What is ESTA?

Since the end of 1998 Hitachi Home Electronics (Europe) Ltd. ('HHEE') have developed and produced a service data system on CD-ROM that contains all the technical information required to fault find and repair some of their latest products.

• Service Manuals
• Instruction Books (User Manuals)
• Technical Tips
• WWW Updates

The information includes all that you would expect from the more familiar printed service manual plus more, such as tips on how to fix known faults and other important data.

At the present time there are two types of ESTA CD-ROM:

• Dx - Containing the ESTA software and interactive service data for a range of Hitachi products introduced since 1998.
• Sx - Has scanned images (.pdf) of service manuals for a range of European Hitachi products mainly introduced since 1996. These manuals were originally published in printed format.

Since ESTA D1 issue 3, the contents of all ESTA CD-ROM's have been included in the same model index, making it easy to access the required product.

The ESTA software is designed for IBM-PC compatibles running Microsoft Windows 95/98 or NT4, and occupies less than 7Mb of disk space. ESTA can be installed for a single user or can be server based for network operation. The ESTA software requires Microsoft Internet Explorer 5 to be installed on the PC, and the display of some of the data requires Adobe Acrobat reader also to be installed.

For maximum benefit of all the features ESTA should be installed on a PC which has access to the Internet.

Why Should I Use ESTA?

HHEE has taken the decision to produce where possible, only electronic service data for all their new products, therefore this data will not be available in printed service manual format. It is believed that this is the way forward to solve the problems of servicing increasingly complex products and at the same time minimise service manual storage space. If however you still feel the need for a printed copy of a manual, a pdf file is included for each product on the CD which can be used for this purpose.

ESTA is designed to be interactive and to actively assist you in fault diagnosis. Each item of data is easy to find under clearly labeled sections, with sub sections where relevant, and with interactivity achieved by linking common references throughout the data and between different sections of data.

Where no active parts ordering system is already available, ESTA offers a simple solution to building a spare parts order for transmission by E-mail. (It should be noted that in the UK the most efficient method of parts ordering to Hitachi is currently via this Web Site. See the Parts Orders page for more details.)

ESTA is simple to use, utilising familiar Windows type layout. For the few occasions where difficulties may be encountered, there is an integral Help function to assist you.

The latest data is always available, even between issues of ESTA, because we use the Internet to automatically update your files. Should a new model be introduced to the market, the service data will be made available to download to your PC and update your model index. This updating facility also applies to the ESTA software, so that any enhancements made by HHEE become immediately available to you.

The ESTA software can be configured for three languages; English, French and German. Where appropriate the service data is generally available in the same choice of languages.

In summary the advantages of ESTA are:

• Interactivity to assist in quicker understanding and diagnosis of product failures.

• Simple user interface providing easy navigation of the service data.

• Up to date information available via automatic downloading from the Internet.

• Common index of all available electronic service data.

• Technical service tips library.

• Supports three European languages.

• Supports E-mail and EACEM flat file parts order formats.

• More service data per cubic inch!

How can I Get ESTA?

The service policy of HHEE may vary from country to country and can be influenced by national regulations and legislation, therefore this must be only a rough guide as to the availability of ESTA throughout Europe.

Generally speaking ESTA is only available to authorised service shops and is issued under the control of each local Hitachi sales office.

For more information about the distribution of ESTA within your territory, please make contact with your local Hitachi sales office or Hitachi parts distributor - see Contacts & Links.