PDF Remediation
Pubrica remediates PDF documents to PDF/UA and WCAG 2.2 for publishers and institutions that must meet accessibility and procurement requirements. Our accessibility specialists tag the document structure, correct the reading order, associate table headers and write alternative text for figures, so that screen-reader users can navigate reports, articles and books. Every file is delivered with a before-and-after validation report that records the defects found and the changes made.
- Full structure tagging: headings, lists, tables and figures are tagged by type so that navigation works
- Corrected reading order, which is the most common defect in multi-column scientific papers
- Associated table headers, so a cell value is announced with the row and column it belongs to
- Written alt text for figures: descriptions are written by specialists rather than generated, which is essential for scientific figures
- A before-and-after validation report: the evidence of conformance that accessibility offices and procurement teams review
Tagging, structure and reading orderIncluded
Table header associationIncluded
Alt text for figuresIncluded
Before-and-after validation reportIncluded
Typesetting or redesignNot included
PDF → audited → tagged → ordered → validated
- Audited before work starts
- Structure tagged rather than only flagged
- Reading order corrected
- Alt text written by specialists
- Validation report delivered
Deliverables
Four Components of Every PDF Remediation Project
Every project covers four components. The way a document is organised determines how much structure tagging can recover.
From the audit41 pages, no tags, 6 tables, 14 figures.Tagged: 3 heading levels, 6 tables with header scope, 14 figures with written alt text, 2 decorative rules marked as artifacts. Navigation by heading now works.
From the reading order passReading order follows placement: column 1, figure caption, column 2, footnote.Corrected to reading order: column 1, column 2, figure with caption, footnotes. This is the most common and most disabling defect in typeset scientific PDFs.
From the table passComplex tables with spanning headers need explicit header-cell identifiers rather than scope alone. Automated tagging commonly fails at this point.
From the deliveryWithout a report, a buyer cannot distinguish a remediated file from an unremediated one. The report is therefore part of the deliverable rather than an optional extra.
The samples shown are illustrative and anonymised. Hover over a sample to replay it.
Compliance and Standards
PDF Remediation Standards: PDF/UA and WCAG
PDF/UA is the format standard for accessible PDF, and WCAG is the standard that procurement requirements cite. Most files must meet both.
Accessible PDF (PDF/UA)
The format standard for universally accessible PDF: tagging, structure, artifacts, metadata and language.
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (level AA)
The success criteria to which almost every procurement requirement refers, whether cited directly or through Section 508 or EN 301 549.
Procurement standards (Revised Section 508, EN 301 549)
What US federal and European public-sector buyers require, both of which incorporate WCAG success criteria rather than replacing them.
Quality management (cert. H3CR9TCU20251212INDQM10N)
Our certified system for running, recording and releasing audit and remediation work.
Responsible Use of AI
Our Approach to AI Use in PDF Remediation
A zero-error result from an automated checker does not on its own show that content is accessible. Alt text that describes a chart only as “a chart”, a reading order that is technically valid but unusable, and tagging that passes validation but fails screen-reader users can all be conformant without being accessible.
Why We Do Not Publish an AI Accuracy Figure
Accuracy figures for AI tools are usually reported by the companies that sell them.
Pubrica therefore does not quote a self-generated accuracy figure, because it would carry the same conflict of interest. Instead, we tell you which tool was used on your project, at which stage, and what a specialist changed afterwards.
Our Process
How Our PDF Remediation Process Works
The audit comes first and often changes the recommended approach, because some files cost less to rebuild from source than to remediate.
Audit and route recommendation
We catalogue the defects and advise whether remediation or regeneration from source is the more economical route. For heavily laid-out files, regeneration is often the better option.
Structure and tagging
We tag headings, lists, tables, figures and artifacts, and set the document language and metadata.
Reading order and tables
We correct the reading order, associate table headers and give complex tables explicit header identifiers.
Alt text and validation
We write alt text for figures, validate the file and produce the before-and-after report.
Our Experts
Your PDF Remediation Team
A named team of subject specialists stays with your project from scoping to delivery. Your project coordinator introduces each team member by name before work begins.
Reviews the scientific content for accuracy and confirms that each conclusion is supported by the evidence. Each expert is matched to your field.
Reviews content for accuracy, pedagogy and conformance with the applicable curriculum, assessment or accessibility standard.
Checks the finished work independently against the agreed scope and the applicable checklist. Findings are logged and resolved before delivery.
Manages the timeline, keeps you informed at each stage and coordinates the team so that questions are answered and deadlines are met.
Packages
PDF Remediation Packages
Pricing depends on page count, table and figure density, and how the file was produced. Backlists are quoted from a sample.
Document remediation
For individual reports, articles and books
Quoted per projectBased on page count and density
Delivery By scope
- ✓Audit and route recommendation
- ✓Full structure tagging
- ✓Reading order correction
- ✓Table header association
- ✓Written alt text for figures
- ✓Before-and-after validation report
Where the source file exists, we will advise you if regenerating it would cost less than remediating it.
Deliverables Request a quoteBacklist programme
For publishers bringing a catalogue into conformance
Quoted per projectBased on volume, quoted from a sample
Delivery By arrangement
- ✓Sample audit to establish the defect profile and price
- ✓Triage into files to remediate, regenerate or retire
- ✓Batch remediation to a consistent standard
- ✓Validation reporting across the batch
- ✓A documented conformance position
Triage is more important than throughput, because not every backlist file is worth remediating.
Deliverables Request a quoteSend one representative file and we will audit it free of charge and advise whether remediation or regeneration from source is more economical for your catalogue.
No. Where the source file exists and the layout is complex, regenerating an accessible PDF from source is frequently cheaper and gives a better result.
The audit shows which approach is appropriate. We would rather advise you at the start than remediate a file that should have been rebuilt.
Reading order. Multi-column scientific layouts often announce content in placement order rather than reading order, which makes the document incoherent.
Other common defects are untagged tables, headings formatted only as larger text, and missing or machine-generated alt text on figures.
Partly. Automated tagging handles most of a simple document, but it reliably fails on complex tables, multi-column layouts and content where the reading order is ambiguous.
For scientific content, the automated pass is a starting point rather than a deliverable, and automated alt text on data figures is worse than none.
A before-and-after validation report is provided with every file, because accessibility offices and procurement teams ask for this evidence.
The report can also be used to prepare a conformance report if you need one.
Related Services
Related Accessibility Services
Remediation corrects existing defects, while changes to the production workflow prevent new ones.
1CONFORMANCE DOCUMENTATIONrequired by buyers
VPAT and conformance reportTested and evidenced conformance reporting. Accessibility complianceDocuments and media made conformant with WCAG 2.2.2FIGURES AND EQUATIONSaccessible scientific content
Scientific alt textAlt text written for data-heavy figures. MathML remediationEquations rebuilt as accessible MathML.3PREVENTING FUTURE DEFECTSupstream
Publishing workflow advisoryBorn-accessible, XML-first production workflows. Digital production QAQuality checks before publication.Request a Free Audit of a Representative PDF
We will advise whether remediation or regeneration from source is more economical for your catalogue. For complex layouts, regeneration is often the better option.