Document formatting is the step that turns finalized source content into submission-ready documents that are clean, consistent, and easy to review. When formatting is handled well, teams avoid late-stage rework, internal reviews move faster, and publishing and QC run more smoothly because documents behave predictably within the submission package.
Document Formatting for Regulatory Submissions: Building Submission Ready Files That Reviewers Can Trust
Aquila Solutions
What “Submission Ready” Formatting Really Means
Submission ready formatting is more than making a document look nice. It means applying consistent styles and layout across a document set, stabilizing tables and figures, producing clean PDFs, and adding functional navigation elements such as bookmarks and hyperlinks so reviewers can move through the content efficiently and publishing workflows do not get disrupted by preventable technical issues.
Formatting That Aligns to Where You’re Submitting
Regulatory expectations and reviewer workflows can vary depending on the destination, so a one-size-fits-all approach creates avoidable cleanup later. FDA submissions are often the primary focus, but many teams also submit to Health Canada, EMA, and other agencies where document presentation and usability expectations differ. Aquila formats with the submission destination in mind, ensuring the final documents support regional needs while remaining consistent across the application.
Preventing the Most Common Formatting Pain Points
Formatting problems usually come from perfectly normal realities: multiple authors, legacy documents, repeated revisions, and tight deadlines. The common failure points are inconsistent styles, unstable pagination, broken tables, missing bookmarks, and hyperlinks that do not survive version changes. Aquila helps teams reduce this churn by standardizing formatting across contributors, tightening document navigation, and delivering clean files that hold up through QC and publishing.
Using Templates to Standardize and Speed Up Authoring
Templates are one of the simplest ways to reduce variability and keep authoring aligned from the start. Aquila provides eCTD templates that help teams standardize document structure and formatting expectations across modules and deliverables, which reduces downstream cleanup and makes document sets easier to maintain as applications evolve and expand.
If your team is preparing an upcoming submission or you are spending too much time correcting formatting issues at the finish line, Aquila can help. Reach out to talk through your current workflow, the agencies you are submitting to, and where formatting and submission readiness support could remove friction from your next publishing cycle.