“Fairly traditional” is how head of operations Meena Prakash describes Lapiz Digital’s service offerings. “E-book conversion, which has been our strength, has grown 33% in the past 12 months, mostly due to referrals and self-publishing clients,” says Prakash, whose team has processed more than one million pages in both English and other languages over the past six months.
One memorable project was a workbook conversion with additional features such as name fields, fill-in-the-box sections, drop-down lists, and backend data storage with touch-screen options. “We turned around the project successfully, within budget and the timeframe given, which made the client happy and resulted in a positive impact on our 2023 volumes allocation from that client—which, in turn, made us very happy,” Prakash says.
Interactive e-book conversions are experiencing a surge in popularity at Lapiz. “As each year passes and newer interactive features emerge, our team has been researching, learning, enhancing, and refining our offerings to meet these evolving requirements and recommending cost-effective solutions to our clients,” Prakash says. “With the rise of online learning platforms and the increased adoption of digital educational resources, there is a growing demand for interactive and multimedia elements in educational content, and we are certainly seeing such demand reflected in our e-book projects and HTML deliverables.”
A trending demand in recent months has been for simple to moderately complex animated EPUBs to enhance user experience without compromising the performance of content on handheld devices. Prakash recalls one project requiring JavaScript object notation (JSON) animations, for which the team created a variety of animated visual aids, ranging from straightforward to complex, to make the course material more immersive and enjoyable for students while improving their comprehension.
Another project involved an inactive client’s request for the team to take over an unfinished project. “The client was unhappy with the way the highly complex project was handled by existing suppliers; we completed it within the budget and timeline to our client’s satisfaction,” Prakash says. “Then there were several complex projects arriving very late from highly demanding clients. Fortunately, we have teams that are cross-trained and possess versatile skill sets instead of being compartmentalized based on project stage or process. The seamless coordination within the teams and with respective clients made the delivery possible.”
The company remains committed to the traditional typesetting and e-book conversions with which it is identified, Prakash says. “Our expertise lies in journals and book production, with a particular focus on mathematical and engineering journals and educational titles. What sets us apart is our ability to offer a flexible schedule, deliver exceptional quality, and showcase excellent project management skills.”
