One XML source, multiple accessible outputs

The path to single-source XML publishing with le-tex transpect and xerif

Auftraggeber: University Press Potsdam

The OPX workflow: A Word manuscript is transformed into the JATS/BITS XML single source. Revision cycles with the editorial team (left) and the authors (right) are fed directly back into the same XML source. All output formats are then generated automatically from this single source (own illustration based on the workflow description in the supplied PPTX sources).

University Press Potsdam publishes books in scholarly series as well as six academic journals – since 2025 under a diamond open access model, with the goal of making all publications fully accessible.

The previous workflow separated copy-editing in Word, typesetting in InDesign, and the creation of PDF/UA and PDF/X into separate steps with distributed versions – the opposite of the intended single-source publishing approach.

Using the open-source transpect framework and the xerif typesetting system from le-tex, the publisher developed the Open Publishing XML Framework (OPX): Based on a standardized, semantically rich and open JATS/BITS XML source, the publisher now delivers publications across multiple channels, with a particular focus on accessibility – automatically generating PDF/UA, PDF/A, PDF/X, EPUB 3 and HTML, without the need for additional typesetting in a proprietary, closed format. OPX is now in production for the journals Human Biology and Public Health, MenschenRechtsMagazin and PaRDeS, as well as for the book series Pri ha-Pardes; two further book series are currently in preparation.

“We are taking our publishing production to the next level. From a single, open JATS/BITS XML source, University Press Potsdam now publishes automatically and accessibly in PDF/UA, PDF/A, PDF/X, EPUB 3 and HTML. This is made possible by the Open Publishing XML Framework (OPX), which is based on le-tex’s open xerif/transpect framework.”

Dr. Andreas Kennecke, University Press Potsdam

Sample publications produced with the OPX workflow

Cover of the journal "Human Biology and Public Health", Volume 1.
Human Biology and Public Health, Vol. 1 (2021) – the journal that marked the beginning of the OPX implementation – DOI: 10.52905/hbph.v1
Cover of the book series "Pri ha-Pardes, Volume 16".
Pri ha-Pardes, Vol. 16 – the first book series produced using the OPX workflow – DOI: 10.25932/publishup-68895
Cover of the journal "MenschenRechtsMagazin", Issue 1.
MenschenRechtsMagazin, Vol. 31, Issue 1 (2026) – DOI: 10.60935/mrm2026.31.1

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