeding;

An internal or external program or policy announcement;

A notice of benefits, program eligibility, employment opportunity, or personnel action;

A formal acknowledgement of receipt;

A survey questionnaire;

A template or form;

Educational or training materials; or

Intranet content designed as a Web page.

EXCEPTION: Records maintained by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) pursuant to Federal recordkeeping statutes shall not be required to conform to the Revised 508 Standards unless public facing.

E205.4 Accessibility Standard

Electronic content shall conform to Level A and Level AA Success Criteria and Conformance Requirements in WCAG 2.0 (incorporated by reference, see 702.10.1).

EXCEPTION: Non-Web documents shall not be required to conform to the following four WCAG 2.0 Success Criteria: 2.4.1 Bypass Blocks, 2.4.5 Multiple Ways, 3.2.3 Consistent Navigation, and 3.2.4 Consistent Identification.

E205.4.1 Word Substitution when Applying WCAG to Non-Web Documents

For non-Web documents, wherever the term “Web page” or “page” appears in WCAG 2.0 Level A and AA Success Criteria and Conformance Requirements, the term “document” shall be substituted for the terms “Web page” and “page”. In addition, in Success Criterion in 1.4.2, the phrase “in a document” shall be substituted for the phrase “on a Web page”.

E206 Hardware

E206.1 General

Where components of ICT are hardware and transmit information or have a user interface, such components shall conform to the requirements in Chapter 4.

E207 Software

E207.1 General

Where components of ICT are software and transmit information or have a user interface, such components shall conform to E207 and the requirements in Chapter 5.

EXCEPTION: Software that is assistive technology and that supports the accessibility services of the platform shall not be required to conform to the requirements in Chapter 5.

E207.2 WCAG Conformance

User interface components, as well as the content of platforms and applications, shall conform to Level A and Level AA Success Criteria and Conformance Requirements in WCAG 2.0 (incorporated by reference, see 702.10.1).

EXCEPTIONS:

Software that is assistive technology and that supports the accessibility services of the platform shall not be required to conform to E207.2.

Non-Web software shall not be required to conform to the following four Success Criteria in WCAG 2.0: 2.4.1 Bypass Blocks; 2.4.5 Multiple Ways; 3.2.3 Consistent Navigation; and 3.2.4 Consistent Identification.

Non-Web software shall not be required to conform to Conformance Requirement 3 Complete Processes in WCAG 2.0.

E207.2.1 Word Substitution when Applying WCAG to Non-Web Software

For non-Web software, wherever the term “Web page” or “page” appears in WCAG 2.0 Level A and AA Success Criteria and Conformance Requirements, the term “software” shall be substituted for the terms “Web page” and “page”. In addition, in Success Criterion in 1.4.2, the phrase “in software” shall be substituted for the phrase “on a Web page.”

E207.3 Complete Processes for Non-Web Software

Where non-Web software requires multiple steps to accomplish an activity, all software related to the activity to be accomplished shall conform to WCAG 2.0 as specified in E207.2.

E208 Support Documentation and Services

E208.1 General

Where an agency provides support documentation or services for ICT, such documentation and services shall conform to the requirements in Chapter 6.

Appendix B to Part 1194 – Section 255 of the Communications Act: Application and Scoping Requirements

255 Chapter 1: Application and Administration

C101 General

C101.1 Purpose

These Revised 255 Guidelines, which consist of 255 Chapters 1 and 2 (Appendix B), along with Chapters 3 through 7 (Appendix C), contain scoping and technical requirements for the design, development, and fabrication of telecommunications equipment and customer premises equipment, content, and support documentation and services, to ensure accessibility and usability by individuals with disabilities. These Revised 255 Guidelines are to be applied to the extent required by regulations issued by the Federal Communications Commission under Section 255 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended (47 U.S.C. 255).

C101.2 Equivalent Facilitation

The use of an alternative design or technology that results in substantially equivalent or greater accessibility and usability by individuals with disabilities than would be provided by conformance to one or more of the requirements in Chapters 4 and 5 of the Revised 255 Guidelines is permitted. The functional performance criteria in Chapter 3 shall be used to determine whether substantially equivalent or greater accessibility and usability is provided to individuals with disabilities.

C101.3 Conventional Industry Tolerances

Dimensions are subject to conventional industry tolerances except where dimensions are stated as a range with specific minimum or maximum end points.

C101.4 Units of Measurement

Measurements are stated in metric and U.S. customary units. The values stated in each system (metric and U.S. customary units) may not be exact equivalents, and each system shall be used independently of the other.

C102 Referenced Standards

C102.1 Application

The specific editions of the standards listed in Chapter 7 are incorporated by reference into 255 Chapter 2 (Scoping Requirements) and Chapters 3 through 6 to the prescribed extent of each such reference. Where conflicts occur between the Revised 255 Guidelines and the referenced standards, these Revised 255 Guidelines apply.

C103 Definitions

C103.1 Terms Defined in Referenced Standards

Terms defined in referenced standards and not defined in C103.4 shall have the meaning as defined in the referenced standards.

C103.2 Undefined Terms

Any term not defined in C103.4 or in referenced standards shall be given its ordinarily accepted meaning in the sense that the context implies.

C103.3 Interchangeability

Words, terms, and phrases used in the singular include the plural and those used in the plural include the singular.

C103.4 Defined Terms

For the purpose of the Revised 255 Guidelines, the terms defined in C103.4 have the indicated meaning.

Application

Software designed to perform, or to help the user perform, a specific task or tasks.

Assistive Technology (AT)

Any item, piece of equipment, or product system, whether acquired commercially, modified, or customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve functional capabilities of individuals with disabilities.

Audio Description

Narration added to the soundtrack to describe important visual details that cannot be understood from the main soundtrack alone. Audio description is a means to inform individuals who are blind or who have low vision about visual content essential for comprehension. Audio description of video provides information about actions, characters, scene changes, on-screen text, and other visual content. Audio description supplements the regular audio track of a program. Audio description is usually added during existing pauses in dialogue. Audio description is also called “video description” and “descriptive narration.”

Authoring Tool

Any software, or collection of software components, that can be used by authors, alone or collaboratively, to create or modify content for use by others, including other authors.

Closed Functionality

Characteristics that limit functionality or prevent a user from attaching or installing assistive technology.

Content

Electronic information and data, as well as the encoding that defines its structure, presentation, and interactions.

Customer Premises Equipment (CPE)

Equipment used on the premises of a person (other than a carrier) to originate, route, or terminate telecommunications service or interconnected VoIP service, including software integral to the operation of telecommunications function of such equipment. Examples of CPE are telephones, routers, switches, residential gateways, set-top boxes, fixed mobile convergence products, home networking adaptors and Internet access gateways which enable consumers to access communications service providers’ services and distribute them around their house via a Local Access Network (LAN).

Document

Logically distinct assembly of content (such as a file, set of files, or streamed media) that: functions as a single entity rather than a collection; is not part of software; and does not include its own software to retrieve and present content for users. Examples of documents include, but are not limited to, letters, email messages, spreadsheets, presentations, podcasts, images, and movies.

Hardware

A tangible device, equipment, or physical component of ICT, such as telephones, computers, multifunction copy machines, and keyboards.

Information and Communication Technology (ICT)

Information technology and other equipment, systems, technologies, or processes, for which the principal function is the creation, manipulation, storage, display, receipt, or transmission of electronic data and information, as well as any associated content.

Keyboard

A set of systematically arranged alphanumeric keys or a control that generates alphanumeric input by which a machine or device is operated. A keyboard includes tactilely discernible keys used in conjunction with the alphanumeric keys if their function maps to keys on the keyboard interfaces.

Label

Text, or a component with a text alternative, that is presented to a user to identify content. A label is presented to all users, whereas a name may be hidden and only exposed by assistive technology. In many cases, the name and the label are the same.

Manufacturer

A final assembler of telecommunications equipment or customer premises equipment that sells such equipment to the public or to vendors that sell to the public.

Menu

A set of selectable options.

Name

Text by which software can identify a component to the user. A name may be hidden and only exposed by assistive technology, whereas a label is presented to all users. In many cases, the label and the name are the same. Name is unrelated to the name attribute in HTML.

Non-Web Document

A document that is not: a Web page, embedded in a Web page, or used in the rendering or functioning of Web pages.

Non-Web Software

Software that is not: a Web page, not embedded in a Web page, and not used in the rendering or functioning of Web pages.

Operable Part

Hardware-based user controls for activating, deactivating, or adjusting ICT.

Platform Accessibility Services

Services provided by a platform enabling interoperability with assistive technology. Examples are Application Programming Interfaces (API) and the Document Object Model (DOM).

Platform Software

Software that interacts with hardware or provides services for other software. Platform software may run or host other software, and may isolate them from underlying software or hardware layers. A single software component may have both platform and non-platform aspects. Examples of platforms are: desktop operating systems; embedded operating systems, including mobile systems; Web browsers; plug-ins to Web browsers that render a particular media or format; and sets of components that allow other applications to execute, such as applications which support macros or scripting.

Programmatically Determinable

Ability to be determined by software from author-supplied data that is provided in a way that different user agents, including assistive technologies, can extract and present the information to users in different modalities.

Real-Time Text (RTT)

Communications using the transmission of text by which characters are transmitted by a terminal as they are typed. Real-time text is used for conversational purposes. Real-time text also may be used in voicemail, interactive voice response systems, and other similar application.

Revised 255 Guidelines

The guidelines for telecommunications equipment and customer premises equipment covered by Section 255 of the Communications Act as set forth in 255 Chapters 1 and 2 (36 CFR part 1194, Appendix B), and Chapters 3 through 7 (36 CFR part 1193, Appendix C).

Software

Programs, procedures, rules, and related data and documentation that direct the use and operation of ICT and instruct it to perform a given task or function. Software includes, but is not limited to, applications, non-Web software, and platform software.

Software Tools

Software for which the primary function is the development of other software. Software tools usually come in the form of an Integrated Development Environment (IDE) and are a suite of related products and utilities. Examples of IDEs include Microsoft® Visual Studio®, Apple® Xcode®, and Eclipse Foundation Eclipse®

Specialized Customer Premises Equipment

Assistive technology used by individuals with disabilities to originate, route, or terminate telecommunications or interconnected VoIP service. Examples are TTYs and amplified telephones.

Telecommunications

The signal transmission between or among points specified by the user of information and of the user’s choosing without change in the form or content of the information as sent and received.

Telecommunications Equipment

Equipment, other than customer premises equipment, used by a carrier to provide telecommunications service or interconnected VoIP service and includes software integral to the operation of telecommunications function of such equipment.

Terminal

Device or software with which the end user directly interacts and that provides the user interface. For some systems, the software that provides the user interface may reside on more than one device such as a telephone and a server.

Text

A sequence of characters that can be programmatically determined and that expresses something in human language.

TTY

Equipment that enables interactive text based communications through the transmission of frequency-shift-keying audio tones across the public switched telephone network. TTYs include devices for real-time text communications and voice and text intermixed communications. Examples of intermixed communications are voice carry over and hearing carry over. One example of a TTY is a computer with TTY emulating software and modem.

Variable Message Signs (VMS)

Non-interactive electronic signs with scrolling, streaming, or paging-down capability. An example of a VMS is an electronic message board at a transit station that displays the gate and time information associated with the next train arrival.

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)

A technology that provides real-time voice communications. VoIP requires a broadband connection from the user’s location and customer premises equipment compatible with Internet protocol.

Web page

A non-embedded resource obtained from a single Universal Resource Identifier (URI) using HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) plus any other resources that are provided for the rendering, retrieval, and presentation of content.

255 Chapter 2: Scoping Requirements

C201 Application

C201.1 Scope

Manufacturers shall comply with the requirements in the Revised 255 Guidelines applicable to telecommunications equipment and customer premises equipment (and related software integral to the operation of telecommunications functions) when newly released, upgraded, or substantially changed from an earlier version or model. Manufacturers shall also conform to the requirements in the Revised 255 Guidelines for support documentation and services, including electronic documents and Web-based product support.

C201.2. Readily Achievable

When a manufacturer determines that conformance to one or more requirements in Chapter 4 (Hardware) or Chapter 5 (Software) would not be readily achievable, it shall ensure that the equipment or software is compatible with existing peripheral devices or specialized customer premises equipment commonly used by individuals with disabilities to the extent readily achievable.

C201.3 Access to Functionality

Manufacturers shall ensure that telecommunications equipment and customer premises equipment is accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities by providing direct access to all telecommunications functionality. Where manufacturers can demonstrate that it is not readily achievable for such equipment to provide direct access to all functionality, the equipment shall support the use of assistive technology and specialized customer premises equipment where readily achievable.

C201.4 Prohibited Reduction of Accessibility, Usability, and Compatibility

No change shall be undertaken that decreases, or has the effect of decreasing, the net accessibility, usability, or compatibility of telecommunications equipment or customer premises equipment.

EXCEPTION: Discontinuation of a product shall not be prohibited.

C201.5 Design, Development, and Fabrication

Manufacturers shall evaluate the accessibility, usability, and interoperability of telecommunications equipment and customer premises equipment during its product design, development, and fabrication.

C202 Functional Performance Criteria

C202.1 General

Where the requirements in Chapters 4 and 5 do not address one or more functions of telecommunications or customer premises equipment, the functions not addressed shall conform to the Functional Performance Criteria specified in Chapter 3.

C203 Electronic Content

C203.1 General

Electronic content that is integral to the use of telecommunications or customer premises equipment shall conform to Level A and Level AA Success Criteria and Conformance Requirements in WCAG 2.0 (incorporated by reference, see 702.10.1).

EXCEPTION: Non-Web documents shall not be required to conform to the following four WCAG 2.0 Success Criteria: 2.4.1 Bypass Blocks, 2.4.5 Multiple Ways, 3.2.3 Consistent Navigation, and 3.2.4 Consistent Identification.

C203.1.1 Word Substitution when Applying WCAG to Non-Web Documents

For non-Web documents, wherever the term “Web page” or “page” appears in WCAG 2.0 Level A and AA Success Criteria and Conformance Requirements, the term “document’ shall be substituted for the terms “Web page” and “page.” In addition, in Success Criterion in 1.4.2, the phrase “in a document” shall be substituted for the phrase “on a Web page.”

C204 Hardware

C204.1 General

Where components of telecommunications equipment and customer premises equipment are hardware, and transmit information or have a user interface, those components shall conform to applicable requirements in Chapter 4.

EXCEPTION: Components of telecommunications equipment and customer premises equipment shall not be required to conform to 402, 407.7, 407.8, 408, 412.8.4, and 415.

C205 Software

C205.1 General

Where software is integral to the use of telecommunications functions of telecommunications equipment or customer premises equipment and has a user interface, such software shall conform to C205 and applicable requirements in Chapter 5.

EXCEPTION: Software that is assistive technology and that supports the accessibility services of the platform shall not be required to conform to the requirements in Chapter 5.

C205.2 WCAG Conformance

User interface components, as well as the content of platforms and applications shall conform to Level A and Level AA Success Criteria and Conformance Requirements in WCAG 2.0 (incorporated by reference, see 702.10.1).

EXCEPTIONS:

Software that is assistive technology and that supports the accessibility services of the platform shall not be required to conform to C205.2.

Non-Web software shall not be required to conform to the following four Success Criteria in WCAG 2.0: 2.4.1 Bypass Blocks; 2.4.5 Multiple Ways; 3.2.3 Consistent Navigation; and 3.2.4 Consistent Identification.

Non-Web software shall not be required to conform to Conformance Requirement 3 Complete Processes in WCAG 2.0.

C205.2.1 Word Substitution when Applying WCAG to Non-Web Software

For non-Web software, wherever the term “Web page” or “page” appears in WCAG 2.0 Level A and AA Success Criteria and Conformance Requirements, the term “software” shall be substituted for the terms “Web page” and “page.” In addition, in Success Criterion 1.4.2, the phrase “in software” shall be substituted for the phrase “on a Web page.”

C205.3 Complete Processes for Non-Web Software

Where non-Web software requires multiple steps to accomplish an activity, all software related to the activity to be accomplished shall conform to WCAG 2.0 as specified in C205.2.

C206 Support Documentation and Services

C206.1 General

Where support documentation and services are provided for telecommunications equipment and customer premises equipment, manufacturers shall ensure that such documentation and services conform to Chapter 6 and are made available upon request at no additional charge.

Appendix C to Part 1194 – Functional Performance Criteria and Technical Requirements

Chapter 3: Functional Performance Criteria

301 General

301.1 Scope

The requirements of Chapter 3 shall apply to ICT where required by 508 Chapter 2 (Scoping Requirements), 255 Chapter 2 (Scoping Requirements), and where otherwise referenced in any other chapter of the Revised 508 Standards or Revised 255 Guidelines.

302 Functional Performance Criteria

302.1 Without Vision

Where a visual mode of operation is provided, ICT shall provide at least one mode of operation that does not require user vision.

302.2 With Limited Vision

Where a visual mode of operation is provided, ICT shall provide at least one mode of operation that enables users to make use of limited vision.

302.3 Without Perception of Color

Where a visual mode of operation is provided, ICT shall provide at least one visual mode of operation that does not require user perception of color.

302.4 Without Hearing

Where an audible mode of operation is provided, ICT shall provide at least one mode of operation that does not require user hearing.

302.5 With Limited Hearing

Where an audible mode of operation is provided, ICT shall provide at least one mode of operation that enables users to make use of limited hearing.

302.6 Without Speech

Where speech is used for input, control, or operation, ICT shall provide at least one mode of operation that does not require user speech.

302.7 With Limited Manipulation

Where a manual mode of operation is provided, ICT shall provide at least one mode of operation that does not require fine motor control or simultaneous manual operations.

302.8 With Limited Reach and Strength

Where a manual mode of operation is provided, ICT shall provide at least one mode of operation that is operable with limited reach and limited strength.

302.9 With Limited Language, Cognitive, and Learning Abilities

ICT shall provide features making its use by individuals with limited cognitive, language, and learning abilities simpler and easier.

Chapter 4: Hardware

401 General

401.1 Scope

The requirements of Chapter 4 shall apply to ICT that is hardware where required by 508 Chapter 2 (Scoping Requirements), 255 Chapter 2 (Scoping Requirements), and where otherwise referenced in any other chapter of the Revised 508 Standards or Revised 255 Guidelines.

EXCEPTION: Hardware that is assistive technology shall not be required to conform to the requirements of this chapter.

402 Closed Functionality

402.1 General

ICT with closed functionality shall be operable without requiring the user to attach or install assistive technology other than personal headsets or other audio couplers, and shall conform to 402.

402.2 Speech-Output Enabled

ICT with a display screen shall be speech-output enabled for full and independent use by individuals with vision impairments.

EXCEPTIONS:

Variable message signs conforming to 402.5 shall not be required to be speech-output enabled.

Speech output shall not be required where ICT display screens only provide status indicators and those indicators conform to 409.

Where speech output cannot be supported due to constraints in available memory or processor capability, ICT shall be permitted to conform to 409 in lieu of 402.2.

Audible tones shall be permitted instead of speech output where the content of user input is not displayed as entered for security purposes, including, but not limited to, asterisks representing personal identification numbers.

Speech output shall not be required for: the machine location; date and time of transaction; customer account number; and the machine identifier or label.

Speech output shall not be required for advertisements and other similar information unless they convey information that can be used for the transaction being conducted.

402.2.1 Information Displayed On-Screen

Speech output shall be provided for all information displayed on-screen.

402.2.2 Transactional Outputs

Where transactional outputs are provided, the speech output shall audibly provide all information necessary to verify a transaction.

402.2.3 Speech Delivery Type and Coordination

Speech output shall be delivered through a mechanism that is readily available to all users, including, but not limited to, an industry standard connector or a telephone handset. Speech shall be recorded or digitized human, or synthesized. Speech output shall be coordinated with information displayed on the screen.

402.2.4 User Control

Speech output for any single function shall be automatically interrupted when a transaction is selected. Speech output shall be capable of being repeated and paused.

402.2.5 Braille Instructions

Where speech output is required by 402.2, braille instructions for initiating the speech mode of operation shall be provided. Braille shall be contracted and shall conform to 36 CFR part 1191, Appendix D, Section 703.3.1.

EXCEPTION: Devices for personal use shall not be required to conform to 402.2.5.

402.3 Volume

ICT that delivers sound, including speech output required by 402.2, shall provide volume control and output amplification conforming to 402.3.

EXCEPTION: ICT conforming to 412.2 shall not be required to conform to 402.3.

402.3.1 Private Listening

Where ICT provides private listening, it shall provide a mode of operation for controlling the volume. Where ICT delivers output by an audio transducer typically held up to the ear, a means for effective magnetic wireless coupling to hearing technologies shall be provided.

402.3.2 Non-private Listening

Where ICT provides non-private listening, incremental volume control shall be provided with output amplification up to a level of at least 65 dB. A function shall be provided to automatically reset the volume to the default level after every use.

402.4 Characters on Display Screens

At least one mode of characters displayed on the screen shall be in a sans serif font. Where ICT does not provide a screen enlargement feature, characters shall be 3/16 inch (4.8 mm) high minimum based on the uppercase letter “I”. Characters shall contrast with their background with either light characters on a dark background or dark characters on a light background.

402.5 Characters on Variable Message Signs

Characters on variable message signs shall conform to section 703.7 Variable Message Signs of ICC A117.1-2009 (incorporated by reference, see 702.6.1).

403 Biometrics

403.1 General

Where provided, biometrics shall not be the only means for user identification or control.

EXCEPTION: Where at least two biometric options that use different biological characteristics are provided, ICT shall be permitted to use biometrics as the only means for user identification or control.

404 Preservation of Information Provided for Accessibility

404.1 General

ICT that transmits or converts information or communication shall not remove non-proprietary information provided for accessibility or shall restore it upon delivery.

405 Privacy

405.1 General

The same degree of privacy of input and output shall be provided to all individuals. When speech output required by 402.2 is enabled, the screen shall not blank automatically.

406 Standard Connections

406.1 General

Where data connections used for input and output are provided, at least one of each type of connection shall conform to industry standard non-proprietary formats.

407 Operable Parts

407.1 General

Where provided, operable parts used in the normal operation of ICT shall conform to 407.

407.2 Contrast

Where provided, keys and controls shall contrast visually from background surfaces. Characters and symbols shall contrast visually from background surfaces with either light characters or symbols on a dark background or dark characters or symbols on a light background.

407.3 Input Controls

At least one input control conforming to 407.3 shall be provided for each function.

EXCEPTION: Devices for personal use with input controls that are audibly discernable without activation and operable by touch shall not be required to conform to 407.3.

407.3.1 Tactilely Discernible

Input controls shall be operable by touch and tactilely discernible without activation.

407.3.2 Alphabetic Keys

Where provided, individual alphabetic keys shall be arranged in a QWERTY-based keyboard layout and the “F” and “J” keys shall be tactilely distinct from the other keys.

407.3.3 Numeric Keys

Where provided, numeric keys shall be arranged in a 12-key ascending or descending keypad layout. The number five key shall be tactilely distinct from the other keys. Where the ICT provides an alphabetic overlay on numeric keys, the relationships between letters and digits shall conform to ITU-T Recommendation E.161 (incorporated by reference, see 702.7.1).

407.4 Key Repeat

Where a keyboard with key repeat is provided, the delay before the key repeat feature is activated shall be fixed at, or adjustable to, 2 seconds minimum.

407.5 Timed Response

Where a timed response is required, the user shall be alerted visually, as well as by touch or sound, and shall be given the opportunity to indicate that more time is needed.

407.6 Operation

At least one mode of operation shall be operable with one hand and shall not require tight grasping, pinching, or twisting of the wrist. The force required to activate operable parts shall be 5 pounds (22.2 N) maximum.

407.7 Tickets, Fare Cards, and Keycards

Where tickets, fare cards, or keycards are provided, they shall have an orientation that is tactilely discernible if orientation is important to further use of the ticket, fare card, or keycard.

407.8 Reach Height and Depth

At least one of each type of operable part of stationary ICT shall be at a height conforming to 407.8.2 or 407.8.3 according to its position established by the vertical reference plane specified in 407.8.1 for a side reach or a forward reach. Operable parts used with speech output required by 402.2 shall not be the only type of operable part complying with 407.8 unless that part is the only operable part of its type.

407.8.1 Vertical Reference Plane

Operable parts shall be positioned for a side reach or a forward reach determined with respect to a vertical reference plane. The vertical reference plane shall be located in conformance to 407.8.2 or 407.8.3.

407.8.1.1 Vertical Plane for Side Reach

Where a side reach is provided, the vertical reference plane shall be 48 inches (1220 mm) long minimum.

graphical representation of dimensions for vertical plane side reach

407.8.1.2 Vertical Plane for Forward Reach

Where a forward reach is provided, the vertical reference plane shall be 30 inches (760 mm) long minimum.

graphical representation of dimensions for vertical plane forward reach

407.8.2 Side Reach

Operable parts of ICT providing a side reach shall conform to 407.8.2.1 or 407.8.2.2. The vertical reference plane shall be centered on the operable part and placed at the leading edge of the maximum protrusion of the ICT within the length of the vertical reference plane. Where a side reach requires a reach over a portion of the ICT, the height of that portion of the ICT shall be 34 inches (865 mm) maximum.

407.8.2.1 Unobstructed Side Reach

Where the operable part is located 10 inches (255 mm) or less beyond the vertical reference plane, the operable part shall be 48 inches (1220 mm) high maximum and 15 inches (380 mm) high minimum above the floor.

graphical representation of dimensions for unobstructed side reach

407.8.2.2 Obstructed Side Reach

Where the operable part is located more than 10 inches (255 mm), but not more than 24 inches (610 mm), beyond the vertical reference plane, the height of the operable part shall be 46 inches (1170 mm) high maximum and 15 inches (380 mm) high minimum above the floor. The operable part shall not be located more than 24 inches (610 mm) beyond the vertical reference plane.

graphical representation of dimensions for obstructed side reach

407.8.3 Forward Reach

Operable parts of ICT providing a forward reach shall conform to 407.8.3.1 or 407.8.3.2. The vertical reference plane shall be centered, and intersect with, the operable part. Where a forward reach allows a reach over a portion of the ICT, the height of that portion of the ICT shall be 34 inches (865 mm) maximum.

407.8.3.1 Unobstructed Forward Reach

Where the operable part is located at the leading edge of the maximum protrusion within the length of the vertical reference plane of the ICT, the operable part shall be 48 inches (1220 mm) high maximum and 15 inches (380 mm) high minimum above the floor.

graphical representation of dimensions for unobstructed forward reach

407.8.3.2 Obstructed Forward Reach

Where the operable part is located beyond the leading edge of the maximum protrusion within the length of the vertical reference plane, the operable part shall conform to 407.8.3.2. The maximum allowable forward reach to an operable part shall be 25 inches (635 mm).

graphical representation of dimensions for obstructed forward reach

407.8.3.2.1 Operable Part Height for ICT with Obstructed Forward Reach

The height of the operable part shall conform to Table 407.8.3.2.1.

Table 407.8.3.2.1 Operable Part Height for ICT with Obstructed Forward Reach Reach Depth Operable Part Height

Less than 20 inches (510 mm) 48 inches (1220 mm) maximum

20 inches (510 mm) to 25 inches (635 mm) 44 inches (1120 mm) maximum

graphical representation of dimensions for operable part height for obstructed forward reach

407.8.3.2.2 Knee and Toe Space under ICT with Obstructed Forward Reach

Knee and toe space under ICT shall be 27 inches (685 mm) high minimum, 25 inches (635 mm) deep maximum, and 30 inches (760 mm) wide minimum and shall be clear of obstructions.

graphical representation of dimensions for knee and toe space for obstructed forward reach

EXCEPTIONS:

Toe space shall be permitted to provide a clear height of 9 inches (230 mm) minimum above the floor and a clear depth of 6 inches (150 mm) maximum from the vertical reference plane toward the leading edge of the ICT.

graphical representation of dimensions for knee and toe space for obstructed forward reach exception one

At a depth of 6 inches (150 mm) maximum from the vertical reference plane toward the leading edge of the ICT, space between 9 inches (230 mm) and 27 inches (685 mm) minimum above the floor shall be permitted to reduce at a rate of 1 inch (25 mm) in depth for every 6 inches (150 mm) in height.

graphical representation of dimensions for knee and toe space for obstructed forward reach exception two

Supplemental graphic combining both Exceptions 1 and 2:

graphical representation of dimensions for knee and toe space for obstructed forward reach exceptions one and two

408 Display Screens

408.1 General

Where provided, display screens shall conform to 408.

408.2 Visibility

Where stationary ICT provides one or more display screens, at least one of each type of display screen shall be visible from a point located 40 inches (1015 mm) above the floor space where the display screen is viewed.

408.3 Flashing

Where ICT emits lights in flashes, there shall be no more than three flashes in any one-second period.

EXCEPTION: Flashes that do not exceed the general flash and red flash thresholds defined in WCAG 2.0 (incorporated by reference, see 702.10.1) are not required to conform to 408.3.

409 Status Indicators

409.1 General

Where provided, status indicators shall be discernible visually and by touch or sound.

410 Color Coding

410.1 General

Where provided, color coding shall not be used as the only means of conveying information, indicating an action, prompting a response, or distinguishing a visual element.

411 Audible Signals

411.1 General

Where provided, audible signals or cues shall not be used as the only means of conveying information, indicating an action, or prompting a response

412 ICT with Two-Way Voice Communication

412.1 General

ICT that provides two-way voice communication shall conform to 412.

412.2 Volume Gain

ICT that provides two-way voice communication shall conform to 412.2.1 or 412.2.2.

412.2.1 Volume Gain for Wireline Telephones

Volume gain conforming to 47 CFR 68.317 shall be provided on analog and digital wireline telephones.

412.2.2 Volume Gain for Non-Wireline ICT

A method for increasing volume shall be provided for non-wireline ICT.

412.3 Interference Reduction and Magnetic Coupling

Where ICT delivers output by a handset or other type of audio transducer that is typically held up to the ear, ICT shall reduce interference with hearing technologies and provide a means for effective magnetic wireless coupling in conformance with 412.3.1 or 412.3.2.

412.3.1 Wireless Handsets

ICT in the form of wireless handsets shall conform to ANSI/IEEE C63.19-2011 (incorporated by reference, see 702.5.1).

412.3.2 Wireline Handsets

ICT in the form of wireline handsets, including cordless handsets, shall conform to TIA-1083-B (incorporated by reference, see702.9.1).

412.4 Digital Encoding of Speech

ICT in IP-based networks shall transmit and receive speech that is digitally encoded in the manner specified by ITU-T Recommendation G.722.2 (incorporated by reference, see 702.7.2) or IETF RFC 6716 (incorporated by reference, see 702.8.1).

412.5 Real-Time Text Functionality

[Reserved].

412.6 Caller ID

Where provided, caller identification and similar telecommunications functions shall be visible and audible.

412.7 Video Communication

Where ICT provides real-time video functionality, the quality of the video shall be sufficient to support communication using sign language.

412.8 Legacy TTY Support

ICT equipment or systems with two-way voice communication that do not themselves provide TTY functionality shall conform to 412.8.

412.8.1 TTY Connectability

ICT shall include a standard non-acoustic connection point for TTYs.

412.8.2 Voice and Hearing Carry Over

ICT shall provide a microphone capable of being turned on and off to allow the user to intermix speech with TTY use.

412.8.3 Signal Compatibility

ICT shall support all commonly used cross-manufacturer non-proprietary standard TTY signal protocols where the system interoperates with the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN).

412.8.4 Voice Mail and Other Messaging Systems

Where provided, voice mail, auto-attendant, interactive voice response, and caller identification systems shall be usable with a TTY.

413 Closed Caption Processing Technologies

413.1 General

Where ICT displays or processes video with synchronized audio, ICT shall provide closed caption processing technology that conforms to 413.1.1 or 413.1.2.

413.1.1 Decoding and Display of Closed Captions

Players and displays shall decode closed caption data and support display of captions.

413.1.2 Pass-Through of Closed Caption Data

Cabling and ancillary equipment shall pass through caption data.

414 Audio Description Processing Technologies

414.1 General

Where ICT displays or processes video with synchronized audio, ICT shall provide audio description processing technology conforming to 414.1.1 or 414.1.2.

414.1.1 Digital Television Tuners

Digital television tuners shall provide audio description processing that conforms to ATSC A/53 Digital Television Standard, Part 5 (2014) (incorporated by reference, see 702.2.1). Digital television tuners shall provide processing of audio description when encoded as a Visually Impaired (VI) associated audio service that is provided as a complete program mix containing audio description according to the ATSC A/53 standard.

414.1.2 Other ICT

ICT other than digital television tuners shall provide audio description processing.

415 User Controls for Captions and Audio Descriptions

415.1 General

Where ICT displays video with synchronized audio, ICT shall provide user controls for closed captions and audio descriptions conforming to 415.1.

EXCEPTION: Devices for personal use shall not be required to conform to 415.1 provided that captions and audio descriptions can be enabled through system-wide platform settings.

415.1.1 Caption Controls

Where ICT provides operable parts for volume control, ICT shall also provide operable parts for caption selection.

415.1.2 Audio Description Controls

Where ICT provides operable parts for program selection, ICT shall also provide operable parts for the selection of audio description.

Chapter 5: Software

501 General

501.1 Scope

The requirements of Chapter 5 shall apply to software where required by 508 Chapter 2 (Scoping Requirements), 255 Chapter 2 (Scoping Requirements), and where otherwise referenced in any other chapter of the Revised 508 Standards or Revised 255 Guidelines.

EXCEPTION: Where Web applications do not have access to platform accessibility services and do not include components that have access to platform accessibility services, they shall not be required to conform to 502 or 503 provided that they conform to Level A and Level AA Success Criteria and Conformance Requirements in WCAG 2.0 (incorporated by reference, see 702.10.1).

502 Interoperability with Assistive Technology

502.1 General

Software shall interoperate with assistive technology and shall conform to 502.

EXCEPTION: ICT conforming to 402 shall not be required to conform to 502.

502.2 Documented Accessibility Features

Software with platform features defined in platform documentation as accessibility features shall conform to 502.2.

502.2.1 User Control of Accessibility Features

Platform software shall provide user control over platform features that are defined in the platform documentation as accessibility features.

502.2.2 No Disruption of Accessibility Features

Software shall not disrupt platform features that are defined in the platform documentation as accessibility features.

502.3 Accessibility Services

Platform software and software tools that are provided by the platform developer shall provide a documented set of accessibility services that support applications running on the platform to interoperate with assistive technology and shall conform to 502.3. Applications that are also platforms shall expose the underlying platform accessibility services or implement other documented accessibility services.

502.3.1 Object Information

The object role, state(s), properties, boundary, name, and description shall be programmatically determinable.

502.3.2 Modification of Object Information

States and properties that can be set by the user shall be capable of being set programmatically, including through assistive technology.

502.3.3 Row, Column, and Headers

If an object is in a data table, the occupied rows and columns, and any headers associated with those rows or columns, shall be programmatically determinable.

502.3.4 Values

Any current value(s), and any set or range of allowable values associated with an object, shall be programmatically determinable.

502.3.5 Modification of Values

Values that can be set by the user shall be capable of being set programmatically, including through assistive technology.

502.3.6 Label Relationships

Any relationship that a component has as a label for another component, or of being labeled by another component, shall be programmatically determinable.

502.3.7 Hierarchical Relationships

Any hierarchical (parent-child) relationship that a component has as a container for, or being contained by, another component shall be programmatically determinable.

502.3.8 Text

The content of text objects, text attributes, and the boundary of text rendered to the screen, shall be programmatically determinable.

502.3.9 Modification of Text

Text that can be set by the user shall be capable of being set programmatically, including through assistive technology.

502.3.10 List of Actions

A list of all actions that can be executed on an object shall be programmatically determinable.

502.3.11 Actions on Objects

Applications shall allow assistive technology to programmatically execute available actions on objects.

502.3.12 Focus Cursor

Applications shall expose information and mechanisms necessary to track focus, text insertion point, and selection attributes of user interface components.

502.3.13 Modification of Focus Cursor

Focus, text insertion point, and selection attributes that can be set by the user shall be capable of being set programmatically, including through the use of assistive technology.

502.3.14 Event Notification

Notification of events relevant to user interactions, including but not limited to, changes in the component’s state(s), value, name, description, or boundary, shall be available to assistive technology.

502.4 Platform Accessibility Features

Platforms and platform software shall conform to the requirements in ANSI/HFES 200.2, Human Factors Engineering of Software User Interfaces — Part 2: Accessibility (2008) (incorporated by reference, see 702.4.1) listed below:

Section 9.3.3 Enable sequential entry of multiple (chorded) keystrokes;

Section 9.3.4 Provide adjustment of delay before key acceptance;

Section 9.3.5 Provide adjustment of same-key double-strike acceptance;

Section 10.6.7 Allow users to choose visual alternative for audio output;

Section 10.6.8 Synchronize audio equivalents for visual events;

Section 10.6.9 Provide speech output services; and

Section 10.7.1 Display any captions provided.

503 Applications

503.1 General

Applications shall conform to 503.

503.2 User Preferences

Applications shall permit user preferences from platform settings for color, contrast, font type, font size, and focus cursor.

EXCEPTION: Applications that are designed to be isolated from their underlying platform software, including Web applications, shall not be required to conform to 503.2.

503.3 Alternative User Interfaces

Where an application provides an alternative user interface that functions as assistive technology, the application shall use platform and other industry standard accessibility services.

503.4 User Controls for Captions and Audio Description

Where ICT displays video with synchronized audio, ICT shall provide user controls for closed captions and audio descriptions conforming to 503.4.

503.4.1 Caption Controls

Where user controls are provided for volume adjustment, ICT shall provide user controls for the selection of captions at the same menu level as the user controls for volume or program selection.

503.4.2 Audio Description Controls

Where user controls are provided for program selection, ICT shall provide user controls for the selection of audio descriptions at the same menu level as the user controls for volume or program selection.

504 Authoring Tools

504.1 General

Where an application is an authoring tool, the application shall conform to 504 to the extent that information required for accessibility is supported by the destination format.

504.2 Content Creation or Editing

Authoring tools shall provide a mode of operation to create or edit content that conforms to Level A and Level AA Success Criteria and Conformance Requirements in WCAG 2.0 (incorporated by reference, see 702.10.1) for all supported features and, as applicable, to file formats supported by the authoring tool. Authoring tools shall permit authors the option of overriding information required for accessibility.

EXCEPTION: Authoring tools shall not be required to conform to 504.2 when used to directly edit plain text source code.

504.2.1 Preservation of Information Provided for Accessibility in Format Conversion

Authoring tools shall, when converting content from one format to another or saving content in multiple formats, preserve the information required for accessibility to the extent that the information is supported by the destination format.

504.2.2 PDF Export

Authoring tools capable of exporting PDF files that conform to ISO 32000-1:2008 (PDF 1.7) shall also be capable of exporting PDF files that conform to ANSI/AIIM/ISO 14289-1:2016 (PDF/UA-1) (incorporated by reference, see 702.3.1).

504.3 Prompts

Authoring tools shall provide a mode of operation that prompts authors to create content that conforms to Level A and Level AA Success Criteria and Conformance Requirements in WCAG 2.0 (incorporated by reference, see 702.10.1) for supported features and, as applicable, to file formats supported by the authoring tool.

504.4 Templates

Where templates are provided, templates allowing content creation that conforms to Level A and Level AA Success Criteria and Conformance Requirements in WCAG 2.0 (incorporated by reference, see 702.10.1) shall be provided for a range of template uses for supported features and, as applicable, to file formats supported by the authoring tool.

Chapter 6: Support Documentation and Services

601 General

601.1 Scope

The technical requirements in Chapter 6 shall apply to ICT support documentation and services where required by 508 Chapter 2 (Scoping Requirements), 255 Chapter 2 (Scoping Requirements), and where otherwise referenced in any other chapter of the Revised 508 Standards or Revised 255 Guidelines.

602 Support Documentation

602.1 General

Documentation that supports the use of ICT shall conform to 602.

602.2 Accessibility and Compatibility Features

Documentation shall list and explain how to use the accessibility and compatibility features required by Chapters 4 and 5. Documentation shall include accessibility features that are built-in and accessibility features that provide compatibility with assistive technology.

602.3 Electronic Support Documentation

Documentation in electronic format, including Web-based self-service support, shall conform to Level A and Level AA Success Criteria and Conformance Requirements in WCAG 2.0 (incorporated by reference, see 702.10.1).

602.4 Alternate Formats for Non-Electronic Support Documentation

Where support documentation is only provided in non-electronic formats, alternate formats usable by individuals with disabilities shall be provided upon request.

603 Support Services

603.1 General

ICT support services including, but not limited to, help desks, call centers, training services, and automated self-service technical support, shall conform to 603.

603.2 Information on Accessibility and Compatibility Features

ICT support services shall include information on the accessibility and compatibility features required by 602.2.

603.3 Accommodation of Communication Needs

Support services shall be provided directly to the user or through a referral to a point of contact. Such ICT support services shall accommodate the communication needs of individuals with disabilities.

Chapter 7: Referenced Standards

701 General

701.1 Scope

The standards referenced in Chapter 7 shall apply to ICT where required by 508 Chapter 2 (Scoping Requirements), 255 Chapter 2 (Scoping Requirements), and where referenced in any other chapter of the Revised 508 Standards or Revised 255 Guidelines.

702 Incorporation by Reference

702.1 Approved IBR Standards

The Director of the Office of the Federal Register has approved these standards for incorporation by reference into this part in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. Copies of the referenced standards may be inspected at the U.S. Access Board, 1331 F Street, NW, Suite 1000, Washington, DC 20004, (202) 272-0080, and may also be obtained from the sources listed below. They are also available for inspection at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). For information on the availability of this material at NARA, call 202–741–6030 or go to National Archives Code of Federal Regulations Incorporation by Reference.

702.2 Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC)

Copies of the referenced standard may be obtained from the Advanced Television Systems Committee, 1776 K Street NW, Suite 200, Washington, DC 20006–2304.

702.2.1 ATSC A/53 Part 5:2014

Digital Television Standard, Part 5—AC-3 Audio System Characteristics, August 28, 2014.

IBR approved for Appendix C, Section 414.1.1.

702.3 Association for Information and Image Management (AIIM)

Copies of the referenced standard may be obtained from AIIM, 1100 Wayne Ave., Ste. 1100, Silver Spring, Maryland 20910.

702.3.1 ANSI/AIIM/ISO 14289-1-2016

Document Management Applications — Electronic Document File Format Enhancement for Accessibility — Part 1: Use of ISO 32000-1 (PDF/UA-1), ANSI-approved February 8, 2016.

IBR approved for Appendix C, Section 504.2.2.

702.4 Human Factors and Ergonomics Society (HFES)

Copies of the referenced standard may be obtained from the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, P.O. Box 1369, Santa Monica, CA 90406–1369.

702.4.1 ANSI/HFES 200.2

Human Factors Engineering of Software User Interfaces — Part 2: Accessibility, copyright 2008.

IBR approved for Appendix C, Section 502.4.

702.5 Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)

Copies of the referenced standard may be obtained from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, 10662 Los Vaqueros Circle, P.O. Box 3014, Los Alamitos, CA 90720–1264.

702.5.1 ANSI/IEEE C63.19-2011

American National Standard for Methods of Measurement of Compatibility between Wireless Communications Devices and Hearing Aids, May 27, 2011.

IBR approved for Appendix C, Section 412.3.1.

702.6 International Code Council (ICC)

Copies of the referenced standard may be obtained from ICC Publications, 4051 W. Flossmoor Road, Country Club Hills, IL 60478–5795.

702.6.1 ICC A117.1-2009

Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities, approved October 20, 2010.

IBR approved for Appendix C, Section 402.5.

702.7 International Telecommunications Union Telecommunications Standardization Sector (ITU-T)

Copies of the referenced standards may be obtained from the International Telecommunication Union, Telecommunications Standardization Sector, Place des Nations CH-1211, Geneva 20, Switzerland.

702.7.1 ITU-T Recommendation E.161

Series E. Overall Network Operation, Telephone Service, Service Operation and Human Factors—International operation - Numbering plan of the international telephone service, Arrangement of digits, letters and symbols on telephones and other devices that can be used for gaining access to a telephone network, February 2001.

IBR approved for Appendix C, Section 407.3.3.

702.7.2 ITU-T Recommendation G.722.2

Series G. Transmission Systems and Media, Digital Systems and Networks – Digital terminal equipment – Coding of analogue signals by methods other than PCM, Wideband coding of speech at around 16 kbit/s using Adaptive Multi-Rate Wideband (AMR-WB), July 2003.

IBR approved for Appendix C, Section 412.4.

702.8 Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF)

Copies of the referenced standard may be obtained from the Internet Engineering Task Force.

702.8.1 IETF RFC 6716

Definition of the Opus Codec, September 2012, J.M. Valin, Mozilla Corporation, K. Vos, Skype Technologies S.A., T. Terriberry, Mozilla Corporation.

IBR approved for Appendix C, Section 412.4.

702.9 Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA)

Copies of the referenced standard, published by the Telecommunications Industry Association, may be obtained from IHS Markit, 15 Inverness Way East, Englewood, CO 80112.

702.9.1 TIA-1083-B

Telecommunications—Communications Products—Handset Magnetic Measurement Procedures and Performance Requirements, October 2015.

IBR approved for Appendix C, Section 412.3.2.

702.10 Worldwide Web Consortium (W3C)

Copies of the referenced standard may be obtained from the W3C Web Accessibility Initiative, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 32 Vassar Street, Room 32-G515, Cambridge, MA 02139.

702.10.1 WCAG 2.0

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, W3C Recommendation, December 11, 2008.

IBR approved for: Appendix A (Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act: Application and Scoping Requirements), Sections E205.4, E205.4 Exception, E205.4.1, E207.2, E207.2 Exception 2, E207.2 Exception 3, E207.2.1, E207.3; Appendix B (Section 255 of the Communications Act: Application and Scoping Requirements), C203.1, C203.1 Exception, C203.1.1, C205.2, C205.2 Exception 2, C205.2 Exception 3, C205.2.1, C205.3; and Appendix C (Functional Performance Criteria and Technical Requirements), 408.3 Exception, 501.1 Exception, 504.2, 504.3, 504.4, and 602.3.

Appendix D to Part 1194: Electronic and Information Technology Accessibility Standards as Originally Published on December 21, 2000

[65 FR 80523, Dec. 21, 2000. Redesignated and amended at 82 FR 5832, Jan. 18, 2017]

Subpart A — General

§ D1194.1 Purpose.

The purpose of this part is to implement section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (29 U.S.C. 794d). Section 508 requires that when Federal agencies develop, procure, maintain, or use electronic and information technology, Federal employees with disabilities have access to and use of information and data that is comparable to the access and use by Federal employees who are not individuals with disabilities, unless an undue burden would be imposed on the agency. Section 508 also requires that individuals with disabilities, who are members of the public seeking information or services from a Federal agency, have access to and use of information and data that is comparable to that provided to the public who are not individuals with disabilities, unless an undue burden would be imposed on the agency.

§ D1194.2 Application.

(a) Products covered by this part shall comply with all applicable provisions of this part. When developing, procuring, maintaining, or using electronic and information technology, each agency shall ensure that the products comply with the applicable provisions of this part, unless an undue burden would be imposed on the agency.

(1) When compliance with the provisions of this part imposes an undue burden, agencies shall provide individuals with disabilities with the information and data involved by an alternative means of access that allows the individual to use the information and data.

(2) When procuring a product, if an agency determines that compliance with any provision of this part imposes an undue burden, the documentation by the agency supporting the procurement shall explain why, and to what extent, compliance with each such provision creates an undue burden.

(b) When procuring a product, each agency shall procure products which comply with the provisions in this part when such products are available in the commercial marketplace or when such products are developed in response to a Government solicitation. Agencies cannot claim a product as a whole is not commercially available because no product in the marketplace meets all the standards. If products are commercially available that meet some but not all of the standards, the agency must procure the product that best meets the standards.

(c) Except as provided by §1194.3(b), this part applies to electronic and information technology developed, procured, maintained, or used by agencies directly or used by a contractor under a contract with an agency which requires the use of such product, or requires the use, to a significant extent, of such product in the performance of a service or the furnishing of a product.

§ 1194.3 General exceptions.

(a) This part does not apply to any electronic and information technology operated by agencies, the function, operation, or use of which involves intelligence activities, cryptologic activities related to national security, command and control of military forces, equipment that is an integral part of a weapon or weapons system, or systems which are critical to the direct fulfillment of military or intelligence missions. Systems which are critical to the direct fulfillment of military or intelligence missions do not include a system that is to be used for routine administrative and business applications (including payroll, finance, logistics, and personnel management applications).

(b) This part does not apply to electronic and information technology that is acquired by a contractor incidental to a contract.

(c) Except as required to comply with the provisions in this part, this part does not require the installation of specific accessibility-related software or the attachment of an assistive technology device at a workstation of a Federal employee who is not an individual with a disability.

(d) When agencies provide access to the public to information or data through electronic and information technology, agencies are not required to make products owned by the agency available for access and use by individuals with disabilities at a location other than that where the electronic and information technology is provided to the public, or to purchase products for access and use by individuals with disabilities at a location other than that where the electronic and information technology is provided to the public.

(e) This part shall not be construed to require a fundamental alteration in the nature of a product or its components.

(f) Products located in spaces frequented only by service personnel for maintenance, repair, or occasional monitoring of equipment are not required to comply with this part.

§ D1194.4 Definitions.

The following definitions apply to this part:

Agency

Any Federal department or agency, including the United States Postal Service.

Alternate formats

Alternate formats usable by people with disabilities may include, but are not limited to, Braille, ASCII text, large print, recorded audio, and electronic formats that comply with this part.

Alternate methods

Different means of providing information, including product documentation, to people with disabilities. Alternate methods may include, but are not limited to, voice, fax, relay service, TTY, Internet posting, captioning, text-to-speech synthesis, and audio description.

Assistive technology

[ax-software1]

Supply Chain Management Software Dubai

Effective supply chain management is essential for success in Dubai's fast-paced and cutthroat business climate. Offering robust, end-to-end solutions that optimize each supply chain link, from distribution and logistics to inventory and procurement, Axolon distinguishes itself as the top supply chain management software in Dubai. Axolon, which was created with the particular requirements of UAE companies in mind, guarantees that you can control supply operations with ease while cutting expenses and raising overall effectiveness.

Advanced capabilities like demand forecasting, automatic purchase orders, supplier performance analysis, and real-time inventory management are all included into Axolon's Supply Chain Management module. These features enhance supplier cooperation, reduce stockouts and overstock scenarios, and enable companies to make well-informed decisions. Axolon offers the visibility and control required to maintain seamless operations, whether you're managing domestic distributions or foreign imports.

The smooth integration of Axolon's finance, sales, warehouse, and logistics departments is one of its main advantages. Data flows effortlessly thanks to this cross-functional integration, which also reduces errors and does away with human entry. Additionally, supply chain managers can keep ahead of interruptions and align operations with strategic goals with the use of customisable dashboards and reports that offer real-time insights into critical KPIs.

Many companies in the United Arab Emirates trust Axolon, which is a digital partner for supply chain excellence rather than just a software solution. Axolon provides the resources you need to scale effectively, adjust fast, and confidently compete in Dubai's dynamic market, regardless of your role as a distributor, wholesaler, or retailer. Axolon is the obvious choice for companies seeking long-term growth and operational excellence.

[cryotos-cmms-software]

Top 9 Must Have Field Service Management Software

Is your field service operation struggling with inefficiencies and high operational costs?

Many businesses face challenges in managing their inventory, scheduling, and technician productivity, which can lead to delays and customer dissatisfaction.

The solution lies in adopting Field Service Management software (FSM) with essential features that can streamline operations and enhance overall performance.

One of the key features is Inventory Management, ensuring that parts and materials are always available when needed. This feature helps prevent stockouts, reduces overstocking, and automates the procurement process for faster access. Another critical feature is Optimized Scheduling and Dispatch, which improves technician productivity by assigning the right technician to the right job, minimizing travel time, and ensuring timely service delivery.

FSM software also incorporates GPS/Geo-Fencing technology, ensuring accurate location tracking of field technicians, improving service delivery, and increasing safety. With Field Service Intelligence, businesses can leverage data analytics to predict maintenance needs and optimize resource allocation.