DockAccess
A digital accessibility platform: automated audits, continuous monitoring, expert audits, an accessibility statement generator and a widget for users.
- Type
- SaaS product · digital accessibility
- Period
- in development
- Product website
- dockaccess.org
My role
My role
My contribution
I’m responsible for the platform’s architecture and technical direction, and for how we combine automated scan results with the work of auditors.
The team’s work
The platform is built by the Dock team: developers, testers and the accessibility specialists who carry out expert audits.
Decision line
The automated scan doesn’t deliver a verdict. Its result is the starting point for an audit, not a statement of conformance.
- Context
Automation finds only some of the problems
Scanners detect issues that can be described by a rule. They can’t judge whether alt text makes sense, whether the focus order is right or whether messages are clear.
- Choice
Three layers instead of one
Automated audits and monitoring run continuously, an expert audit covers what automation can’t see, and the report brings both sources together.
- Trade-off
Slower and more expensive than a scanner alone
A full audit takes human work. You can’t sell it as “one-click compliance”, and we deliberately don’t.
- Takeaway
Fewer promises, more credible results
The client knows what was checked automatically and what was checked manually. That’s more honest and easier to defend during a compliance review.
DockAccess
DockAccess
Digital accessibility is no longer a niche topic. The European Accessibility Act has applied since June 2025, and many companies now have to ask themselves, for the first time, whether their website is accessible and how to check it.
DockAccess answers that question on several levels. According to the product website, it includes an accessibility widget, automated audits, website monitoring, expert audits, an accessibility statement generator, an AI-powered alt text generator and a free browser extension. The platform references WCAG 2.1 AA and the EN 301 549 standard.
Technically, the most interesting part for me is the tension between detecting issues and actually improving accessibility. It’s easy to build a tool that produces long lists of problems. It’s harder to build one that leaves a website genuinely better for people.