The Green Sheet 031

February 2005

Bodleian Library goes Underground

News

Features

Products

Case Studies

People

ISSUE 31

advertisers’ index ANACOMP

........................ ...............31 ..

...............31

E-IMAGE DATA ...............

...............29

FLORO I N T ......................

...............31

DASS LABORATORIES

GENUS G R O U P ............... . . .13.23.30

review 2 0 0 4 & preview 2 0 0 5 product news

10-16

features

17-21 22-25

people

26-27

world news

28-29

IMAGE RETRIEVAL..........

...............25

IN D U S .............................

...............31

KODAK .............................

...............32

MERCURY VISUALS___

...............31

MICROFORM GMBH . . . .

...............21

MICROVUE......................

...............19

MSTC................................

...............31

NEXTSCAN ......................

...............32

OIT ..................................

...............27

PENNY IM AGING............

...............31

SERVICE, SALES & PRODUCTS___ 31

general interest

30

global marketplace

31

WESTERN MICROGRAPHICS............ 31 WICKS & WILSON ..........

...............11

THE GREEN SHEET TEAM

New Advertising Rates Magazine Type Area (m m )

Cosf (GBP)

Cost (U S $)

Double page spread

2 7 5 x 400

£ 1 2 0 0 .0 0

$ 2 1 6 0 .0 0

Outside back cover

2 7 5 x 190

£

8 0 0 .0 0

$ 1 4 4 0 .0 0

Full page

275x190

£

6 5 0 .0 0

$ 1 1 7 0 .0 0

H a lf page

1 3 8 x 1 9 0 or 2 7 5 x 9 3

£

4 0 0 .0 0

$

1 3 8 x 9 3 or 6 9 x 1 9 0

£

2 5 0 .0 0

$ 4 5 0 .0 0

69x93

£

1 5 0 .0 0

$ 2 7 0 .0 0

Quarter page Eighth page

7 2 0 .0 0

65 Winchester Drive Burbage Leicestershire LE10 2BA United Kingdom Tel: +44 (0 ) 24 7638 2328 Fax: +44 (0 ) 24 7638 2319 Mobile:07970 248146 U.K. E-mail: gsinfo@ green-sheet.net U.S. E-mail: MNgreensheet@ aol.com Web Site: w w w .g re e n -s h e et.n et Editor Tim Nixon tim @ green-sheet.net

US Editor Mitch Badler MNgreensheet@ aol.com

Australian Editor Laurie V aren do rff Laurie.Varendorff@ tpg.com .au

Website Entries

Consulting Editor David Aspinall

N orm al Entry

F.O.C.

F.O.C.

Extended Entry (1 0 0 words in bold type)

£

6 0 .0 0

$

1 0 8 .0 0

Hyperlink (see website for detail)

£

7 5 .0 0

$

1 3 5 .0 0

daspinall@ datum -solutions.co.uk

Subscription and Circulation Carole Nixon gsinfo@ green-sheet.net

Graphic Design Paul Ensor paulensor@ graphicpress.co.uk

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

Editor Tim Nixon looks forward to 2005

Green Sheet acquires www.ggbaker.com We have taken over the popular web site of G.G.Baker - w w w . ggbaker.com. This

relevant link to be sent immediately to the

acting as a permanent reference and the

supplier's home page.

means that the whole comprehensive database that is currently held by The Green

The advertising charges are available on request, but rest assured that they will be very competitive. There will also be special

web site giving all the latest up-to-date product information, as the site's database

Sheet will shortly be accessible to all who need it, as well as the information already on the ggbaker web site.

arrangements whereby customers of The

available from whom and where to source it locally.

Green Sheet will be offered very attractive deals, as will existing website customers be

ensure that we do not omit any company

W ith further input from our U.S. editor Mitch Badler whose knowledge of U.S. document management companies is probably second to none, and even more from Laurie Varendorff in Australia the site w ill, in the coming months become more and more international.

It will be possible to advertise on the site and we w ill also be offering automatic links from our site to all participating companies.

This means that should an enquirer looking for a specific product or service wish to proceed further, they need only click on the

We will be putting out regular calls to

encouraged to take advantage of The Green Sheet, both for advertising and editorial

that should be included and for those who

coverage.

circumstance but, at the end of the day, the responsibility will rest squarely on the

All companies will be included in the new

Tim Nixon shakes on the deal with G erald Baker

can be updated on a daily basis - what's

are in to inform us as to any changes in

Green Sheet On-Line Directory absolutely free of charge (only the links and extended entries will have to be paid for) promoting

shoulders of the participating companies to

their products and services. Already the ggbaker.com site is very comprehensive, but

there is no reason for the site not to be right up to date at all times.

we are planning to make it even more so and, as I mentioned earlier, it will eventually

Gerald Baker himself is remaining on the team, and he will continue to keep the European portion of the site updated, but as

become international. O ur aim is to make it a tool that no self respecting Record, Document or IT Manager would be without.

It will become an absolute MUST for every company supplying equipment, software or services within the Document Management industry, whether digital or analogue, to be listed in the directory.

For manufacturers, suppliers and service bureaux, initially in the UK, the combination

keep us informed as to changes of address and personnel. If we are fed the information

the numbers increase he will undoubtedly need help to cover the other continents.

We have excellent contacts in many countries throughout the world but clearly this is not a project that can be completed overnight - it will obviously take several months, even years, to get all of the information accurately entered with the

of The Green Sheet magazine and the new improved web site will offer a unique, integrated marketing package.

necessary links, etc. But please don't let that put you off sending in your details for us to begin the long haul of producing a truly international directory for our industry.

For end users it will represent a total information system - with the magazine

See for yourself at www.green-sheet.net

The new-look Green Sheet The announcement above has somewhat overshadowed the revamping of the

advertisement sizes - single column or two

magazine itself, but I would appreciate feedback from the readership - is it an

column width, as well as the standard sizes already available. Costs for the new sizes on application.

improvement or have I been wasting my time? ....please be gentle with me.

We have also taken this opportunity to modernise the logo for The Green Sheet.

W e have attempted to bring the look of The Green Sheet more in keeping with the 21st Century, at the same time making it

Over the past two years we have held our advertising costs and we will continue to do so for the advertisers paying in GBP. However, when we set up The Green Sheet and offered avertising in dual currencies, the exchange rate was $ 1 .4 / ÂŁ l .00. As I write this it stands at

sheet

$ 1 .8 9 /£ l .00. Clearly this is an anomaly that we cannot allow to continue indefi­

more interesting and more attractive.

We have introduced a clour coding for the various subjects to make it easier to

This logo w ill, hopefully, become very fam iliar as it will feature, not only on the

nitely. The rates quoted in US dollars will have to be increased to take this into account.

locate the pages that particularly interest you. We have altered the basic page

magazine, but also on every page of the new website.

layout to three columns instead of two this makes it more flexible and also offers an opportunity for a larger range of

forced upon us is the increase in the advertising rates as quoted in US$>

Another announcement that has bee

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

The new rates, shown on the facing page, take effect from February 1st 2005 and, with the exception of advertising that has already been committed, all new bookings will be calculated accordingly.

ANNO UNCEM ENTS

4

W hat k

For micrographics ( The record keeps spinning and repeating for the micrographics/imaging industries.

The recently ended year 2004 was

, through the now-disbanded HF subsidiary, : ACS.

States. Micrographics usage continued

Iron Mountain Inc., the US-based but : worldwide records storage and management | firm, acquired the 49% of Iron Mountain Europe it did not own by buying out

downward. The one notable exception was an uptick in business in the latter part of the

Mentmore pic. Iron Mountain is now the | largest European records management

essentially a replay of the earlier years of the 21 st century, especially in the United

year as the general economy improved.

Whether that will be a trend or a transient phenomena w on't be known until the end of 2005.

Once again, 2004 was a year of overall

AIIM, itself, announced it was profitable

j j

in 2003 after several years of financial drought. The association also said it

j

anticipated at least a break-even year in 2004.

ImageMax took steps to delist its common stock, making it more difficult for observers

| to track the company's financial company, with more than 15,000 customer performance easily by reducing the amount accounts in 35 markets in the UK and on the i of public information filed. continent.

Eastman Kodak launched the i600 series Reflecting a continued diversification of mid-range desktop paper scanners. The I three scanner line was quickly accepted later | trend, CSC Group added more companies to its E-signature VAR program. The in the year when the units became commer­ specialised software for electronic signatures cially available. They offered advanced

j

poor hardware sales, as micrographics has become almost exclusively a replacement market. The notable exception was film enables service bureaux to offer another scanners. Consolidation also continued to be | non-micrographic but related electronic imaging service. the business model. New entries into the

j

j

imaging technologies that previously were usually only available on higher-priced

J

models.

Eastma Kodak announced plans to offer Germany based Microform GmbH added micrographic world were exceedingly rare; i sales and service support for nextScan film four new document scanners to their MF S in the US they were virtually non existent.

US service companies again had a mixed scanners throughout Europe, the Middle East | range. Two at the top end - the MF s 655 and Africa, whilst Mekel Technology came to and 615 - plus two mid range scanners, the record. National chains continued to face MF S 455 and 415. All very high quality. financial problems, especially those an agreement for Zeutschel to distribute the

j j

companies where micrographics remains a major component of revenues and income.

new Mekel scanners in Europe (excluding the UK where the Genus Group has the dealership) The LDS Church (Church of Latter Day

Illustrating the mixed results, ACS revenues and income soared but at year-end

financial ground. The bright spot for all was the continued emphasis on outsourcing by business operations.

A month-by-month capsule recap of noteworthy and significant developments in

! data acquisition. But it also said it would retain the 10+ million microfilm records from

j

j the past, although somewhere down the road these might be converted to digital images.

JANUARY-FEBRUARY

Fujifilm USA restructured US operations to diversify into more digital product offerings within its Document Products Group. The latter is now primarily responsible for the distribution and technical support of Fuji's microfilm products in the US. The products are sold directly to service companies and major distributors rather than to individual dealers as in the past.

This replaces the former distribution

Once again the annual AIIM International conference and exposition was the world's big Spring imaging and micrographics show, but it was a far cry from such shows in the past. In fact, it has been nearly two decades since AIIM was a micrographics or even an imaging - show. O f 243 exhibitors, just over a dozen were filmbased exhibitors and no micrographicsrelated sessions were offered on the conference programme. The handful of new products introduced were film scanners.

Total attendance was roughly 30,000, a respectable figure but also a sizeable drop

arrangement Fuji had with Houston-Fearless, I from days of yore.

R E V IE W S P R E V IE W

switches doctors, hospitals or HMOs. However, patients have to pay for copies on a per page, plus "reasonable clerical costs", basis.

J

In Japan, Fuji Photo Film and Fuji Xerox

announced a system and service to transfer | printed and digital documents to microfilm for low-cost permanent storage.

In the UK EDM set off on its acqisition trail by buying one of the major service bureaux, the MBS Group, along with Bristol-

MARCH-APRIL

2004, as reported in the pages of The Green Sheet, follows.

The state of California ruled that healthcare providers must make available patient records, including those on

| microfilm, to any medical patient who

Saints), the largest non-governmental user of microfilm (for genealogical files), said it was considering going digital on all new field

Anacomp announced another fiscal loss and plans to deregister its common shares.

SourceCorp said it will be restating its financial results for 2003 and 2004.

ImageMax continued on very shaky

j j

based Storewave. In the meantime Gary Mardlin, former Chairman of MBS, has formed a new company, IMR UK, solely to distribute Alchemy in the UK and Ireland.

OITUK Ltd, a subsidiary of the Genus Group, and exclusive European distributor of the DocFinity suite of EDRMS products, agreed that Datastore Ireland Ltd could distribute the product throughout Ireland.

MAY-JUNE Advanced Digital Research (ADR) acquired from Printrak, a Motorola company, the exclusive right to manufacture,

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

5

:ind of year w as it? another year of decline as noted in The Green Sheet sell and deliver support on SunRise Imaging

j

supplier to the duplicate film market and is

film scanners. ADR set up an independent

said to have the majority of the global market share for diazo and vesicular film.

company, SunRise Imaging, Inc., to handle the business.

The Microfilm Shop and Digital Microfilm Equipment (DME) of Australia announced a

Lason, the downsized US service firm that had to reorganise in 2002, reported net income for fiscal year 2003, its first positive

j

year in a long time. The firm anticipated more growth in 2004 as it maintained

other future clients in the Pacific Rim region.

Microform GmbH announced yet another new colour document scanner, the MF S 385

services offered by The Microfilm Shop

to round off their mid-range choice.

across Australasia.

agreement with Charterhouse Group, an

Micrographics Conference was hosted by the state of Illinois and drew more than 100

equity firm. Charterhouse would acquire Lason in a transaction valued at approxi­ mately $US 30 million. The deal was completed in Mid-August.

Eastman Kodak was one of three companies dropped from the famed Dow Jones financial index of 30 companies.

AT&T and International Paper were the others. The trio was replaced by financial service company American International Communications and pharmaceutical firm

j

NOVEMBER-DECEMBER ALOS Micrographics Corp. acquired the products and operations of Connecticut Micrographics (CMI), which moved from Norwalk, Connecticut, to ALOS1 US

state micrographics managers and executives. The annual conference is one of and perhaps the last - the dying breed of

headquarters in Montgomery, NY north of

pure micrographics conferences still held in the US. It reflects the fact that government

devices and fiche cutters, as well as its spare parts business, fill holes in ALOS' line.

microfilming continues to be among the most healthy and vigorous in-house activities.

ALOS Micrographics, established in 1977, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Switzerland-based ALOS Holdings AG. Anacomp named a new president,

ARMA International's 49th annual conference and exposition drew the association's largest attendance in many

Group, telephone carrier Verizon Pfizer. Dow Jones said the move was taken

support QMC's present and future IT needs and the capability to support the needs of

business relationship whereby DME will be a broker for promotion of products and

operations and facilities management sites in [ SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 22 states, India, Mexico and Canada, as well as a service relationship in China.

The 17th annual Midwest States Shortly after, Lason announced a merger

to "recognise the growth of the financial and healthcare sectors of the US economy and that basic materials and manufacturing

agreement, ACS secures a new data centre facility in Honolulu, from which it will

years, nearly 5,000, as well as records for total number of exhibitors and exhibition floor space. This was a surprise to some because the site, Long Beach, California (30

New York City. CMI's fiche duplicators, microfilm retrieval devices, numbering

W illiam Pesch, and Iron Mountain named a new president for North American operations, Bob Brennan.

The Film-based Imaging Association (FblA) reviewed its activities in 2004 and announced plans for 2005. The scorecard for 2004 was mixed with pluses and

stocks have become less important in the US stock market".

miles south of Los Angeles), is considered a second tier conference city. W hile micrographics was a very small part of the

JULY-AUGUST

exhibition floor, there were still 18 exhibitors who featured micrographics-related products

Kodak expanded its scanner portfolio with the announcement of two new paper

or services. Among new products unveiled or discussed was the Zeutschel OP 500 Archive Writer, a new film scanner from

scanners, the i30 and i40, designed for desktop scanning usage, Well known US industry executives Steve

Mekel and another from e-lmage Data, a portable microfilm retrieval system from EyeCom and a new digital viewer-scanner

Butterfield and Ken Kopald left nextScan and Virtual Image Technology, respectively.

Butterfield had been CEO at nextScan and

from S-T Imaging.

permanent retention. Outcries by many

In the UK EDM established its position as undisputably the largest UK service bureau,

Kopald EVP at Virtual Image.

Microform GmBH, which developed and

when it acquired Advanced Micro Imaging (AMI), previously itself one of the top two UK

segments of the public led to a reversal of that decision. The same arguments made for 2000 were put forward for 2010 and

manufactures the Admis line of equipment sold by Agfa under the latter's name, celebrated its 10th anniversary.

service bureaux. Graphic Data being the other one.

ACS, the great exception to US service

Intelicoat Technologies moved its microfilm production to the company's main coating facility at Wrexham, North Wales.

companies in terms of profitability, continued its expansion. It reached an information

Intelicoat, which previously closed its US manufacturing facilities, is the only US

the Queen's Medical Center (QMC),

technology (IT) outsourcing agreement with

minuses. Perhaps the major 2004 accomplishment, to which FblA contributed, was the decision by the federal government to microfilm the paper-based portion of the US Census for 2010.

O riginally the Census Bureau had not planned to film any part of the 2000 Census. This would have made it the first US Census ever not to be microfilmed for

evidently the same logic held.

The biggest negative of 2003 was FblA's lack of success in expanding the paid membership and revenue bases. As a result the major objective for 2005 is to broaden FblA's revenue base and increase membership.

Hawaii's largest private hospital. Under the

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

R E V IE W & P R E V IE W

6

Executives look backward, forward and find...

...2 0 0 4 w as sluggish but 2 0 0 5 is starting better The broadening acceptance of diversified document management decreases analogue and boosts digital - but roles remain for both A t yearend 2004 The Green Sheet followed its tradition of asking leading

suppliers, who offered refurbished equipment, over new equipment

opposed to heavily centralised document management. This trend is

imaging industry executives to look back at

manufacturers.

driving the development for office use of lower cost scanners with major

the year just ended and tell us what they saw as the most significant document management developments of that year. We

coming?

also asked them to look ahead and give us their thoughts on what 2005 might bring.

If the US economy improves for the full year as it seemed to in the waning months

Looking back at 20 04 : points of agreement

of 2004, there should be benefits for all segments of the document management

O ur survey group was unanimous in its feeling that digital imaging is the growth engine and microfilm continues its decline in usage volume. There was stated or implied agreement that document management no longer refers only to paper for information origination. To succeed in today's market place, a DM solution must automate business processes using data from electronic documents as well. For long term storage, microfilm still retains its position as the long term, secure, storage medium.

The year began slowly in almost all areas

Looking ahead to 20 05 : better times

industry, including analogue and digital imaging systems and services. However, a number of potential disasters that could reverse progress lurk in the background. For

of the past year, indeed of the past several

a pretty good year. The belief is there is an increased overall awareness of the importance of document management, in all its forms, which will benefit the various

years, has been the realization among

segments of the industry. Specifically, our ★

vendors wanted. In summary: There were no real micrographics/ imaging technological breakthroughs, just improvements in existing ★

continued to decline - literally to plunge - while film conversion services

★

Use of microfilming in the financial

work that will really benefit service bureaux, even as it decimates many

managing, archiving and delivering critical business information is something that

in-house operations. However, even in the latter situation, there will be less of an impact on government than on

everyone...must focus on. It is not something that only a few people or departments have to w orry about.....

business operations.

Consolidation once again will be the

"This increased awareness has spawned a number of favourable industry developments. Mid-size companies are really fueling job growth and IT spending

sector took a big hit in the US as banks adopted the Check 21 system.

This dramatically reduced the use of film-based imaging to record

have sold or dropped out. Service bureaux are also continuing down the consolidation road with local and

transactions as well as the use of duplicate films for copies.

regional operations doing better, as a rule, than national businesses who are still paying for the over expansion of earlier years.

Concomitant with consolidation will be

and Kodak's Archive Writers, sales of new microfilm equipment remained dismal. Equipment sales continued to be largely for replacement only. And the replacement market favoured

R E V IE W & P R E V IE W

★

businesses of all sizes of the importance of document management," reported Nancy Dhurjaty, Eastman Kodak. "Companies are continuing to realize that capturing,

will be just one or two strong suppliers in each equipment area; the others will

W ith the exceptions of film scanners

"From a macro perspective, one of the most significant events

There will be more outsourcing of

model within all areas of the document management industry. This may lead ultimately to a situation where there

offered by service bureaux increased. ★

2 0 0 4 specifics: the importance of document

Still, even with such caveats, most executives told TGS they expect 2005 to be

executive group expects:

technology.

Outsourcing continued to grow. COM

contradiction). Internet storage of documents has slowed somewhat but will still be a growth area in 2005.

management is widely accepted

later, particularly in the United States, as the business economy improved. Sales cycles, however, remained slower than most

★

continue to be a growth area as will film scanning (again a seeming

example, cutoffs of oil supplies from the Middle East could escalate business costs and strangle the incipient recovery.

of document management, but picked up

★

★

features previously only available on high production units.

Reference archiving on microfilm will

a seemingly contradictory move among users to more localised document management systems as

today and this should continue....for several reasons. For starters, document imaging solutions are becoming more cost effective and more within the reach of the IT budgets of mid-size companies. Further, these companies are realizing the efficiencies that a strong document management workflow can deliver - in other words, they're seeing ROI." Dhurjaty also noted that the US regulatory environment has created interest in document management systems. "The need to archive documents for long-term preservation and retrieval is something

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

7 businesses are focusing on like never before

documents again increased."

bureaus where the conversion of millions of

in order to stay on the right side of the regulatory line." This was a comment echoed by several other participants who

either rollfilm or microfiche images dictated, in many case, around the clock operation

agreed with Dhurjaty that this emphasis has

Like several others, Glover noted the impact of the implementation in 2004 of the Check 21 system. "(It) brought an immediate downsizing in long length film processing

also put awareness of document management down into the local as well as

centres. Distribution of information (about checks) on microfilm continued to decrease.

the enterprise wide level.

"In the past, many companies tended to consolidate all of their scanning operations

"The 'ostrich' response to preserving information on electronic media also continued to increase. Preservation and

using multiple scanners....The signs are that this trend (from 2004) will continue for the foreseeable future."

Urs Kopp, ALOS Micrographics, whose business is still primarily film-based and who introduced a new film scanner, the Z-Scan 46 and also acquired Connecticut

'assured retrieval' suffered as it was much ignored in managing records. Storing my

Micrographics last year, looked back at 2004 and said "From my perspective there

recently, (in 2004) businesses in search of productivity gains have started to rely on

records on someone else's server does not increase their life expectancy any more than

were no really significant events or techno­ logical changes that.....stand out as having

off site storage of any media can....."

employee groups in remote facilities to assume the function of document workflow

Glover, like others, felt that the rush to embrace electronic solutions to all problems

had a significant impact on the (micrographics) industry as a whole.....

into centralised areas. These centralised modes were very successful and continue to be important to certain companies. More

management, spreading scanning points i across the company and the globe....we're

slows down preserving information on microfilm but expects a renaissance after

"There was strong, increased interest and activities for electronic imaging systems, and

(also ) seeing a greater demand for digital

cost problems are solved.

legislation such as Sarbanes-Oxley and HIPPA generated great interest, but most (of

images of documents that can be more easily shared across networks...."

Mike Oris, operating director for the Film-based Imaging Association, concurred

our) prospects are not ready to step into electronic records technology. Interestingly,

with many of Glover's points. On the impact

the reasons for the delays are much more the changes in processes and organisation

Jim Harvey, Altek Systems, emphatically agreed the digital world has made a strong impact but isn't as sanguine about it.

"Americans have a bad case of 'flatscreenitis' and we just have to have the latest whizbang toy available. O ur records managers, more than ably assisted by imaging salespeople, last year and now continue to push for 'let's go electronic records'. The problem is that the reported cases of $250,000 software systems upgrades to existing early digital records systems is just now sinking in to early implementors. The heavy migration costs of digital documents... (is starting to) make the bloom fade rapidly off the rose when upper management sees the bills.....

"In 2004 we also saw more cases of CD rot and degradation much sooner than previously anticipated by the records management and information technology industries. Now the word on the street is that without migration degradation occurs in as little as seven years, depending on storage conditions. This is anathema to archival collections of information.....Some company managers, once burnt are twice shy and are getting 'that old time religion'

of the Check 21 policy, and the continued mandating of Sarbanes Oxkey and HIPPA paperwork regulations, he reported, "Check 21 has enforced the truncation of all checks and dramatically reduced the use of filmbased imaging as a means of recording a checking transaction. That single policy has reduced 'long length' film usage by at least

75%:11 Like others, Oris saw a good side as well as a negative one for microfilm in 2004. "I

required, i.e the human factors, rather than the financial investment."

Regarding micrographics he said, "The unpredictability of the micrographic equipment segment of 2004 will continue.

Since that segment is a total replacement market today, purchases will be pushed out again as long as the old unit can be somehow maintained...."

A t Genus-The Microfilm Shop, MD Paul

believe the Sarbanes-Oxley and HIPPA regulations have forced records managers to endorse the use of film-based imaging for

Negus noticed that 2004 was a strange year. He had budgeted that

the long-term preservation and protection of

microfilm sales would be slightly down, but he

vital information...(required by providing) compliance to these regulations. O f necessity, they see the shortcomings and complexities in technology and are seeking out proven means for safe, secure and cost effective records management. They are doing this because they have been made accountable and, in some cases, liable for lost, mismanaged or insufficient records."

Ian McMinn said that for his segment of the micrographics industry (microfilm scanning) and his company, Wicks and Wilson, 2004

s y s te m s

■ —

actually had the best sales and profits in the company's 30 year history Finding an explanation is difficult but it seems to be a combination of four factors - aggresive continuation of their "bigger fish in a smaller pond" strategy through sales force increases and acquisitions; reduction in other organi­ sations offering microfilm products; huge demand for microfilm scanning products and the expansion of the dealerships they represent.

He thinks that the microfilm market is still gently decreasing as a whole, but they managed to increase their share of that reducing market. Most bureaux who offer microfilm services have started to talk about

copy."

John Glover, SourceCorp, agreed fully,

started very slowly. "But the end of the year was quite the reverse with a significant upturn in sales that resulted in increased manufac­

though less emotionally, that "in 2004 we saw a continuation in the growth of digital

turing capacity. (Overall), 2004 was a very satisfactory year, much improved over

increasing the prices they charge for microfilm, which is a great sign as they are now making money from microfilming, so

imaging and electronic records management. The (digital) media is much

2003."

they are going to carry on offering that

He added that "from a global perspective, there was an increase in

service.

On the electronic side, through Genus-OIT UK, they are seeing excellent natural growth

and backing up their digital information collections with a permanent micrographic

less expensive and the software is more user friendly. Companies that implemented their own in-house image capture of paper

outsourcing during the year. (We received) several major multi-unit orders from service

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

and this is being driven by legislation.

R E V IE W & P R E V IE W

8

"2004 was a fantastic year for the EDM Group." contributed Peter

European countries.

The general marketing trend, to push the 1 scanner market - characterised by moderate

Smith, CEO of the EDM Group. "N ot only did it see ! increase in total conversion capacities towards low volume scanners for our entrance into the electronic document management market, it also saw us emerge as the UK market leader, following the acquisition of Storwave, MBS Group and AMI. In our first year of trading we have achieved a turnover of £22 million, with over 600 employees and 8 offices across the country."

; decentralised use, more and more leads to i dramatic price decreases and "Brand-

customer's emphasis placed on accurate colour reproduction and what of all those new high speed colour scanners. Assuredly

distributors.

Microform opposes against this trend with

of documents requiring the highest standards in productivity, quality and flexibility.

2005. Over the next 12 months we expect to see further major growth and will continue with our buy and build strategy."

Liz Maloney, UK Managing Director of

Behind the dazzling facade of the imaging industry, there still exists a stable and important market for analogue

Freedom of Information Act causing the most consternation amongst organisations in the public sector. An increased emphasis on improving the return on investment from technology purchases has also come to the fore. 2005 will therefore mean that content management

problems - whether that is meeting the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act in the public sector or complying with anti-money laundering guidelines in the

the customer will demand the benefits of microfilm, but in colour.

DICOM, and its US subsidiary Kofax, had, according to Sales Director John Stinchcombe, a very prosperous 2004 and things look even better headed into 2005, as more organisations adopt information capture as a business-critical application.

Kofax made great strides in growth,

archiving on Microfilm, which offers a considerable market volume, with relevant

signing several large enterprise-scale deals, including the U.S. Social Security

demand for conversion of existing microfilm archives to digital formats. Microform

Administration, Countrywide Financial, and Rent-A-Center. DICOM further strengthened

GmbH, with its original roots in the micrographics field, is one of the few

its information capture portfolio with the acquisitions of Neurascript, a leading

remaining competitive players with a wide range of know-how and experience for microfilm applications, professional film processing and qualified technical service, all in one organisation.

Microform's unique position was enforced in 2004 with the integration of Agfa's microfilm activities in

companies will need to be able to work with existing systems that may have been implemented by competitors. Solutions will need to solve very specific business

greater effort should be invested. As

confronted with, and frustrated by, poor "Box Moving" activities of hardware

industry, and I believe that educating the market will continue to play a big part in

pressure on companies across many industry sectors, with the

microfilm. For years now colour microfilm has been damned, but surely this is where manufacturers of large format colour scanners Solar is only too aware of the

"There is still huge growth potential for the electronic document management

emergence of new legislation, putting

because it keeps the concept of easy COM alive, but rather that it can produce colour

Cannibalism" via Internet distribution. End users and resellers are continually

its new "Best Image" concept, which is defined by professionals as a platform for economical conversion of very large volumes

Hummingbird pointed out that 2004 saw the

O f particular interest for 2005 is the introduction of the SMA51, not so much

Germany and several other European countries.

The takeover and continued sales of the famous ADMIS product line, plus the service of former Agfa customers with service contracts in Germany

provider of software tools and Topcall, a worldwide provider of unified communi­ cation technologies. In 2005, the information capture market will grow, as more resellers and independent software vendors integrate the technology into their offerings.

W hat's the outlook for 2005?

After discussing the inevitable and logical inroads of electronic records management systems last year, Kodak's Nancy Dhurjaty saw them continuing in 2005 but also foresees a bright future for microfilm-based systems.

"In regard to film-based imaging, it's

helped Microform to establish substantial growth through 2004.

important to distinguish between traditional

financial services sector.

Roland Reinberger looks back over the past year quite fondly and is optimistic about the future.

According to Matthew Stilwell 2004 was interesting for Solar as yet again the demand for microfilm production equipment

microfilm, which Kodak calls 'archival

(analogue) microfilm and digitally created media'. Here's why: while we continue to

For Microform GmbH the year 2004 was charac­

in EU countries, including the UK, increased, which indicates an encouraging future for

terised by several ongoing changes in the archiving and document conversion

microfilm as an archival medium. This same

see a decline in demand for traditional microfilm, we're actually seeing a spike in demand for digitally created microfilm - i.e. the writing of digital images directly to

level of activity appears to be reflected in some parts of the Middle East, which is

microfilm. In fact, we're seeing double digit growth in the sales of our Reference Archive

marketplace, as well as significant changes in our own strategy and positioning within this market. Another factor has been the influence of the economic situation, which has not encouraged heavy investment in new

encouraging. Readers continued to be manufactured in steady quantities and forward orders for 2005 are promising,

Media, which is microfilm designed specif­ ically for use in our digital-to-film writers

projects - especially in some of the major

normal prospects.

R E V IE W S P R E V IE W

even though the rather indescribable NewsPlan tender for readers and readerprinters will have soaked up some of the

and film-to-digital scanners. "(Looking ahead), it's important to remember that businesses still view microfilm as the most reliable and long lasting media for archiving and preserving critical business

< Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

9

information.....Businesses want microfilm solutions that can work in the digital document management environments they are creating.....Overall our strategy for 2005 and beyond is to capitalise on the growth opportunities of the digital world while enhancing and extending the capabilities and profitability of traditional film."

Jim Harvey, Altek Systems, agreed "the Kodak Archive W riter and similar devices should be good sellers for the foreseeable future." He also was optimistic about microfilm, per se. "The estimated 2-3 trillion micrographic records we have in US businesses just won't go away. They were made for archival storage. These microform records must be handled, retrieved, stored and transmitted in some form or another.

As I see it, this bodes well for a replacement market for affordable desktop microform scanners that companies can use as a 'bridge product' to connect the micrographic to the digital world of information sharing.

"In pragmatic terms, I see major consoli­ dation in the microfilm side of our industry.

I've been offered several companies for purchase in the last year.....Outsourcing remains brisk.....We get calls virtually every day about a new application in both microfilm scanning or microfilming customer documents." To Harvey that's solid evidence the film-based industry is very much alive.

For 2005 Paul Negus expects further

consolidation in the microfilm industry but a

vesicular copy films. W hile digital media

continuing decline in the overall industry, although at a slower rate of decline as they

costs continue to drop, the costs of

start to reach the bottoming out phase of the market cycle.

"W hile microfilm continues to struggle for market share and an identity as a current

However, he expects to see some very clever new microfilm applications that he

technology solution, the electronic imaging industry will continue to look elsewhere for a

duplicating film images continues to rise.

believes will cause the industry to stop

preservation solution. Film-based imaging

declining and actually expand again by 2 0 0 7 /2 0 0 8 .

companies have to change, diversify and

Urs Kopp, as a new equipment supplier in contrast to Altek's significant refurbished equipment role, agreed that outsourcing companies and other service bureaus will do well in 2005 "because most of the new electronic imaging systems require some type of file conversion (paper to digital, film to digital, back file a n d /o r going forward, etc." A t the same time he saw mandatory legislation (Sarbanes-Oxley, HIPPA) "expanding the sales opportunities for electronic systems greatly".

John Glover, SourceCorp, concurs that the "introduction of new film archiving machines will make it easier to preserve information. "The Staude with its 16mm and 35mm capabilities; the Zeutschel with its high resolution; and the Fuji Archive W riter just introduced in partnership with Xerox in Japan will make in-line preservation simpler as the Anacomp IDP 1600 has." Glover, however, sees some obstacles to growth for microfilm systems. "One problem is the lack of a second manufacturer of diazo or

merge in order to survive; that's true in all businesses."

Ian McMinn, Wicks and Wilson, had a rosy outlook. "Given the outsourcing, the various government initiatives that seem to be gaining momentum, and a seemingly better economic climate, I predict a far brighter picture for micrographics in 2005."

His company is so confident it has plans in place to enhance its sales and marketing group. "How's that for confidence?"

McMinn asked.

Mike Oris, FblA, also and to no one's surprise, sees 2005 and years beyond as good ones for film-based imaging and companies. "Film-based imaging technology is the only technology that can be used to preserve both digital- and paper-born information for the long term. It has proven itself to be a strong part of a complete information system that economically prevents the planned or accidental loss of information." Obviously, the film-based industry agrees fully.

The UK's mosfeojfojghensive directory of document m ro a^ p ren t products and §|firices.

Tutorials relating to electronic d o c i^ S d f management, m ia ^ r^ h te g a n d hybrid systems.

S

T h e co n te n t is

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

tutorials • consumables • hardware suppliers • service & repairs

Unique F R E E directory www.ggbaker.com www.g sheet.net

R E V IE W & P R E V IE W

PRODUCT NEWS In this new section of the magazine we will attempt to keep our readers up to date with the latest product launches and developments. In order for this to be successful we are relying on the manufacturers and suppliers to keep us informed. Simply email the information to us at tim@green-sheet.net and we will do the rest.

W orld's lightest scanner on show at CeBIT Planon System Solutions demonstrates the DocuPen R700 at CeBIT 2005, 9th14th March, Hannover, Germany.

Planon System Solutions, a leading provider of scanning hardware and

batteries every time the scanner is connected to a computer's USB port for downloading

software, will be showcasing the DocuPen

documents. The R700 also features a dual roller guiding system and optical registration technology to create smoother operation.

R700 portable, full-page scanner, at CeBIT 2005 in Hall 1, stand 3d 16, booth A01 in the American Pavilion. As well as a smaller representation in the Ontario Pavilion in Hall 6, stand J05.

The DocuPen is the size of a pen and, weighing less than sixty grams, has been named the W orld's lightest A 4 size scanner by the Guinness Book of Records 2005.

The DocuPen R700 answers the need for scanners on the road and even inside the office or home where there is limited space for a full-size scanner. Users can scan multiple types of documents, such as letters, magazines, blueprints, sketches, then download to a computer and print or send them as email attachments.

"O ur customers have found so many ways to use the DocuPen to make their work more efficient which has inspired our new product definition line of 'Redefining the way we w ork,'" said Doug Verkaik, CEO for Planon Systems. "Indeed lawyers, students, teachers, sales agents, doctors, genealogists,

Unlike traditional pen scanners that only read individual lines of text and are unable to scan graphics, the DocuPen R700 scans an entire page of text and graphics in just four seconds and stores up to 100 pages in its two megabytes of flash memory.

The latest version of the DocuPen remains perpetually charged by recharging its

business executives, engineers and so many more can benefit from an easy mobile scanner like the DocuPen." The DocuPen R700 also includes ScanSoft's PaperPort software enabling users to manage scanned documents and use them in other programmes such as Outlook Express, WinFax, Notepad, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Acrobat, Microsoft

W ord, PowerPoint and Excel. Users can also make changes to their scanned documents with editing tools that allow them to crop and rotate images, add annotations, highlight text and draw with a freehand tool.

Planon System Solutions' business development manager will be available at the show to demonstrate the DocuPen R700 and answer any questions. The DocuPen retails at ÂŁ127.65 (excl. VAT) and is available online from www.planon.com.

System Requirements: W indows 9 8 /2000/M E /X P , CD/ROM drive, 32 MB RAM, 60 MB hard drive space, USB port.

Contacts: Planon System Solutions Inc. 60 Industrial Parkway, Cheektowaga, NY 14227 USA Email: milkok@planon.com Website: www.planon.com Planon System Solutions, Im Wigeli 3 8700 Kusnacht, Switzerland Planon System Solutions Inc. 19-5484 Tomken Rd., Mississauga ON L4W 2Z6 Canada

British data capture technology utilises NASA space components The same photonics technology used in

The OMR products use the SI 223 PIN

a number of NASA space missions is also used by British based data capture

photodiode from Hamamatsu, this is a sensitive optical device deployed for high speed optical measurement. The SI 223 has been used in various NASA space

specialists, DRS in its range of Optical Mark Readers. The OMR scanners are designed and manufactured in DRS's head office in Milton Keynes and are used to electronically capture data from forms by tens of thousands of educational, government, public and private sector establishments.

P R O D U C T NEW S

voyages, most notably the Mars Pathfinder space mission, where it was employed to test rock and soil samples on the surface of Mars.

The SI 223 is currently used in a number of DRS scanners including the

*

CD230, CD360, CD400 and CD800 scanners which are used to scan and record information from high profile mission critical projects, such as pupil registration and attendance, examination processing, voter registration, ballot counting and complex survey work all around the world.

Contact: www.drs.co.uk.

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

All signs point to Wicks and Wilson Whether you need to scan aperture cards microfiche or roll film, Wicks and Wilson have it all mapped out for you.

Select your route and let the experts in imaging technology at Wicks and Wilson point you in the right direction for all your scanning needs.

If it's unrivalled image quality you want or function-packed software with exceptional scanning speeds to maximise your productivity, all at prices you can afford, then go no further Wicks and Wilson can deliver the complete solution.

Up to 750 cards per hour AGI greyscale output High productivity, 24-7

RS300 Roll Film Scanstation • Up to 325 frames per minute • Simultaneous greyscale and bitonal output • High productivity, 24-7

FS200 Microfiche Scanstation • Up to 100 frames per minute • AGI greyscale output • High productivity, 24-7

Wicks and Wilson Wicks and Wilson Limited, Morse Road, Basingstoke, Hampshire, RG22 6PQ, United Kingdom Telephone: +44 (0)1256 842211 Fax: +44 (0)1256 840997 Email: sales@wwl.co.uk Web:ww w.wwl.co.uk

Best Image Q uality for more effective document archiving Microform presents its new all-inclusive solution for high-quality image capture Best Im a g e Q u a lity - Microform's answer to the high standards demanded in the field of document archiving. This answer is a combination of the best scanner technology available and sophisticated imaging functions that don't just enable you to convert and archive large quantities of documents: it also enables you to edit images actually during the scanning process in preparation for subsequent steps - for instance, to ensure optimum read rates during optical character recognition (OCR). Microform is aiming to really impress with this ingenious, allinclusive solution.

The Best Image Quality concept is based on the MF S 6 1 5 /6 5 5 and MF S 4 1 5 /4 5 5 scanner families and on the new mid-range MF S 385 scanner. All of these units are equipped with high-quality optical components: two totally new, dustfree encapsulated Trilinear CCD cameras, combined with precision lenses from Rodenstock and extra bloomed (anti­ reflection-coated) optical mirrors. They also include the proven beltless paper transport system that enables them to convert even problematical paper grades with minimal risks of paper jams or damage to valuable documents. W ith this level of equipment, the units offer fast and reliable processing with optimum image quality.

But this achievement was simply no way near good enough for the Microform team.

"State-of-the-art document archiving demands far more than technologically perfect hardware", explains Marketing

Director, Roland Reinberger. "As a rule, our clients want to work with their images in other applications." In order to meet this demand, the scanner specialists from Germany's south-western region of Swabia have integrated cutting-edge imaging functions in their units.

These functions are founded on noncompressed colour image formats that are generated during scanning and are made available to all other functions. On this basis, the images can, for example, be broken down into separate components or made available as multistream colour, grayscale and bitonal images. Targeted electronic filtering-out of colours is also possible, in order, for instance, to guarantee better character recognition on difficult backgrounds. W hat's more, MDIT (Multi Dimensional Intelligent Thresholding) provides additional functions for optimising the background. But the real highlight of the system is that there's no longer any need for repeated scanning-in of originals in order to define the scanning parameters. When

processing images, the user draws immediately on the noncompressed image formats, which are available at all times.

A wide variety of different image processing functions are provided by the capture software, DpuScan, that is made available by Microform's development partner, Janich und Klaas. This software belongs to the standard equipment of all Microform scanners.

The Best Image Quality concept provides complete, flexible and economic capturing solutions for production-oriented service and in-house applications. In this way, Microform has once again proved that the combination of experience and innovation produces the best answers to the needs of demanding customers.

This marketing company for micrographics systems can now look back at ten years of experience in the field of document archiving. It was founded in 1994 - initially with the aim of ensuring the production and sales of Agfa's successful ADMIS CD 51 Rotary Camera for microfilms. Since then, Microform GmbH has continuously developed and enlarged its product range of microfilm cameras, hybrid scanner/microfilm cameras and high-end document scanners.

Contact: Roland Reinberger, Microform GmbH, Gewandackerstr. 12, D-73614 Schorndorf Tel: +49 7181 255008 Fax: +49 7181 481668 Email: info@microform.de or visit www.microform.de

ITESOFT mySAP Business Suite ITESOFT, has reinforced its position as a SAP software partner with the launch of the first paper-free supplier invoice clearing software. Balance for mySAP Business Suite is specifically designed for the automatic processing and consolidation of supplier invoices in the SAP R /3 environment.

ITESOFT's Balance for mySAP Business Suite, completes the ITESOFT.FreeMind for Invoices product offer, providing in addition to automatic data capture and extraction capabilities all functional steps which lead to the creation of an accounting record in SAP R/3.

Unlike traditional solutions which operate outside of the ERP environment, the ITESOFT module is a SAP add-on entirely designed and developed in accordance with SAP standards, using the same data repositories. It interfaces with SAP Content

P R O D U C T NEW S

Server, SAP Business W orkflow and SAP Business Workplace, therefore integrating naturally into the native environment, while guaranteeing compatibility with future technical and functional developments in the ERP. ITESOFT's Balance for mySAP Business Suite provides a single processing portal for optimising the productivity and flow of Accounts Payable processes including: • Automatic image enabled, line-item three way data matching of Invoice, PO and Goods Receipts.

• Resolution through integrated, pre­ defined, cutomisable SAP Business Workflows of Materials Management invoice disputes such as price discrepancies or missing goods receipts.

• Validation and data enrichment of Financial Accounting invoices.

Centralised, real time statistical monitoring and audit control of all invoice consolidation processes including OCR based Automatic Document Processing flows.

ITESOFT is capitalising on its experience of invoice clearing built up through twenty projects in the SAP R /3 environment and has become the only supplier-to offer SAP customers a complete solution for invoice digitisation projects including data capture, clearing and posting with integration support and software development from a singular source.

Philippe Lijour chief operating officer of ITESOFT concludes 'The addition of Balance for mySAP Business Suite to the ITESOFT product range opens up new development possibilities for SAP customers."

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

13

Taking the photochemistry world forward to an advanced level, Fuji Hunt brings a new product to market which meets the demands of modern image processors

Digital chemistry - free trial Fuji Hunt is offering prolabs the opportunity of testing its unique Digital Pro chemistry free as part of the introduction of a new addition to the Digital Pro family.

Having already established a major advance for prolabs which use digital printers outputting to photographic paper, such as the Durst Lambda, Theta and Epsilon, Oce Lightjet, ZBE Chromira, Polielettronica LaserLab, etc., with its CPRA Digital Pro Developer AC photochemistry, Fuji Hunt has extended this specialist formula with a new dedicated bleach-fix and a digital mixer.

Having become the de facto product for use with these processing systems, the twopart, Digital Pro A ir Controlled developer, which already features a high activity, clean working, secured whiteness and enhanced definition, plus largely improved Dmax values on paper and display material, is fully complemented by the new CPRA Digital Pro Bleach-Fix AC.

The Digital Pro Developer A two-part odour-free bleach-fix specif­ ically designed to complement the CPRA Digital Pro Developer, this new Bleach-Fix AC is intended for use in medium and wide format paper processors. It has excellent resistance to oxidation in low throughput conditions, and guarantees the clean whites with which Digital Pro has become associated.

Opening the opportunity for prolabs not already converted to take advantage of the benefits of Digital Pro Developer AC, Fuji Hunt is running a special promotion, whereby labs can give it a free trial run to see for themselves what a difference it will make to their output.

"Previously, we had to keep the D-Max lower than we would have liked, in order to make sure we never had a problem with flare, especially on display films, but now, with no trouble at all, we can really push up the blacks on our Lambda and Chromira printers to levels we have never seen before.

"We know from our own trials and from the extensive feedback we have received from the many prolabs which have made the move to Digital Pro, that this system is in a class of its own," says Rudy Staes, head of photochemistry development at Fuji Hunt.

'The developer is cleaner as well - the cleanest dev we have ever used. Would we go back to a standard developer? Not a chance!"

Supporting the Digital Pro chemistry is a dedicated, fully automated mixer. Designed for both low and high throughput conditions, this unit can be connected to both small and large size drums. Chemical stability is guaranteed by mixing small volume batches of up to 25 litres of each solution per hour.

'This is why we have the confidence in these products to make this offer of a free supply, for we know that labs will switch to Digital Pro full time, once they have seen the results in their own labs."

Labs signing up for the trial will receive a free processor developer tank fill, an additional equivalent volume of developer replenisher, and full telephone support for their chemical changeover and first trial.

Then, on becoming a CPRA Digital Pro Developer AC customer, the lab will, when it places its first order, receive a free processor bleach-fix tank fill, an additional equivalent volume of bleach-fix replenisher, free RA4 chemistry analytical and process strip audits, calibration of at least one paper channel, and the opportunity to receive process monitoring assistance at a minimal fee.

An enthusiastic convert to the Digital Pro systems was prolab ImageCo: "We had previously been running Fuji Hunt's CPRA Pro developer for some years," says lab manager Steve Johnson, "but this new digital developer has made a huge difference - and it is not some small difference which needs to be pointed out to you, either. You can really see the increased saturation and the improvement in the blacks - and so can our customers.

Available as a wall-mounted unit or free standing, the Fuji Hunt Digital Mixer is easily installed and can be used with any appropriate processor. It enables easy, errorfree usage with no liquid spill, making it both safe and highly effective.

For full details of the Digital Pro free trial and the new Digital Pro products, visit the new Fuji Hunt website www.fujihunt.com

Contact: Greg Jackson, Fuji Hunt's UK sales director by telephone: 02476 455 575, or email: gjackson@fujihunt.com

14

Announcing SMART! an innovative automatic solution for mail sorting and routing SMART! is already in production at BKK Group where it effectively classifies up to 40,000 complex

health-related documents daily SMART! is in various implementation stages at additional customer sites Top Image Systems, Ltd., a leading innovator of intelligent document

solution for managing the entire information

recognition, announced today the availability of SMART!, a new, automated

SMART! technology is based on the award-winning eFLOW Unified Content

classification solution.

SMART! Projects will be presented at TiS'

Platform, and adds new and advanced capabilities to the comprehensive platform. It offers a single point of entry for any kind of

algorithms, and uses the core knowledge developed by Top Image Systems over the years through successful implementation of

information entering the organization.

Whether originating from paper mail,

high-volume and complex data capture

International Conference for customers and partners, to be held this February in Barcelona.

SMART! functions as the gateway to enterprise information systems. By automat­ ically capturing, recognizing, and routing all incoming information, regardless of format or origin, SMART! provides a complete

process.

digitised image of the document is routed for further processing.

SMART! consists of sophisticated artificial intelligence and machine learning

fax, email, or any other source, SMART! automatically recognises the image,

projects worldwide.

As opposed to other technologies available in the market, which require time

understands it, and accordingly defines its destination within the organisation. SMART!

consuming, manual and tedious set-up processes, SMART! offers a fully automated,

provides tracking capabilities, while the

easy to use, one-time set-up process.

Filing solutions online with Railex Railex Systems Ltd, UK specialist in filing and storage systems, has launched a new e-commerce facility on its website www. railex. co. uk The new feature enables customers to purchase Railex's extensive range of filing solutions on-line, making ordering files even easier.

The three different filing systems produced by the Railex group, famous for its manufacturing quality and total service, are all available to buy using the new facility.

Vertical drawer filing, lateral filing and sheet filing systems have various uses and

applications and the e-commerce section of www.railex.co.uk offers customers the choice of a selection of files from each range.

Customers can be assured they are purchasing the best filing solution to meet

Railex Systems, said: "W e decided to launch an ecommerce facility on the website to give clients the option of purchasing their files on-line. It is a convenient way to place orders and they

their needs as the new e-commerce feature

can be guaranteed their details will be safe due to the site's secure environment.

on the website gives a detailed description of each file.

"We receive the orders instantaneously and in most cases we can arrange for the

Also available using the new ecommerce feature on www.railex.co.uk is a contact form for organisations which are

files to be delivered in two to three days."

interested in receiving more information about other Railex products.

Bill Gilmour, marketing manager for

Visit vww.railex.co.uk to buy Railex filing solutions on-line and see the specialisrs vast range o f storage and furniture systems or contact: Bill Gilmour, Railex Systems.

Tel: 01704 226866

A 3 colour scanner bundle fo r under £ 2 2 0 0 Kendata Peripherals, a major reseller of autofeed professional scanners, has launched a special promotion on the powerful Fujitsu fi-4530C colour A3 scanner, offering the unit in a bundle with one of the latest LG 17in.

TFT monitors for just £2197 plus V.A.T.

capture.

The base unit has dimensions of only 193 (H) x 399 (W) x 225 (D) mm and, when not in use, the output tray can be folded away to keep the footprint to a minimum.

easy creation of PDF files.

The bundled LG 17in. TFT monitor facilitates the viewing of A3 documents and

Superb image quality is ensured by the scanner's optical resolution of 600dpi, and a variety of image processing functions enable

Fujitsu scanner.

The scanner-and-TFT bundles are typically

the enhancement of even the poorest originals.

As well as being extremely competitively priced, the fi-4530C is one of the smallest scanners in its class, making it the ideal choice for decentralised document image

P R O D U C T NEW S

interfaces, the scanner is simple to install and comes complete with Adobe Acrobat 5.0 for

is therefore a perfect complement to the

despatched from Kendata within three days of receipt of payment.

Full technical specifications of the Fujitsu

Featuring a built-in automatic document feeder, the 4530 can achieve an impressive scan speed of 35ppm at 200dpi in colour or

fi-4530C can be found on the Kendata website at www.kendata.com/scanners,

black and white. Ultrasonic double-feed detection is included as standard to prevent

together with details of machines from other leading manufacturers, including Kodak,

two or more sheets being fed through together, and a duplex scanning facility

Canon and Bell + Howell.

Contact: Ken Fletcher, Kendata Ltd. Tel: +44 (0)23 8086 9922 Fax: +44 (0)23 8086 0800 Email: kenf@kenda.co.uk Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

enables double-sided documents to be scanned in a single pass.

Equipped with both USB 2.0 and SCSI-2

Kodak introduces i 150 and i 160 Scanners Easy-to-use departmental scanner for documents up to A 3 at an affordable price

Eastman Kodak Company has announced

original documents. PerfectPage with iThresholding virtually eliminates the need for rescans or scanner

two new document scanners with advanced image processing features and paper handling capabilities. The new scanners are aiming for the entry-level segment in depart­ mental and distributed scanning

adjustment. ★

Simultaneous output of bitonal and

★

colour o r bitonal and greyscale images are supported.

SurePath paper handling, including

applications. The KODAK i 150 Simplex Scanner captures single-sided documents at speeds of up to 40 pages per minute in bitonal, greyscale or colour (200 dpi, A4, landscape). The KODAK i 160 Duplex

3D-Ultrasonic Document Detection, increases productivity by eliminating

Scanner captures both sides of documents simultaneously and delivers up to 80 images per minute.

These new scanners include Kodak's SurePath paper handling that enable

★

scanning of mixed documents with varying sizes and weights. Occasional users will find

★

the KODAK i 150 and i 160 Scanners easyto-use, as features such as 3D-multi-feed detection, autocrop, deskew and "Perfect

★

Page scanning with iThresholding" are standard. The new scanners support output

★

The KODAK ilOO Series Scanners come with a 12 month bring-in warranty as standard. (Available in all European countries with a Kodak Service and Support Organisation. For more information contact your reseller of KODAK products, or local Kodak representative).

Kodak continues to develop new innovative features, and is now integrating these features in all its scanner models, improving the value proposition for all customers: ★ Perfect Page scanning with iThresholding automatically adjusts the scanner to all document types and conditions, improving character recognition rates and producing highquality images from even poor-quality

the latest full version of KODAK Capture Software (6.6), which also includes powerful features such as barcode reading and OCR. inclusive PerformancePlus Service Package

adhesive notes or stapled documents.

for the Kodak il 50 and i l 60 departmental

Autocrop and deskew improves

scanners.

productivity and simplicity of operation.

'All-inclusive' means exactly what it says: on-site repair/exchange, no service or spare parts costs for the first three years, all

Electronic Colour Dropout enables standard.

An IEEE-1394 (FireWire) interface,

scanner consumables that can be replaced by the customer and the supply of a new scanner free-of-charge in the event that a

with card and cable included, makes either scanner easy to connect.

technical problem cannot be solved on-site.

If a customer makes no claims on the

KODAK Capture Software, Lite offers

PerformancePlus Service Package in the first three years, the contract will be extended by another year at no additional cost, making

distributed applications, including scan to TIFF, JPEG and Document CD. It also supports all innovative features of the new scanners. ★

innovation our customers can count on."

The intuitive and easy-to-use KODAK Capture Software, Lite can be upgraded to

KODAK Service & Support offers an all-

easy-to-use features and has sufficient functionality for departmental and

design of the il 50 and il 60 departmental scanners is leveraged from Kodak's award winning i200 platform.

target at the departmental segment and reflect our ongoing commitment to deliver

most feed errors caused by address labels, varying paper thickness,

forms processing, and is built in as

resolutions of up to 600dpi. The new scanners offer an exceptional level of price/performance for customers. The

scanner models from W orkgroup to HighVolume Production. The new i 150 and i 160

Industry-standard ISIS and TWAIN drivers enable all advanced image processing functions at full rated speed and provide easy system integration with a wide variety of document management, workflow, archiving,

and forms-processing applications.

"It's significant that Kodak is bringing the benefits of its advanced "Perfect Page" imaging features to every scanner customer." said Lois Lebegue, Regional Business General Manager of Kodak's Document Imaging business in EAMER. "Kodak offers it's valuable Perfect Page feature as standard, while some competitors may offer image processing as an option, or not at all. Customers can now choose from the broadest product portfolio covering 18

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

four years in all.

The all-inclusive service contract secures that anyone buying one of the relevant Kodak document scanners can be sure that his equipment will quickly be fully functional, even after a problem occured. The excellent price-performance ratio means that there are no hidden extra charges for repairs, maintenance or consumables. Kodak aims a response to service inquiries within eight hours.

The PerformancePlus Service Package underlines the reliability of Kodak products and promises quality service. It is available from authorised Kodak resellers in all European countries with a Kodak Service and Support Organisation for up to two months after the purchase of a corresponding scanner.

The KODAK i 100 Series Scanners are available immediately through authorised imaging resellers of KODAK products.

P R O D U C T NEW S

16

Service and Support for CMI/MRS retrieval devices BlipChip was informed, and has confirmed, that the purchase of Connecticut Micrographics (CMI) by ALOS Micrographics Corp., effective November 1,2004, as announced in an earlier issue of The Green Sheet, did not include the competitive CMI/MRS range of microfilm retrieval devices.

The first product that CMI introduced when it began in 1978 was BlipChip's BlipChip I counter that was sold by CMI also as the MRS 100 after 1987. Likewise, CMI sold BlipChip's BlipChip II, III, and IV until 1987 and also as MRS200, 300, and 400 respec­ tively after 1987. Beginning in 1987 BlipChip's controller for the Kodak Oracle film, at that time BlipChip Oracle, was sold by CMI as the MRS450.

CMI's unilateral decision to market it's own controllers (MRS60 & MRS80) and blip counter (MRS100) ended it's 12-year relationship with BlipChip's parent company, Robin Baker Associates, Inc. (RBA) in November, 1990, after which time RBA began marketing its products under its registered trademark,

BlipChip, as BlipChip Products Company.

Among the other products on BlipChip's web site, it continues to sell the original BlipChip I and II. BlipChip IV (MRS400) was upgraded and is BlipChip's BlipChip Nova controller. It is comparable capability-wise to the MRS60 and Minolta Mars Mini 2 controller, but at lower cost. At higher cost than the

MRS60, but much less costly than Minolta's Mars Controller 4 and Canon's FS Controller III, BlipChip's BlipChip V (BC5) controller reads

all three ANSI blip sizes and has special provisions for unblipped film using BlipChip's unique, 1993-introduced image edge sensor.

BlipChip's Oracle controller was renamed BlipChip Omega at Kodak's request and has been upgraded twice since the MRS450 version and after the BlipChip Oracle kit made for Kodak's IDW in the mid 90's.

BlipChip continues to service and support its products that were sold by CMI and will do its best to repair those that are no longer being manufactured. For CMI-manufactured microfilm retrieval devices, customers and dealers are welcome to contact BlipChip for ongoing service and support, or for upgrading to a BlipChip if necessary.

Contact: BlipChip Products Company, Div. of Robin Baker Associates, Inc., 260 Hartshorn Drive, Short Hills, NJ, USA 07078-1914 USA. Tel: +1-973-379-6431, Fax: +1-973-379-3900, E-mail: info@blipchip.com or visit: http://www.BlipChip.com

New SHADE range from NORDPLAN Leading document storage manafacturer, NORDPLAN Limited, has launched SHADE, a new range of elegant space saving mobile storage systems. The elegant, uncomplicated appearance of the SHADE range has been developed by renowned industrial and commercial designer, Jacob Jensen and includes electronic and manually operated mobile options as well as static shelving.

W ith today's constant pressure to save space and reduce accommodation costs, SHADE mobile systems enable users to more than double storage capacity compared with fixed filing cabinets.

Stylish steel wraparound fascias combined with elegant black controls and index strips give the SHADE range its distinctive look.

Together with the easy-to-use controls and wealth of operational and safety features on the Electronic and Mechanical options, this belies the view that high-density mobile Systems are purely functional and only suitable for archive or out-of-sight storage.

Designed to look good in any workplace environment, SHADE is the ideal document storage system for offices, hospitals or libraries - indeed, anywhere there is a

P R O D U C T NEW S

requirement to maximise storage capacity in the minimum space. And for public access areas or where there are occasional users, the intuitive design makes SHADE mobile systems very easy to operate.

The SHADE range has more advanced safety and operational features than any comparable system on the UK market. For example, touch-screen controls, adjustable stopping distances, ergonomic gearwheels, infrared sensors that prevent units from closing when in use, and A ir Circulation Parking that eliminates stale air pockets by automatically spacing the units overnight.

SHADE E9000, the electronic option, features mobile units powered by motors housed within the base units. The unique touch-screen controls allow users to access any aisle by simply touching a highlighted arrow on the control panel.

SHADE M 9000 is manually operated, with ergonomically designed hand wheels.

The unique ultra-low gearing means that users can move entire banks of units with minimal effort, even when the shelves are fully loaded. The hand wheels have an integrated safety lock and handles can be folded into the fascias, leaving a flush surface without obtrusive winding mechanisms.

SHADE S9000 has static storage units with the same stylish and uncomplicated finish as the electronic and manual options. It is designed to be used either in conjunction with mobile units to make the most of available space or where fixed shelving is the most appropriate solution.

Contact: Edward Nelson, Nordplan, Sheddingdean Industrial Estate, Marchants Way, Burgess Hill, West Sussex, RHI 5 SQ Y Tel 01444 237220

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

17

"Trojan Horse" Programmes Is this the Records and Archive Management Armageddon?

By Laurie Varendorff, ARMA

Development by the Microsoft Corporation and IBM of "rights management" software - commentators have nicknamed it the 'Trojan Horse" programme - gives e-mail authors control over their electronic messages after they have sent

DRM from Microsoft, or the Electronic Media

"delete/kill - date/tim e". Heaven preserve

Management System (EMMS) that includes

us!

DRM of some sort from IBM.

Has the use of "Trojan Horse" programmes the potential to change the course of history? You betcha! If this tool

Storming the Gates Has hacking now been legitimised?

Inclusion of the "Trojan Horse" programme

had been in place in the 1980's, Admiral Poindexter's "Well done" e-mail to good old

destructing records has given archives and records managers some sleepless nights, says the author, a records and information management consultant and educator in

in the commercially available software product offerings by these two IT mammoths

Ollie North and other data may not have been there for investigators to discover and

would make it appear so.

Legislators in government and business

Perth, Western Australia. Legislators have got to do something, he insists.

and the archives profession should be storming the walls, or should that be the

the Iran-Contra hearings could not have been as thorough as they were.

Think it through. See the delete, date-time feature repeated hundreds, thousands or

Now that we appear to have systemised information deletion outside of our control,

"Gates", of both Microsoft and IBM, demanding that this be stopped immediately.

there will be no history to assess.

Why?

An easy answer

them, even to the point that the emails may erase themselves. The potential for these self-

via the good works of Microsoft and IBM, what does the future hold for Records and Archives Management?

circles along with the records management

Because, by including this legitimised

millions of times and we will not need historians to document and assess history as

Is there an easy answer to this matter?

The recent release of Microsoft Office 2003, with its Digital Rights Management (DRM) and Information Rights Management

'Trojan Horse" programme as part of an electronic communication, the sender may, if it is wished, disallow the recipient's right to

(IRM) features, allows the creator/sender of

print, forward, copy or retain a business or legally-related electronic communication

supplier who has this IRM or DRM delete/kill - date/tim e "Trojan Horse" programme incorporated in their commercial software

about a business transaction.

W hat is this devilish plot? W hy are

products, must be made to remove the feature immediately.

Microsoft and IBM able to legitimise the insertion and distribution of 'Trojan Horse"

Software developers who want to make a quick killing could create software able to identify the "Trojan Horse" programme and

electronic communications to control the printing, forwarding and copying of the message. Additionally, and of the greatest importance, the features allow the creator to set a time for the expiration of e-mails, W ord, Excel and PowerPoint documents at their, not the recipients' volition. It raises questions like: â&#x20AC;˘ W hat is the legality of ownership of a letter, fax or e-mail? â&#x20AC;˘ Does the sender own the communication, or is the recipient the legal owner?

programmes in their DRM product offerings without a reaction from the legislative community? The software designers just adopting an admittedly useful tool to prevent the abuse of copyright in the music and movie/video industry and migrating it to ecommunications without, I am certain, any intellectual evaluation or understanding of

Not being a legal practitioner I can only pose these questions, and one other: is

the potential consequences.

For an e-mail recipient, a restriction on

George Orwell's 1984 society finally

printing, forwarding or copying of a particular electronic communication may not

arriving 20 years late?

If my evaluation of this new facility is correct, in the near future there may not be any records for us end users, records managers or archivists, to manage and retain. If we, as professionals, thought that the introduction of the personal computer was a calamity for records management that precipitated the demise of the registry system in government operations, this new feature could be viewed as Armageddon.

I am troubled over the concept of managing security risks by way of IRM or

be a big issue so long as the message can be captured and stored. However, it is potentially very dangerous and I personally have a violent objection to the feature that allows the sender to add what is formally called a "delete/kill, date-time" feature into an electronic communication without the recipient's knowledge or approval. M y belief is that it is tantamount to the sender holding the recipient to ransom. The description of the function alone is enough to raise the hairs on the nape of nervous necks:

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

Sure there is!

Microsoft and IBM, plus any other

warn recipients. This would allow recipients to negotiate with the senders to have the programme removed. If approval was not forthcoming, it would allow the insidious monster to be overridden and recipients to carry on legitimate day-to-day business activities without a fear of a commercially or legally important e-communication disappearing without consent.

Legislators in both government and business must make provisions to monitor the use of 'Trojan Horse" programmes in commercially available software products.

These legislators will need to either outlaw the process or somehow safeguard recipients. It is time for legislators and records and archive management profes­ sionals to take a stand against this appalling development.

Happy record management into the future! - Maybe!

FEATURE

M anaging the Infinite Archive It may include a return to old-fashioned film

By Fred Moore, President, Horison Information Strategies Can you remember when most data was born non-digital? In the early 1990s, just over 90% of the world's data was born non­ digital in analogue format. Today, the reverse is true as more than 90% of newly created data is born in a digital format.

Whatever happened to all the non-digital archives created from years of generating analogue data? Did those archives get converted to digital storage along the way, or do they remain potentially deteriorating in archives around the world? Is it even possible to convert old non-digital data to digital data storage, or is our historical data destined to stay in a non-digital state forever? Should some data stay in non­ digital form?

Businesses are now more clearly focused on data and its value than ever before.

However, most of this focus is on digital data. Numerous legal issues, the impact of compliance, and the fact that data may someday have significant value which can't presently be seen, make nearly all data a candidate for archival status. (Spam is a notable exception.) W hat is meant by the term archival? Archival storage presents several agendas for storage managers.

Some think archival refers to media that needs to be read 10, 20, even 50 or more years from the present time. Others see preserving digital data for infinite periods of time, realizing that the physical media will change many times during the lifetime of data. Some healthcare providers indicate that they will archive medical records for a person's lifetime plus seven years.

Archival Technologies

The question of how much digital data exists in the world is best addressed by the second University of California, Berkeley study on digital data creation. This compre­ hensive study defines magnetic, optical, print and film as the four types of physical media where data is stored. Per the study, magnetic disk and tape (digital) accounted for 92% of the total amount of data stored; film (non­ digital) represented 7% of the total; with paper (non-digital) and optical (digital) media storing the remainder. Reference:-

(www.sims.berkeley.edu/research/projects/ how-much-info-2003/).

Archival data is normally referred to as fixed content, meaning that it is rarely

FEATURE

modified. Archival data represents a much lower I/O activity level than most other applications. These properties create many unique opportunities and challenges for archival storage device suppliers.

data storage is pushing the limits of storage capacity well into the terabyte range, pushing past the performance and capacity limits of optical media.

W O R M Disk arrives

Magnetic Tape

Magnetic tape is the most commonly used data centre archival technology. The most

In order to solve this dilemma, the popular economy magnetic disk arrays combined with user-selectable WORM

commonly quoted figure for the archival life of current generation magnetic tape

functionality deliver a non-alterable storage solution that is ideal for archival and by disk

cartridges ranges from 15 to 30 years, in ideal environmental conditions. Even in an era of significant emphasis on compliance and records retention, that is long enough to

or optical storage. This concept is somewhat analogous to an automated tape library, with the exception that disks are substituted for tape cartridges. MAID can be viewed as

make storage administrators comfortable that the media will last. Even if the digital

a library of disks.

media can be read many years from now, the rate of change for new storage

concurrently active, the overall storage subsystem costs can be significantly lowered by simplifying controller complexity. The

technologies make the media obsolete in less than 10 years. Finding replacement parts, trained maintenance personnel, diagnostics

By reducing the number of disks that are

financial savings increase as storage environments get larger. MAID provides

and operating systems that support old devices now mandate conversion to a new

traditional levels of RAID data protection capability, important for SATA drives, to

archival technology well before its rated useful life is over.

enable higher availability similar to current

The significant improvements in magnetic tape media life since 2000 now enable tape media to exceed the practical limits of the

The most effective usage of MAID storage will be application driven. MAID isn't

tape drives themselves. Remote electronic tape libraries used as vaults and true offline tape storage remain useful for archival of records that are seldom accessed offering additional geographic protection against disasters.

disk arrays.

suitable for all applications, but it is poised to addresses mid-term archival, lower activity fixed-content data, and backup and recovery, more cost effectively compared to existing disk solutions. MAID products are just now appearing in the market.

Last Ditch Data Recovery: The Return to

Optical Media

Analogue?

Organisations have traditionally relied upon optical media and Write-Once, ReadMany (WORM) media to comply with

Digital storage has an additional requirement for access compared to analogue data-electricity. W hat if there is an

regulatory requirements for "non-erasable" and "non-rewriteable" storage media.

electrical outage for several days?

Unfortunately, events of the recent past now indicate this has become a possibility,

Optical media thrives in the entertainment storage business, but interchange and standards issues can make media management more time consuming for business applications. In addition, optical disk capacities have failed to keep pace with magnetic technologies in either capacity or data rate. Optical DVDs offer 4.7 gigabytes capacity, writing a single layer of data on a single side of the media, and the latest Bluray technologies (providing up to 30 gigabytes) pale compared to the half­ terabyte capacities of current tape cartridges and disk drives. The explosion in regulated

though still a remote one. Hurricanes, fires, floods and terrorists contribute to the odds that one day dealing without electricity for several days may happen. Therefore, the technology selections above w on't help in case of a blackout or sustained electrical failure.

The only reliable read capability remaining in a prolonged blackout becomes the human eye. The human eye can read analogue data. In this absolute "last ditch data recovery" scenario, moving the absolute most critical, potentially life-saving

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

i

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

In 1998, Fred Moore founded Horison Information Strategies, an information strategies consulting firm in Boulder, Colorado, that specialises in strategy and business development for emerging IT and storage networking companies.

Fred Moore began his 21 -year career at StorageTek as the first systems engineer and concluded as corporate vice president of Strategic Marketing. m Fred serves as Editor of Storage for West World Productions. Fie is a 1989 recipient o f the Distinguished Alumnus H O R I S O N Award and a 2002 recipient of the Scholar-in Residence award for Geography at the University o f Missouri where he Information Strategies received a bachelor's degree in mathematics and a master's degree in computer applications in physical geography.

Fred completed the Berkeley Executive Program in 1997. He currently serves on a few select boards in the storage networking industry.

Fred is a sought-after motivator and IT speaker worldwide and has published numerous papers and reports for the datastorage industry.

He can be contacted on Tel: 303-417-9455, by email: fmoore@horison.com or visit: http://www.horison.com data back to analogue film has value. In a life or death situation, film can provide the

with no artifacts can be written on this film that can be read, with magnification, by the

workable implementation remains distant.

This issue has no clear-cut solution today.

information needed for survival when electricity based storage has become non­

human eye! Device obsolescence, the lack of

Most progressive data centres continuously move 15-25% of their data to newer

functional. Paper would be another option, except that the physical space required

and viruses are issues that don't exist in the

(compared to film) is most likely prohibitive.

Film is immune to viruses and is nonalterable, making this step to archival storage management as the last stop. As an informational note, Microbox in Germany

(www. microbox. de/english/framesetjongter m.htm) has developed a most unique and advanced state-of-the art laser film recording technique-currently writing data at 12,000 dots per inch with a rated media life of 500 years.

Soon CAD-CAM drawings and x-rays

parts, operating systems support, and worms case of film.

Conclusion

A final consideration for archival storage is the requirement to periodically move the data from older technologies to newer ones.

The challenge, practicality and time required to do these conversions increase every day as the amount of data steadily accumulates in each business. Moving terabytes (and soon petabytes) of data through servers becomes impractical and degrades the overall system. Device-to-device data transfer offers the most promise, though a

technologies each year to minimise the disruption, making this, possibly, the only viable option.

Though the complete journey from analogue and digital data creation to long­ term archival storage could involve a return to analogue data, in either case the issue of managing archival storage is without a doubt a pressing one. The archival choices we make today will make archival data retrieval possible tomorrow.

This article was first published in Computer Technology Review and is reproduced here with their full permission

PRODUCTS

h e Tel: +972-4-6062171 Fax: +972-4-6062168 w eb: www.microvue.co.il RF-35

e-mail: info@microvue.co.il X L -1 6

WOW

MOTORIZED MICROFILM

AVA1LAUE ATiiiia&VUE GIDEON 9 0 0

READERS G ID E O N 1 0 0 0

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

Manual Library Researcher

FEATURE

Ending the ERP Paper Chase?

Keying data from documents into ERP systems is a hidden running cost - but a new generation o f data capture software can reduce these costs and improve data quality.

Tom Fox of ITESOFT UK takes a look at the issues

Despite boardroom scepticism, the ERP bandwagon continues to roll. Among the many benefits of ERP is that data need only be captured once. This means fewer key­ strokes when handling data compared to disparate legacy systems and fewer data errors as a result. Whilst much data is captured electronically, there is a significant amount of information in many organi­ sations that needs to be keyed by hand.

Typically this originates outside of the enterprise and is often communicated via paper documents. Examples include sales orders, supplier invoices, credit notes, delivery notes, remittance advice and every imaginable type of form. And, as data entry volumes continue to grow, costs continue to rise and opportunities for savings become more apparent.

Manual data entry is labour intensive and represents a significant ongoing cost for many organisations. For example a typical UK invoice costs just under £5 to process but it is not unusual for the cost to be three times this. For a company processing 100,000 invoices per annum this equates to an annual cost of half a million pounds. In many cases, data entry is being performed by expensive knowledge workers, such as mortgage approval managers, and is a hidden barrier to productivity.

Paper is Here to Stay There is clearly a gap between the datacentric world of ERP and the document­ centric world of many business processes.

Information is the life-blood of an organi­ sation, yet documents are often peoples' preferred way of exchanging it.

So if people like paper, how do you bridge this document/data divide? e-Forms and e-Document applications are widespread and are intended to replace, or at least complement, paper forms. By capturing data at source, an organisation loses the costs associated with manual data

FEATURE

entry, improves capture cycle times and eliminates errors due to re-keying, but in reality businesses continue to create and consume paper.

A major European automotive supplier decided to implement an EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) programme with its suppliers. The objective was 100% EDI transactions. The reality, however, was that only 70% of transactions could be treated in this way, 30% of supplier invoices (1.5 million per annum) could not conform to the proposed financial model and, therefore, still needed to be delivered on paper. If the corporate might of an automotive giant cannot drive 100% EDI conformity then how can smaller, less structured enterprises be expected to?

Bridging the Gap On the one hand, the path to digital printed output is mature and sophisticated.

A choice of quality, high volume, robust, colour printing systems are available from numerous global vendors such as Xerox, Hewlett Packard and Canon. But, on the other hand, the capture of data from documents or forms relies extensively on teams of data entry clerks, much as it did in the era of the mainframe. Conventional thinking suggests 4 possible approaches: 1. Re-key the data from paper.

2. Re-key the data from image (a scanned copy of the paper) 3. Pay someone else to re-key the data.

4. Force the originator to use an e-form instead of conventional paper Capture Solutions - Capture Savings Another, increasingly popular answer, however, is to use data capture and document recognition software to replace or complement manual data entry. This class of solution will read data from paper using OCR/ICR and upload directly to information systems with greater accuracy and at a fraction of the cost of human operators.

Automatic data capture is not a new technology. It has been around in various forms for over 20 years, but it has been unable to shake off a reputation for being unreliable, difficult to manage and prone to recognition errors. Steady advances over recent years, however, have resulted in a

new generation of solutions that are both cost effective and technologically robust.

Recognition rates for machine print alpha-numeric text, bar codes and tick boxes are close to 100%. Handwritten numerics are misread four or five times per thousand and non-cursive handwritten alpha text has an average success rate of around 97%. Only cursive (joined up) hand text remains a significant challenge and it may be some time before doctors' prescriptions can be read with any real confidence.

Optical Character Recognition (OCR) uses shape recognition techniques and is used to identify printed text. Intelligent Character Recognition (ICR) uses Artificial Neural Network techniques to recognise hand written text. A number of OCR/ICR engines are normally used in parallel within a weighted voting mechanism to deliver high recognition rates. A successful capture solution will handle scanning, integration with upstream systems, on-line data integrity checking, image storage and document routing.

In Conclusion Data capture using OCR embedded within workflows has become a mature and effective technology. Solutions are robust and straddle the gap between corporate data systems and document based processes, offering security, audit, reporting and management functions that fit within corporate regulatory environments delivering a measurable return that is unique amongst most IT solutions.

Tom Fox is the Marketing Director of ITESOFT UK, a company specialising in document management and data capture.

For more information v is itwww.itesoft.com

ERP "Enterprise Resource Planning"

-

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

There's life in the old dog yet!

Microfilm remains an important storage medium - today and in the future

By Andreas Klinke, Marketing & Sales Manager, Microform GmbH The desire and the

of decades and with unrestricted access -

methods that can be employed:

necessity to archive

irrespective of how the systems world is changing

â&#x2DC;&#x2026;

information is as old as mankind. To meet this

around it. There's also no need for complex

demand, a multitude of different storage media

system maintenance over several generations of

have been developed down the ages whose

software releases and updates of operating

simultaneous creation o f digital and analogue images using scanner cameras

â&#x2DC;&#x2026;

storing information on film with subsequent digitalisation of the film images

physical nature has been as many-sided as it was

systems. There are no highly expensive conversion

varied. That said, only a very small number of

or migration steps to be taken and there's no

by imaging of the digital images on film with

these different media have proved to be long-

need to fear any loss of valuable information as a

the aid of what are called 'film writers'.

lasting. In addition to paper, which has now

result of the umpteenth migration.

proven its worth over many centuries, these have

â&#x2DC;&#x2026;

scanning of information subsequently followed

All three methods are characterised by a high

Despite this, microfilm is not out of date

level of processing convenience and a reliable

included, without a doubt, microfilm. Both in days

technically. Even if the medium itself has changed

and inexpensive backup solution for long-term

gone by and today, microfilm has been used to

only minimally over the years, the infrastructure of

archiving.

store valuable historical archive materials, loose

the equipment used to process the film has kept

and bound documents from the office sector, as

pace with technological changes. Today's systems

of suppliers who fully understands the ins and outs

well as large-format functional and design

make full use of computer-aided, digital

of the complex subject of analogue information

drawings. It enables us to safely archive

technology for information searching and

storage. M any years of experience in handling

everything from the smallest snippet of paper up

accessing operations. State-of-the-art database

microfilm and a genuine commitment to the

to AO size presentations without any problem.

systems manage the corresponding index files and

necessity of film are defining traits of Microform's

image locations and offer fast and precision

employees. Competent and objective consulting on

Microfilm has been used in exactly the same

Microform GmbH is one of the small number

manner for decades now. All that ever differs are

access to the images that contain the individual

the capture and archiving of information belongs

the sizes, depending on the type of application

items of information wanted. Modern scanner

to M icroform's portfolio of services. This is also

and the format of the original. In these fast

technology enables film to be integrated into

reflected in our product portfolio: a complete

moving times, this consistency is a real advantage

complex document management and information

range - starting with microfilm rotary cameras,

for this medium: microfilm is standardised,

systems. This even goes as far as fully automated,

hybrid scanner cameras, film developers, reader-

recognised all over the world, 100% compatible

robot-controlled microfilm jukebox solutions that

copiers and film scanners for the most varied of

and, thanks to its simple handling, continues to

transfer microfilm images to the workplace

formats through to simple, classical readers -

enjoy an extremely high level of acceptance.

monitor online in just a matter of seconds.

enables users to set up and deploy a complete

And it's especially this problem-free handling

Parallel analogue and digital processing with

analogue or hybrid storage solution. A t the same

when searching for information that distinguishes

hybrid technologies is also an important

time, Microform is very open-minded as regards

microfilm. Users don't need any special system

component in today's modern and secure world of

digital media. As a developer and manufacturer

expertise. A few simple manual operations are all

information storage. In this way, the long-term

of high-performance document scanners and

that's required to access the information you want.

future and economy of this analogue medium are

flexible capturing solutions, the company is just as

Normal ambient conditions are also perfectly

combined with the flexibility and speed of digital

successful in the digital world as it is with

adequate for storing the film safely over a period

storage media. And there are several processing

archiving systems.

The complete picture-microfilm with

N

*

11

r

,

.

COPEX LD 75 D M ic ro fic h e -R e a d e r

ADMIS CD 51 R o ta ry C am era

ADMIS SC 51 S c a n n e r - M ic r o film e r

SCANDESK II IMA6EDESK I I M ic r o fic h e R e a d e r-S c a n n e r

A D M I S SR 24 iT

ADMIS RP 23

ADMIS SR 30 iT

R ead er P r in te r

M ic r o film - S c a n n e r

COPEX FP 500 M ic r o film P ro c e s s o r

m icroform

Anton-S chm idt-Str. 3 1 /1

Fon +49-71 51-9 75 09 30

e-m ail: info@ m icroform .de

D-71332 Waiblingen

Fax + 4 9-7 1 51-9 75 09 55

www.m icroform.de

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory FEATURE

22

Insurance firm digitises 300,000 microfilm images When faced with the seemingly

and Richard Mellon, project leader. Kodak

overwhelming task of converting 300,000

suggested its Digital Science Intelligent Microimage Scanner (IMS), which converts

microfilmed policies to a more accessible and legible format, Metropolitan Life Insurance Company needed a system that

microfilm document images to digital images, as a perfect fit for the project.

could be set up in a time-efficient and costreducing manner. And it had to produce

Among the assets was the fact that instal­ lation didn't require any platform changes.

high-quality images.

The Kodak imaging software was

MetLife turned to Eastman Kodak for suggestions. "We had a long history of using Kodak equipment for microfilming so

compatible with MetLife's existing Microsoft W indows NT-based network and Compaq

going to them was a natural choice for us", said Felipe Botero, assistant VP-IT Services,

servers. Kodak's technical support staff was able to install the equipment within four weeks, after which it stayed on to maintain

the technologies throughout the conversion process. W orking with MetLife, Kodak also provided employee training.

W ith the new IMS system in place, MetLife hired 100 temporary employees, rather than the 350 they would have needed for a paper-based conversion. 'The new equipment streamlined the review process and resulted in significant cost reduction in terms of the number of people required and the elapsed time," said Botero. He said he also plans to use the IMS system for future microfilm conversions, www.kodak.com

County Clerk's office escapes paperwork prison The Dupage County Circuit Clerk's Office handles nearly every legal filing in the

That system worked well until document imaging technology became widely available.

system and then burned into DVDs. The DVDs are uploaded in the Clerk's office inhouse system for viewing and printing. To

Then Dupage County started scanning files into its own imaging system, instead of

satisfy long-term storage needs, Lason is transferring the images to roll microfilm,

accepts 320,000 new case filings each year. With the number of case filings

converting the images to fiche. But at that point there was more than a decade's worth of files on fiche and these had to be

giving another 500 years of analogue backup image security. Once the images

growing exponentially, the Clerk's office needed to find a more efficient way of handling the paperwork.

made accessible to staff and in the courtroom. The county turned to an outside service firm, Lason, which had a good

As background, over the years since Illinois became a state in 1818, the Clerk's

relationship with several other Circuit Court Clerks' offices throughout Illinois. Lason

office struggled to find space for the load of paper-based filings and legal records. It

came up with a solution for Dupage County

Circuit Court and also maintains millions of court records, ranging from parking tickets to estate probate records. As the second largest court system in the state of Illinois it

are on roll microfilm, as well as in the imaging system, the files can be destroyed.

The solution allows the Clerk's office the ability to have an additional 10 years of files available on-line, eliminating the need for paper and microfiche files. For the longer term, roll microfilm is the storage

wasn't easy but it was done. Finally, in an effort to make files more easily accessible, during the 1980s Dupage County

that addresses present and future needs.

Lason begins by scanning the existing fiche with high volume Wicks and Wilson microfiche film scanners. After scanning,

medium. The new scanning-and-storage solution thus also saves space that would have been needed to store incoming files which are now scanned as they come in.

converted files to updatable microfiche.

the images are transferred to an indexing

www.lason.com

Climbing a mountain of deeds and mortgages The record low US mortgage rates of recent years produced an unprecedented volume of deed recordings for many state agencies, including the County Clerk's office in Kent County, Michigan, one of the fastest growing in the state. Early on, an AmCAD imaging system was installed to make the recording process more efficient. Then it became clear that even more efficiency could be gained by converting all deeds and mortgages

one, the data entry of deed and mortgage index books from microfilm, consisted of several steps. ImageMax picked up the microfilm and duplicated the index books and microfilm so that it could key from duplicates in order to protect the original film. A data entry staff used a double entry keying system with verification to capture all necessary fields. Data was output as a

scanned at 200 dpi and saved as group IV TIFF images. All images were deskewed and visually inspected. Images were rescanned as necessary and also cropped to present a more accurate original page size.

Completed images were delivered on DVDs for importing into the AmCAD system. A second set of DVDs were created and stored

recorded since 1970 into digital images.

Microsoft database file and saved on two DVDs, one for importing into the county's

at ImageMax for off-site backup.

In addition, Kent County also electron­ ically transmits to ImageMax, digital images

This would enable them to be imported into the AmCAD system and make them

database while the second was stored at ImageMax for backup.

that are captured daily for conversion to ANSI quality microfilm, for archival backup.

accessible via computer on the state's internal network and its public web site.

Kent County turned to ImageMax for a solution. The service firm approached the project by splitting it into two phases. Phase

CASE S T U D Y

Phase two consisted of scanning the

The county is very happy with the system.

Users no longer have to travel to the county

deeds and mortgages from 35mm microfilm.

Prior to this phase, it required completion of the index book data entry from phase one to

vault, and the county has registered huge productivity gains,

obtain electronic stapling data. The film was

www.imagemax.com

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

23

DocuW are/SAP integration - Live at Sedus Stoll Office Furniture Manufacturer Enhances Service Sedus Stoll electronically files approxi­ mately 350,000 documents annually in its Sales, Customer Service, Engineering, Purchasing and Accounting Departments.

locations are involved. The hunt for a wide

log into the application on the Sedus web

array of documents - such as purchase invoices, correspondence, accounting

site and can immediately access details regarding the current status of orders. In addition, original records such as orders,

Their authorised resellers are also able to

records and proofs of payment - often leads

confirmations, packing slips and invoices

access the company's central document pool.

Since the beginning of this year, Sedus is

to long search time and an endless number of copies. By introducing DocuWare, the company shifted to a process-oriented,

may be displayed directly in DocuWare.

This means that loads of time is now saved

incorporating records directly from its SAP/R3 system in the company archive.

orders, order confirmations, packing slips,

and customer service was further improved.

electronic filing system that now gives anyone authorized the ability to access all relevant data company-wide.

SAP/R3 introduced in 2 0 0 4

In 2004, Sedus Stoll replaced their previous ERP system with a SAP/R3 system.

Every year, this office furniture

They then used DocuWare CONNECT to R/3 to integrate their electronic archives with the ERP solution.

manufacturer generates an average of 350,000 documents; approximately 25,000 documents are generated each month in the

Since the beginning of 2005, users can view documents directly from the SAP

Sales, Customer Service, Engineering and Purchasing departments alone. And after

application without leaving their familiar interface.

year-end, another 45,000 documents are added to the central document pool in the Accounting department.

Huge volumes of materials used in the manufacturing process require complex

Resellers Access Information via Internet

purchasing processes at Sedus Stoll. Often several departments spread over different

also connected to the web-based order

Contact: Patricia Herion, DocuWare A G , Therese-Giehse-Platz 2, 82110 Germering, Germany Tel.: +49.89.89 44 33-56 Fax: +49.89.8 41 99 66 E-Mail: patricia. herion@docuware. com

The Document Management System is processing system. Sedus Stoll resellers can

Incorporating TH E

MICROFILM SHOP

P R O V ID IN G A C C E S S T O Y O U R IN F O R M A T IO N

E N U S provides solutions and systems to capture, store, access and archive your corporate inform ation Building on 30 years experience in the document management industry.

H ardw are

I Consum ables

S o ftw a re

Services

I A dvice I P rint

HAMMOND CLOSE NUNEATON WARWICKSHIRE

Long term instant access, not short term disaster

CV11 6RY UNITED KINGDOM T (024) 7625 4955 F (024) 7638 2319 E info@ genusit.com

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

www.genusit.com CASE S T U D Y

Kofax stream lines M edical Record processing

journals, patients' written comments (mostly handwritten or contained within emails),

and any other materials that can be scanned.

Capio enables users to quickly and easily

Reed Army Medical

scan, store, search and retrieve documents, such as invoices, legal or medical records, receipts, or any other paper items that can

Centre have an electronic medical record (EMR) that

clutter a worker's desktop. Using Kofax' proprietary VRS (VirtualReScan) technology

details the care that is

to improve both image quality and OCR (optical character recognition) accuracy,

First, patients at Walter

The situation

The Walter Reed Health Care System provides comprehensive health care for more than 150,000 soldiers, other service members, family members and retirees in the National Capital Area. Its hub is Walter Reed Army Medical Centre, the clinical Centre of gravity of American military medicine.

Dr. Marc DiFazio is head of the Pediatric Neurology department at W alter Reed Army Medical Centre. As chief of his division, Dr. DiFazio's prim ary responsibilities include patient care, training of residents in their track toward becoming doctors, and general

provided at the hospital and is accessible at all other military medical facilities after their stay.

W ith the pervasiveness of the Internet and the access it gives to medical journals, photos and graphics, and other electronic content regarding patient care, Dr. DiFazio wanted to append his patients' EMRs with this type of value-added information but lacked a mechanism to easily update the system.

Second, with residency programs placed under the strict constraint that residents can no longer work longer than 80 hours per week, fitting in the educational, researchoriented component of their instruction

Capio delivers unmatched image quality and eliminates the need to rescan document images because of its automatic check for and adjustment of alignment (skew), brightness, contrast or image-clarity inconsistencies.

Capio provides Dr. DiFazio with a means to electronically archive the paperwork that is generated from quarterly reviews of hospital residents and staff, thereby stream­ lining the review process, improving their efficiency through easier access to information, and dramatically reducing research time that can further impact a resident's already hectic schedule.

The results

the medical Centre.

Handling the daily administration of his department requires the use and

became increasingly difficult. Dr. DiFazio sought to find a method to "short cut" the research time and speed the residency evaluation process. He determined that his

management of vast amounts of paperbased documentation, such as patient charts

department required a document-scanning solution with easy-to-use document

capture solution, Dr. DiFazio is able to significantly improve patient care, especially in demonstrating trends in a patient's care.

and records as well as research materials for training. This documentation was

management software to better organise all the information that can be appended to an EMR.

performance improvement for his division of

housed in many filing cabinets, where residents would search for and pull records to find the proper information.

The challenge

Dr. DiFazio wanted to address two operational concerns that were affecting his department, both pertaining to the handling of paper documents.

The solution

Dr. DiFazio turned to Kofax's Capio

W ith Capio serving as his document

Now, processing patient forms is greatly simplified due to the search capabilities (e.g., keyword searches) that are available because the data is in electronic form.

Also, Capio enables Dr. DiFazio to maintain a more efficient data processing

software to optimise the storage, retrieval and processing of patient medical records

infrastructure and reduce the amount of

as well as add elements that are traditionally difficult to include, such as detailed graphics and photos, relevant articles from medical

large volumes of patient records at the

physical storage space required to house the hospital â&#x20AC;&#x201D; both critical elements in a medical environment.

Workers Compensation Agency outsources A state Workers' Compensation Agency, a client of service provider SourceCorp, decided that the most practical way to

involving many offices.

SourceCorp's solution involved setting up a document conversion facility in the

modernise its claims processing and information storage systems, was to go outside for scanning, indexing and transfer

state's southern tier to process the 25

of its backfiles, in tandem with the conversion to electronic images of the agency's daily mail. Going outside made sense because it was a statewide initiative

CASE S TU D Y

million paper backfile as well as 40,000 items per day of day-forward work.

SourceCorp ships papers from customer sites around the state, then prepares, scans, indexes and transmits this information back to the client via two T1 lines.

The agency is very satisfied with the solution. It reduces time for claims processing and thus reduces labour processing costs significantly. Equally important to these benefits for state taxpayers is the fact that it increases the level of service the agency can provide to claimants.

www.srcp.com

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

Making the Gutenberg Bible accessible to all In June 2002, the Ransom Center and llmage Retrieval, Inc. of Carrollton, Texas collaborated on the digitisation of the Center's Gutenberg Bible using the i2s Digibook 6002RGB overhead scanner. The

Ransom Center at the University of Texas at

project took less than a week to complete and resulted in nearly 1,300 digital images.

further study. Notable features of the twovolume Texas copy on paper are the copious indications of actual use dating from the

For the first time, it is possible for the general public to view all of the pages from

15th through the 17th centuries. These are found on over a third of its pages and

the University of Texas copy, including all of the large illuminated letters in volume I and the copious handwritten annotations, as well

include instructions on how and when passages were to be used in monastic services, marginal divisions of the text for

as other indications of the book's use in religious services.

reading aloud, lectionary marks, and textual corrections or insertions. In addition, the first volume of the Texas copy of the Gutenberg

Johann Gutenberg's magnificent 42-line Bible (B42) is the first surviving book printed with movable type. It was completed in Mainz, Germany, around 1455 and for centuries has held special significance for all bibliophiles and historians of the book. Each of the forty-eight surviving examples are unique, and the one belonging to the Harry

page made from an entirely new digitisation in

Austin (acquired in 1978 from the Carl H. Pforzheimer Foundation in New York City) is one of the most fascinating and deserving of

Bible contains over forty beautifully illuminated large initial letters added by artists around the time it was printed.

You can now study and enjoy all 1,282 pages of the Center's Gutenberg Bible. The CD-ROM edition features high-definition and enlargeable "flattened" images of each

2004. The edition includes introductions examining all of the evidence relating to the production, history, and ownership of this copy. To purchase the CD-ROM please contact llmage Retrieval. llmage Retrieval, is the premier reseller of Microfilm Scanner equipment in the US & US, providing sales, installation, training, service and parts distribution for nextScan scanners. We have also expanded to include rare book scanners produced by i2s.

This line of high resolution, colour or monochrome, planetary scanners compliments the film scanners.

require a rare Bigiti^atton process!

With over 20 years experience in image capture and processing, i2S is dedicated to developing solutions for the digitization and preservation of rare documents. With hallmarks such as "cool" lighting and 120 degree book cradles, our focus is on the needs of those dedicated to the conservation.

The Digibook 2000LC is designed for high productivity when scanning grayscale materials smaller than 24.8 inches x 33 inches. Digitize 2 x A4 pages at 200dpi in 2.2 seconds!

The Digibook 6002 and 10000 systems allow color and grayscale scanning of materials as large as 24.8 inches x 33 inches. The interchangeable camera allows for higher resolution and higher speeds when needed. The optically adjusted resolutions produce superior image quality. Convert 2 x A4 full color pages at 200dpi in 5.2 seconds!

The most versatile and powerful scanner in our SUPRASCAN range, the DigiBook A0, is dedicated to digitizing large format and bound documents in either color or grayscale.

This scanner possesses exceptional image quality and is capable of digitizing A0 and E sized materials up to 34.2" (h) x 49.2" (w). With the DigiBook A0, your productivity will increase tremendously, as it can scan color A0 format documents at 300 dpi in under 30 seconds!

The automated page-turning Digitizing Line is ideal for large volume conversions. Combining the quality of the Digibook A0 with automation, the Digitizing Line is the ultimate and unrivaled tool for the future of digital libraries.

* LAND

llmage Retrieval UK Wandle House Riverside D rive Mitcham London CR4 4BU Tel: +44 (0)20 82881212 Fax: +44 (0)20 82512001 sales@iiri.co.uk www.IIRI.co.uk

n

OF VISION

Ilmage Retrieval, Inc. 3620 N. Josev Lane Suite #103 Carrollton TX 75007 Tel: (972) 492-0930 Fax: (972) 492-5124 sales@iiri.com www.IIRI.com

image

r e tr ie v a l

Gutenberg Bible images are reproduced with the permission of the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center. University o f Texas at Austin.

Further reproduction without the express written consent of the Ransom Center is prohibited

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory CA SE

STU D Y

New MD for ITESOFT UK Jonathan Symons joins the ITESOFT Team these foundations and further focus on

ITESOFT UK has appointed Jonathan Symons as Managing Director, to continue its growth in the UK data capture market.

Jonathan will play a key role in strengthening

delivering a truly professional service."

ITESOFT's existing position as leading document processing and management

mySAP Business Suite, a processing and consolidation portal for supplier invoices in

specialist focused on the FreeMind product

SAPR/3 following the successful launch of

suite. This includes the recently released Balance for mySAP Business Suite, a processing and consolidation portal for

ITESOFT.FreeMind in 2003, for the automatic ' capture, processing and management of

The appointment follows a successful year in which ITESOFT launched Balance for

unstructured documents, enabling companies to achieve significant business benefits with high volume data capture of all documents with assured security.

supplier invoices in SAPR/3.

Jonathan

joins

ITESOFT

UK

from

InfoSpace where he initially worked as European customer solutions director becoming sales director for Europe. Jonathan

W ith offices in the UK, France and Germany, ITESOFT offers over fifteen years of

has worked in the Technology sector for seventeen years developing key skills in sales,

experience in the implementation of its intelligent data capture solutions to major

marketing, technology and strategy for bluechip organisations including IBM Global

organisations across a wide range of industry sectors including Manufacturing, Retail, Banks, Insurance, Financial and Professional

Services and Price Waterhouse, following ten years serving as a Naval Officer.

Commenting on his decision to join ITESOFT, Symons said: "ITESOFT has a strong product suite and is well positioned in a growing market with a blue-chip customer base. One of my primary objectives will be to focus the UK organisation on building market

share,

focusing

on

ITESOFT's

services, Telecommunications, Publishing, Pensions and Utilities, including: House of Fraser, Peugeot, A ir France, London

leading

automatic document management and data capture software.

Ambulance and Orange.

"ITESOFT has a strong product, strong team and a strong name - providing a great

Contact: Tom Fox, 01252 7 4 1500 / tomf@itesoft-ul(.com

platform for future growth. I plan to build on

Kodak strengthens Low Volume Scanner Team New Business Development Manager for the Capture and Imagelink business in

,

Europe Africa and Middle East In December 2004 , Eastman Kodak Company announced David Whitton as new Business Development Manager for Capture products of Kodak's Document Imaging business in Europe, Africa and Middle East.

joined Fujitsu in 1999 as the Scanner Business Manager for the U.K., Benelux, Middle East and South Africa. In 2001, he became European Scanner Business Manager. This saw him responsible for

Formerly, European Scanner Business Manager at Fujitsu, Whitton began his

both pricing strategy and chairing the European Scanner W orkgroup which sets scanner policy within Fujitsu. In addition,

Imaging career with NCR's Micrographics division in 1989 selling microfilm and

he also assumed direct management of the French and Scandinavian markets.

microfiche services. His first foray into the Scanner world was at Bell and Howell in

When asked about his move to Kodak, Whitton said "I jumped at the chancel Kodak now plays in the workgroup and

1996 where he was responsible for Scanner sales in Germany, France, Switzerland and Austria. Whitton then

PE O P LE

departmental areas where it didn't really before. The strength of the product set

allied with a focus on partnering with resellers and distributors to develop a solutions approach to the market is very appealing! Kodak are managing the business for growth and I want to play my part in that!"

Whitton completed his MBA at the University of Bradford Management Centre in 1995 winning the "Binder Hamlyn prize for the student most competent in financial management". He also holds B.Sc in Physics and an M Sc in Applied Optics from Imperial College London.

Contact: www.kodak.com

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

Senior appointments at EDM signal Phenomenal Growth David Parkes has been appointed as project and transition manager by independent market leader in electronic document management services, the EDM Group.

David joins EDM from Guidestar UK where he implemented and managed the multi-million pound project set up by the government which provides a central service for companies looking for charities to support. As part of his work at EDM, David will also continue to work on a part-time basis for the Guidestar UK. Prior to this, David worked for 10 years as a project manager with Astron, a business provider of high volume data and image capture, managing projects in a number of different locations such as India and Poland. His clients included high-profile companies such as Experian, Norwich Union, Royal Sun Alliance and Avis France.

David comments: "I have worked in the data management industry for over 15 years now and I was attracted to EDM because I wanted to be part of its exciting vision. I am looking forward to the challenge of implementing and managing the delivery of operational and infrastructure projects that will help drive the company's ambitious expansion plans forward".

As Business Development Director with the MR Group (now Cendris) in the late 90s, Malcolm was responsible for winning The Land Registry contract, a project to convert all their file plans to colour images, a contract worth in excess of £9 million.

The EDM G roup, has also appointed Malcolm O rchard as business development manager.

Malcolm was previously business development manager with Elision Ltd, a business process outsourcer, winning significant business through partnerships with EDS and Research Machines.

Prior to this, Malcolm worked for Stortext Document Solutions Ltd, a venture focussing on internet document management services and hosting, where he handled a portfolio of successful deals for the Royal M ail, The Law Society and Gullivers Travels amongst others.

I s n ’ t it t i m e

you

found

out

Malcolm comments, "I have been in the industry for more than 20 years, working with all the major players. Peter Smith offered me an opportunity I couldn't refuse, as his vision is an exciting one and EDM's service is second to none. I am looking forward to driving this ambitious growth plan forward."

Peter Smith, EDM's chief executive says: "The level of growth that we are currently experiencing is reflected in the number of senior appointments that we have made during the last few months. David and Malcolm were ideal choices as their proven track records are more than impressive.

They have a massive amount of combined experience in this industry and I look forward to working with them on future projects." www. theedmgroup. co.uk

about

OIT UK’s Total Solution ClO O O for Document Management?

D o c F i n i t y

Optical Image Technology UK provides: Migration to web-based and portal based business

Ak

Improvement and enhancement to current business streams

A .

Scalability to address corporate/enterprise needs

Ak

The product suite to meet all aspects of enterprise COLD/ERM, document imaging,workflow, Internet access, hierarchical storage management (HSM), print/fax server and enhanced data mining

Ak

Assured service levels

Aik Operational efficiency

Ak

Standardisation

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

User benefits include dramatic cost savings, increased productivity, disaster recovery, increased audit and control, reduced paper handling and process efficiencies.

beyond

the

Content P o rtal^ Imaging! ^ EDM HSM Workflow i XML F o r m s ^ ^COLD/Fiche

A V O I T U K LTD Member of the Genus Group

Hammond Close • Nuneaton • Warwickshire • CV11 6RY • U.K. Telephone (024) 7625 4940 • Facsimile (024) 7638 2319 E-mail sales@oituk.com • Web-Site www.oituk.com

PE O P LE

28

a ro u n d

W orld

Top Image Systems acquires Japanese operation Top Image Systems, Ltd. has announced that TiS Japan (TiSJ), its newly established subsidiary in Japan, has formally started operations.

A t the end of August, 2004, TiS signed a definitive agreement with its longtime partner Toyo Ink Mfg. Co. Ltd., to acquire the activity of Toyo Ink's EDMS division. The division, established eight years ago and dedicated to the imaging business, has been exclusively

marketing and implementing TiS' solutions in Japan.

As a natural evolution of partnerships in Japan, Top Image Systems and Toyo Ink have decided to change the operation format.

Toyo Ink will transfer all TiS / EDMS' existing customers and channels to the newly established TiSJ, as well as the rights to distribute the Japanese localised version of TiS' eFLOW Unified Content Platform. EDMS' professional team will be assigned to TiSJ, in order to ensure the continuity of knowledge

and high level services provided to Japanese customers and partners.

Since September 1, 2004, TiSJ employees have been at the service of customers and partners. TiSJ is responsible for all operations in Japan, including technical support and maintenance services for existing, as well as new, channels and customers. Mr. Hirofumy Maekawa has been appointed the Managing Director of TiSJ, and will work closely with TiS' global management team.

DRS strengthens position in China with new PS900 Scanners DRS has confirmed that it has received an order for five of its latest PhotoScribe Image Scanning machines from Chinese distributor Guangdong Morning Star Co Ltd. Based in Guangzhou in the South East of the Peoples Republic of China, Morning Star provide distribution channels to the Chinese examinations and assessment markets, and its continued relationship with UK based data capture firm DRS, represents a solid commitment to the far eastern examinations market.

The recently launched PhotoScribe PS900 scanner represents the latest generation of data capture technology and is suitable for

a wide range of complex and high volume data capture exercises. Morning Star will be selling the PS900s, along with specially designed software, into examination boards and provincial examination bodies across China for the electronic processing of examination answer sheets, university entrance and student registration forms, and for general education use. As part of the package DRS is also providing training and support for the scanners.

Morning Star's largest client, The Education Examination Authority of Guangdong Province (EEAGP), has used DRS technology for the past two years and already has a fleet of 13 DRS PS880 scanners (another model supported by the DRS PhotoScribe technology platform), which were used to process up to four million forms for The Chinese National University Entry Exam both in 2003 and 2004. The new PS900 will be supplied to the EEAGP to electronically capture over 1.8 million examination answer sheets and processing is expected to take less than one week. These examinations will be sat by 230,000 candidates taking, on average, 4

subjects each and completing 2 examination sheets per subject. The examinations themselves will be made up of both multiple choice questions and also short answer essay questions, and will be marked on screen using Morning Star software.

"W e are extremely pleased to be able to secure our presence and position in the

Chinese market," commented Simon Day, commercial director DRS. "This move represents our solid commitment to one of the largest and most important markets in the world."

For more information visit www.drs.co.uk.

Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory W O R L D NEW S

29

The Bodleian was founded over four Oxford University's world famous Bodleian centuries ago and its vast collections of Library announced recently that it has moved books, manuscripts, and other sources of some of its thousands of important books to information place it among the world's major DeepStore, an underground storage and research libraries. It has not been specified document management facility situated 500 exactly how many books will be moved to ft below the Cheshire countryside. The library DeepStore, but it is thought to be around 1 needed to find room for its ever expanding kilometre of boxes (if laid end to end). collections until a large new depository, soon to be constructed, could take material. This is the first time that it has used a third party to store important items on its behalf.

Commenting on the transfer, Chris Woods Head of Collection Care & Conservation at Oxford University Library Services said, "The Bodleian Library is one of the UK's legal deposit libraries. We receive more than 5,000 new items every week. Until a new storage depository will be ready receive material, we are under pressure to maintain space locally for highest-use material. We chose DeepStore because they offered the Steve Holmes, Commercial Manager at best possible environment in which to store DeepStore said, "We are delighted to be material, and they are able to provide a 24 | working with such a prestigious organisation and honoured to be storing such important hour retrieval and delivery service should we require it." material. DeepStore's unique underground

location means that its is very secure, there is no UV light, no risk of flooding or lightning strikes, no moisture and no pests. The temperature remains at a constant 14°C all year round, together with a humidity band of 60-70%. This is its natural atmospheric state and, with only the most minimal adjustment, it can be made perfect for storing valuable documents,"

DeepStore was founded 3 years ago and provides document management and storage facilities to private and public companies. It is located 500 ft below ground in one of the most secure and stable environments in Britain; the protective void space of Winsford Rock Salt Mine in Cheshire. It is the only secure storage facility of its kind in the UK.

Contact: www.deepstore.com

10001 01000 11110 01010

1 1 1 1 0 U XO 10 O H I O 00001 10101 00000

10001 O O ilflM

great scanners, just got better!

Image enhancing hardware and software added to the ScanPro models assures that you get the best possible scan from all of your microfilm.

Look for the “i " on the label.

The Features That Sell ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

Lowest cost Rugged Reliable Compact Easy-to-use Easy-to-install Wide range of lenses Works with all film types Exceptional image quality

ScanPro 400 Combination Print Direct and Scan-to-PC

m ic ro film scanners

ScanPro 500 for Aperture Cards and Newspapers on 35mm roll film

http://www.e-im agedata.com

340 Grant St. Hartford, W l 53027

Ph 262-673-3476

Fax 262-673-3496

30

Conflict in the Workplace Conflict at work costs employers 450 days management time every year - Hopes high that new Dispute Resolution Regulations will cut costs Managing conflict at work, including disciplinary and grievance cases, and preparing for employment tribunals, costs the average employer nearly 450 days of management time every year - equivalent to the time of two managers full time. These are the findings of new research by people management experts the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. Survey responses were received from nearly 1,200 employers working in organisations employing a combined total of nearly 4 million employees.

The figure of 447.9 days of management time does not take into account the significant associated costs of mismanaged conflict at work, including lost productivity, sickness absence and higher than expected turnover of employees.

The survey is published on the eve of new Dispute Resolution Regulations that will mean that all employers and employees must follow a minimum three-step disciplinary and grievance procedure in the event of a workplace dispute.

The research reveals that employers are optimistic that the new regulations, which came into force on the 1st October 2004, will help reduce the burden on the employment tribunal system. ★ 40% of respondents believe the new regulations will reduce the number of employment tribunals. ★ However, employers are fairly evenly split on whether the new regulations will make tribunal hearings more (13%) or less (15%) complex.

Imogen Haslam, CIPD professional adviser and co-author of the report, said: "Conflict costs employers hundreds of hours of

Brand new formatted Web Site from The Microfilm Shop

management time each year. It is encouraging that employers think the new regulations will cut the number of employment tribunals. However, our survey shows that employers need to invest more in resolving disputes at the earliest possible stage, before they can escalate and become subject to formal disciplinary and grievance procedures."

The survey shows that employers need to improve the way that they manage conflict in the workplace and reveals the huge extra workload for management created by such disputes. ★ Employers report a net 5% increase in employment applications in the last 12 months, meaning each employer has had to handle an average of three tribunal applications over the past year. ★ Employers have to manage on average 30 formal disciplinary cases a year and nine grievance cases. ★ Respondents report that disciplinary and grievance cases take up 10.5 days in management, HR staff and in-house lawyers time per case. ★ Preparing for a tribunal hearing takes up 12.8 days in human resource, line management and in-house lawyers time.

"Too many employers are still relying on HR to manage conflict at work. To make a real difference, these workplace problems must be nipped in the bud before they have to be dealt with using formal procedures.

That means involving line managers much more. Training in conflict management and mediation is essential if line managers are to become more competent and confident in managing conflict. Only then will the waste of management time be reduced and more

harmonious, more productive relationships at work develop," says Haslam.

The survey also reveals a lack of skills among line managers in resolving disputes as well as a lack of training and an over reliance on HR departments. ★ More than half of respondents rate their line managers as average in the key area of resolving workplace disputes informally. ★ Only 62% train any employees in conflict management skills and nearly a third amongst these do not train their line managers. ★ Training in mediation skills is only carried out by one quarter of employees, with HR managers significantly more likely to be trained than their line management colleagues. if Those employers that provide mediation training for staff are likely to have significantly less disciplinary cases, averaging 22 cases per year compared to 49 cases per year among organisations that don't provide such training. ★ More than 60% of employers have increased the extent to which they use their HR departments to manage individual employment disputes

The report, Managing conflict at work, was written

by Imogen Haslam and Ben Willmott. The full report is available and may be ordered from the CIPD library on 020 8263 3355 or www.cipd.co.uk/surveys

UK Survey highlights problem of illegal images in the workplace A new survey into illegal and inappropriate images in the workplace conducted by PixAlert, the computer image detection company, in conjunction with the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), has revealed that over 70% of UK companies have already had to take disciplinary action as a result o f employees viewing pornographic images on their company computers.

The PixAlert/CIPD survey has also shown that over 50% o f senior managers questioned were

w w w .m icrofilm .com

unaware of their personal legal and civil liability for illegal and inappropriate images in the workplace. Furthermore, two out of every three companies surveyed have not kept their 'Computer Acceptable Usage Policy1 up to date, exposing them to potential criminal or civil claims.

A majority of companies have some technology in place to provide a degree of protection to

including a

new comprehensive equipment section G E N E R A L IN T E R E S T

prevent illegal and inappropriate images getting on to the corporate network via the Web or email.

However, neady 70% have not installed technology capable o f identifying improper images, which can enter through desktop or laptop computers on memory sticks, CDs/DVDs and camera phones, for example.

PixAlert helps protect employees, directors, corporations and their reputations from inappropriate and illegal images - Visual Viruses'. PixAlert Enterprise is a powerful multi-source image detection and analysis solution that provides comprehensive protection and monitoring for enterprise desktops.

For more information on PixAlert products and services, visit www.pixalert.com Visit our new Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

Rates are £35 ($50) per insertion with a limit of 25 words. Each additional 25 words or fraction are £35 31 ($50). There is an additional £10 ($15) charge for the use of Box number. For display (boxed) ads add £20 ($30). To place a classified ad, send copy to Micrographics Marketing Ltd, 65 Winchester Drive, Burbage, Leic LE10 2BA UK, or fax it to + 44 (0) 24 7638 2319 or Email it to tim@green-sheet.net.

MICROFILM SCANNERS

METHYLENE BLUE TESTS:

Essential for all systems guaranteeing archival microfilm.

Carried out by the people who set the British Standard.

Quotations on request.

A ll types o f

Hi-speed Microfilm and Document Scanners, Analog & Digital Reader/Printers, Cameras & Processors, Duplicators. Wholesale Prices.

Please call for other requests.

Fax us your list of surplus equipment

DASS LABORATORIES LTD

0121 550 3518

SPECIA L OFFERS Kodak 923D Scanners (5 off) Excellent condition $5,800 each SunRise & Mekel Film Scanners starting at $8500 complete Kodak Archive Writer

Anacomp CD/DVD & Online Document Solutions Document Scanning and Data Conversion Microfiche/Microfilm Services, Systems and Supplies Print Equipment & Maintenance

Fax: 858 268 0592, Tel: 858 278 5501 (U.S.) W ESTERN MICROGRAPHICS SYSTEM S, INC. www.westernmicrographicsimaging.com

Outsource your Microfilm Scanning and Indexing Your document Scanning and Indexing at:

Required for all “archival” microfilm.

Meets all ANSI standards.

Special contract rates available.

Managed by Photographic Scientist.

www.anacomp.co.uk

METHYLENE BLUE TESTS:

MSTC, Inc. 703-754-3213, E-mail: MSTCl@ aol.com

S uper C arrel M icrofilm H eader TI ip most popular lil>rar\ reader for 16mm ami ofimm Microfilm! *

TECHNOLOGY TO RUN SERVICE BUREAUS Process automation and workflow development to get your projects running efficiently, with improved quality.

Batch processing and customized programming for the industry.

Hww.pennieimaging.com outsourcing@pennieimaging.com

*

large 24"x24" screen

zoom lens 18x - 4 2 x image rotation

V

choice of motorized or manual movement

global

Floro International Corporation 500 Carlos Palanca Street San Miguel, Manila Philippines 1001 Tel no: +63-2-735-0001 Fax no: +63-2 -7 3 4 -9 4 5 8 Email: floro@floro-intl.com florointl@skyinet.net Website: www.floro-intl.com

handicap accessible MERCURY VISUALS

Manchester, England Buyers & Sellers of "Second-User” Micrographic & Scanning Equipment Contact us for this months Special Offers!

Phone + 4 4 (0) 161 7 4 9 -8 7 4 9 E-mail: mercvis@lineone.com

(Till or email for dealer nearest you. www.indususa.com sales@iiidususa.com tel 608-786-0300 lax 608-786-0786

MARKETPLACE

WE BUY USED EQUIPMENT

Tel: + 4 4 (0) 118 93616 00 Email: info@anacomp.co.uk

mdus

Toots for the m croinform auon age