FAQ

My PDF is a scan — can you handle it?

Yes. ChromaParse has a dedicated OCR pipeline:

Preferred path: text-layer extraction (numeric fields 100% exact)
Fallback path: when no text layer is available, OCR kicks in (numeric >99.8%, tagged as OCR-sourced)

OCR-sourced fields are explicitly marked with precision_class: ocr so the audit chain is preserved. If your reports are entirely scanned, an enterprise plan is recommended for the optimised scanned-template set.

Multilingual PDFs?

Supported report languages:

English (primary)
Chinese (Simplified / Traditional)
Japanese (common in LabSolutions / Xcalibur)
German (some European Empower variants)
French, Spanish, Korean (catalogued but sparser samples — Beta)

Field names are normalised across languages (e.g. “Retention Time” / “保留时间” / “保持時間” all map to retention_time).

Encrypted PDFs?

If a PDF is owner-password encrypted but printing is allowed (the most common chromatograph export case), we can process it directly.

If user-password encrypted, you supply the password at upload; it is never persisted (in memory only during parse).

If DRM or read-restriction protection is applied, we cannot read content — that’s a PDF standard limitation, not a ChromaParse one.

How long does custom template adaptation take?

For the public fingerprint library, lead time depends on complexity:

Common variant (column order swap, header rename): 1–3 business days
Structural change (new report family, unseen detector): 1–3 weeks
Private library: per contractual SLA, typically 5–10 business days

Provide 3–5 redacted samples — this is the single biggest accelerator.

Is there an API?

Yes.

SaaS REST API: OAuth 2.0; API Reference is not yet public — opens after trial-account registration
Local REST API: same interface, data stays in the customer network
Webhook: post-parse callback, commonly used for asynchronous LIMS integration
Batch SDKs: Python / Node clients for large-scale historical-PDF migration

Can I deploy on-premise?

Yes. See Enterprise.

Local Pro: single-server deployment, suitable for one QC lab
Local Enterprise: multi-node + multi-site, suitable for large CDMOs and cross-plant scenarios

Data stays inside the customer network; audit logs retained per GMP.

What’s the data-security stance?

Short version:

SaaS: encrypted in transit + at rest, opt-out of model training
Local: data never leaves the customer network; we see no customer data
Private library: IP-isolated, contractually defined

Full version: Trust center and DPA.