Tech Talk: Technical Documentation

I’m one of those guys, like a lot of men, who doesn’t like to ask for directions when I get lost. Another shortcoming I have had to work on is looking at the directions or instructions when I purchase something that requires assembly or operating instructions. I have always assumed that instructions were for other people to use, but not for guys like me, or so I thought.

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I would like to think age and experience have helped me see the short-sightedness of this type of thinking. That is why I am very appreciative of the way we approach technical documentation here at Walker Manufacturing. Let’s look at a few reasons why I feel this way, and hopefully you will gain an appreciation for it as well.

Here at Walker, we continue to strive for excellence and consistency in technical documentation. We think documentation is an asset and adds value to the product by providing current operator and parts manuals for the ongoing safe operation, maintenance and service of your Walker Mower. Because safety, operational and maintenance information is found in the operator’s manual, it is important to us that the customer has this information at their fingertips along with parts lists and diagrams.

We have a full-time technical writer on staff whose responsibility and expertise is in this area, and we have surrounded him with a team of quality people. I believe this shows Walker’s ongoing commitment to this process and the desire to provide quality technical documentation.

In addition, we have developed a new strategy whereby we are creating operator’s and parts manuals for each individual tractor model (instead of the combined manuals used previously). We are following a similar strategy with decks by creating manuals for collection, side and rear discharge, and mulching decks. Furthermore, we are creating combined parts and operator’s manuals for all of our implements and attachments. This has been a huge undertaking, to say the least, and it’s a never-ending body of work to keep up to date.

Moreover, our documentation team has taken on the ambitious task of revising our manuals on a yearly basis. So far, they have lived up to the challenge. By setting such an aggressive goal, we have committed to providing all past, present and future customers with the most current manuals that capture important changes and updates to the product.

Nearly all of our manuals, both legacy and current, are available for download at walker.com/manuals. If you locate your manual(s) online and do not want to print them yourself, your Walker Dealer will be happy to get the printed manual for you.

Manuals Library

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Hopefully I have made my case for the importance of manuals when it comes to your Walker Mower. Our goal is to provide you, the customer, with the best overall experience when it comes to your Walker. We believe one of the ways this will be achieved is through excellence in the quality and consistency of our manuals.

By the way, I still get lost and need directions from time to time—and still struggle with admitting it. So I have learned to use my iPhone as a GPS and it helps a lot. Plus, it keeps me from admitting I’m lost. I guess it’s a guy thing.

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