Platforms for digital machine instructions: how to compare them
Three kinds of tools can host digital instructions under Regulation (EU) 2023/1230: dedicated hosting services that give each machine a QR page, documentation and content delivery platforms built for authoring teams, and general QR or file tools. Compare them on what the regulation demands over ten years, not on features for day one: who keeps the pages online if you leave, whether the shipped version stays reachable, and how paper requests are handled.
Three kinds of platforms
Most vendors fall into one of these groups. Each fits a different company.
- 1
Dedicated hosting for machine instructions
A QR page per machine or model, versions, downloads, often your own domain. Set up in days. Built around the regulation's conditions.
Fits manufacturers who already write their manuals and need a compliant place to publish them.
- 2
Documentation and content delivery platforms
Authoring, translation, component content and a customer portal. Strong for large documentation teams. Projects take months.
Fits companies with a technical writing team that wants to change how it writes, not only where it publishes.
- 3
General QR codes and file links
A dynamic QR tool or a PDF on the company website. Cheap to start. No model, version or paper request logic.
Risky for ten years: many dynamic QR services stop redirecting when the subscription ends, and website relaunches break PDF links.
12 criteria and the question to ask
Send these questions to every vendor on your shortlist. The answers show quickly who is built for ten years.
| Criterion | Why it matters | Ask the vendor |
|---|---|---|
| QR per machine or per model | The marking must lead to the instructions of the right model. | Can we choose a QR per serial number or one per model, and does the page show the model? |
| Stable address | Labels stay on machines for years. The address cannot change. | Does the QR address stay the same when we upload a new version or rename files? |
| Own domain | Your domain keeps working if you change provider. | Can the pages run on our own domain, and is that in every plan? |
| Version shipped with the machine | A user must find the instructions that match their machine, not only the latest. | Does each machine show the version valid at its delivery date, with older versions kept? |
| Download, print, save offline | Required, and critical during a breakdown. | Can users download, print and save a copy that opens without internet? |
| 10 years, in writing | Required for at least 10 years after placing on the market. | Is the 10-year availability in the contract, and on which plan? |
| After cancellation | Your obligation outlives the subscription. | What happens to our pages and QR codes if we stop paying or you close? |
| Full export | Your exit plan. | Can we export every file, version and machine record in an open format at any time? |
| Paper requests | Required within one month of a request at purchase. | Is there a request form with a log and a deadline, or do we handle it by e-mail? |
| Languages | Each member state sets its language. | How many languages per document, and does the page pick the user's language? |
| Protected documents | Spare parts lists or drawings may be for customers or service only. | Can some documents need a code or login while the regulatory instructions stay public? |
| Sync or API | Manual uploads fail at volume. | Can we publish from our NAS, PDM or ERP by folder sync or API? |
Vendors and what they say about themselves
Named vendors in each group, with what their own public pages state about the points above. No prices: they change and most are quote only.
| Vendor | Kind | What their own pages state | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| docks.io | Instruction hosting | One fixed QR code per machine, own domain, the current version behind the same link, PIN protection, API tokens, German data centres. A contractual 10-year URL guarantee is listed for the Enterprise plan. | docks.io |
| MySafeDoc | Instruction hosting | A QR code per serial number, documents at model, version or serial level, a permanent URL, versions never deleted, paper copy requests from the machine page, EU data centres. Own domain as an additional service; API and login-restricted documents in the Custom plan. | mysafedoc.cloud |
| ECHO PRM | Instruction hosting | Paper request form and PDF download in every package, own domain and brand as an option, automatic language detection, ERP, API and PIM connection, servers in Germany. States online availability for the expected lifetime, at least 10 years. | echoprm.com |
| Certiblok QRcube | Instruction hosting | A QR code per model or serial number that stays the same for the product's life, passwords and public or private access, a REST API, EU-only nodes by contract. | certiblok.com |
| montavis | Instruction hosting | Video work instructions with a permanent address per manual opened by QR code, version history, a PDF per language at no extra charge per language, own infrastructure in the EU. | montavis.com |
| Quanos IQ for Documentation | Documentation platform | Machine-specific delivery by serial number, QR or NFC through the Asset Passport, version-safe content, PDF download, offline use in its service app, EU hosting, questions in natural language. | quanos.com |
| JustRelate | Customer portal | QR code on the type plate, an open level and a registered level of access, multilingual content, AI-powered search and chatbots. | justrelate.com |
| Paligo | Documentation platform | Authoring with the Nexus portal: custom domains, single sign-on, versions and languages, cited AI answers. | paligo.net |
| Spogen | Documentation platform | Authoring and machinery knowledge: output as PDF or offline HTML, versioned per language, an AI assistant for operators. | spogen.ai |
| Fluid Topics | Content delivery | Product knowledge portal with an AI chatbot, APIs, permissions and answers across languages; data centres in the United States, Europe and Asia. | fluidtopics.com |
Based on each vendor's public website, checked on 13 November 2026. Not stated means we did not find it on their pages, not that the product lacks it. Vendors can ask us to correct an entry.
Where Nova fits
From €119 per month
Nova is a dedicated hosting service for machine instructions, made by VSight. The regulatory conditions are in every plan. Plans start from €119 per month, excluding VAT, with unlimited machines and languages. The final price depends on your setup.
- A QR per serial number, or one per model with serial number entry
- Each machine shows the version valid at its delivery date
- Paper requests with a 30-day log
- Your own domain and a full archive export
- Download, print and offline save on the phone
- Operators ask questions and get answers only from the published instructions
- Hosted in the EU
Questions and answers
Which platform is best for the Machinery Regulation?
Is a dynamic QR code generator enough?
Should the instructions be on our own domain?
Why are there no competitor prices on this page?
All six conditions for digital instructions
Each condition on its own page: the rule, what it means in practice and the common mistakes.
- 1QR code and accessMark on the machine how to reach the instructions, for the right model.
- 2Download, print, saveUsers must be able to print, download and save the instructions, even in a breakdown.
- 310 years onlineKeep the instructions online for the machine's lifetime and at least 10 years.
- 4Paper copy on requestA buyer who asks at purchase gets a paper copy free of charge within one month.
- 5LanguageInstructions in the language the member state sets, clear and easy to understand.
- 6Consumer machineryMachines non-professionals can use need essential safety information on paper.
Tools for choosing and checking
- Checklist 20 checks across the six conditions. Tick them off or print the list.
- Platform comparison Three kinds of platforms, 12 criteria and the questions to ask every vendor.
See it with your own machine.
Send us one manual. We set up that machine's QR page and show it to you the same day.
For information only, not legal advice. Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 applies from 20 January 2027.