Ask the Expert: How much data do repair information databases add every year?

Q:  How much data is added to the repair information database every year and how do you keep up with new data from OEMs?

A: The amount of data required to diagnose and repair cars is increasing every year. Since the introduction of computers and On Board Diagnostics (OBD) into vehicles in the late 1990s, the level of vehicle sophistication has increased significantly. In 2000, Mitchell 1 was processing 200,000 pages of information per year. In 2012, Mitchell 1 added over 1.8 million pages of data to our online repair information system. There are now over 25 million pages of information available in ProDemand, our online repair information product.

No technician can possibly know 1.8 million pages worth of information in his or her head, and imagine how many books it would take to hold all of the information! But technology like ProDemand literally puts it at their fingertips in a matter of seconds.

Online repair information systems manage the rapid proliferation of information by optimizing search capabilities and delivering repair data in a more granular format. For instance, ProDemand makes it possible to access relevant information such as procedures, related diagrams, specifications and TSBs from a single lookup.