The Green Sheet 040

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ISSN 1476-3842

EDM SOFTWARE .... PAGES 8 - 13

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INFORMATION STORAGE ....PAGES 14-20

FOR CASE STUDIES SEE PAGE 26 News

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Case Studies

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documation uk get the most from your scanner voice over IP

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information storage

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product news

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EDM software

trade news

Altek S ystem s........................................31 Anacomp ............................................... 31 Automated Resellers ............................31 Dass Laboratories .................................31 Fujitsu Europe...........................................7 Genus Group ................................... 13.25 Graphic D ata...........................................19 Inotec.......................................................11 Kodak.......................................................32 MicroVue ..................................................5 M STC.......................................................31 OIT ......................................................... 27 Pegasus Im a ging ...................................29 Western Micrographics......................... 31 SunRise ..................................................22 Wicks & W ils o n ..................................... 32 Zeutschel ................................................15

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A Date for your D iary

Documation UK, 18th - 19th October 2006, Olympia 2, London Documation UK, in partnership with AIIM (the leading ECM Association), is the only dedicated event of its kind in the UK, covering end-to-end enterprise content management. It will address all the latest issues in information management including

London and this alliance not only combines the strengths of both our events, but also of both our organisations. I am sure this will greatly enhance the industry's visibility and w ill benefit both vendor and end user

email

members of AIIM." Claire Sellick, Event Director for Reed

management, document and records management, information capture, scanning,

Exhibitions, commented "We are delighted to have the support of AIIM. Documation is

imaging land business processes. It also features a 'free-to-attend' education

already a well known and respected brand

web

content

management,

programme addressing today's key information management issues. This is a 'must-attend' event for anyone involved in managing their business information efficiently and cost effectively. In its second year, Documation UK offers a diverse range of new and innovative products and services from over 40 exhibitors on the show floor at Olympia 2 on the 18th - 19th October 2006. www.documation-uk.com According to Gartner, Inc spending on the Business Intelligence software market will

across Europe and this strategic alliance with AIIM is another positive step for us in growing that reputation here in the UK. Documation UK will bring together both suppliers and end-users of technologies and solutions that retain, store, capture, retrieve, manage and deliver your business inform ation more efficiently and cost effectively. Visitors will be able to compare the most comprehensive range of enterprise content management solutions which, in turn, will empower their organisations to become

reach $3 billion in 2009. New findings from

the agile enterprises they need to be in today's business environment."

Gartner's 2006 survey of 1400 Chief Information Officers found that Business Intelligence (Bl) was the most highly ranked

Documation UK offers a comprehensive education programme which involves keynote and seminar sessions given by some

technology priority, with CIO's reporting plans to increase their Bl budgets by an

of the industry's top experts. Here is a

average of 4.8% in 2006.

"Companies around the w orld

have

purchased more than US $40 billion worth of enterprise applications during the past few years. By investing in Bl, companies can further leverage their application investments and turn the torrent of data into meaningful insight to better measure performance, respond more quickly to market changes and opportunities and comply with increasingly complex regulatory environment." said Colleen Graham, principal research analyst at Gartner, Inc. Documation UK, in partnership with AIIM Europe, will deliver a leading event in the UK Information Management market.

Commenting on this coalition, Atle Skjekkeland, Managing Director of AIIM Europe said "The UK industry has been asking us for a major national show in

your email management systems.

Another lively discussion is assured in the session 'The battle for Basic Content Suites - is Microsoft or Oracle best for your organisation?' Chaired by Llewellyn Thomas from Bearing Point, the main advantages and disadvantages o f these two diverse content suites will be debated

by Rob Gray, Product Marketing Manager for Microsoft and Lorena Ostergaard, Business Development Director, Content Management and Collaboration for Oracle. * Rob Harding, Principal o f the Financial Services Advisory Practice at KPMG will chair a topical session; 'Who is to blame when it all goes horribly, horribly wrong Governance, responsibility and liability'.

This explores where the culpability trail ends and tackles the emerging new roles within corporate data management which ensure a clearer definition o f executive liability and responsibility.

★

selection; ★ Atle Skjekkeland,

Managing Director of 1 8 - 1 9 O C TO BER 2 0 0 6 AIIM Europe will cover the thorny issues of W W W . STO RAG E-EXPO .COM Information Management Compliance in his opening keynote address.

This year Documation UK is co-located ★ Doug Miles, Managing Director o f AIIM alongside Storage Expo, which is the UK's UK will chair a session on optimising and only dedicated data storage event providing facilitating data capture which will review visitors with the opportunity to compare the most comprehensive range of data storage the latest technology and products in solutions from all the leading suppliers. The scanning and image technology , show is now in its' 6th successful year and electronic data exchange, speech recognition and data exchange, providing involves more than 100 exhibitors. It features an unrivalled education programme solutions and products for all your data addressing today's key storage issues, and capture needs. visitors who attend Documation can also ★ Tony Hendley from Cimtech will chair a attend Storage Expo without having to pre session on email management, outlining register. the risks to business not only in data storage terms but more critically in financial and legal terms. This session will For further information on Documation UK, or to register for free, please visit address the issues, methodologies and www. documation-uk. com technical solutions in order to optimise

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D O C L IM A T IO N UK

4

Get the Most out of J

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Document Scanner

By Michael Scheller, vice president of engineering, operations and manufacturing of BOWE BELL + HOWELL Scanners So, your company has made the transition to document imaging from manual paperbased processes. Perhaps you've already realized some of the benefits: more efficient document storage and retrieval, streamlined business processes, and reduced labour and expenses.

You've worked out all the bugs in your system and trained the employees who operate it day-to-day. You've maximised your organisation's document management productivity — or have you?

There are probably several relatively simple things you can do to push your imaging system to the limit, starting with the entry point for documents: the scanner. W hile it's helpful to have a scanner with a high rated speed, here are some additional factors you should consider to help squeeze every ounce of performance from your imaging hardware.

must go back and forth between the scanner

fixed angle after it is scanned so it can be

and the PC. So, to optimise batch size, don't

read right side up. Some scanners even have advanced auto-rotation that further reduces document preparation by rotating images

think of scanning quantities in terms of file folders, but file drawers.

2) Get to know your features.

Most document scanners come equipped with a variety of features designed to reduce manual document preparation and increase productivity. Still, surprisingly few companies are aware of these capabilities. Like any microwave oven or VCR, every scanner comes with a user manual; unlike these household appliances, however, a scanner is a complex piece of business technology hardware. Though it sounds like simple advice, reading the user manual — and consulting with the reseller or integrator — are useful ways to familiarise oneself with everything a particular scanner can do.

1) Regulate batch size and batch setup time.

Users who have a full understanding of their scanners' features need to separate those features that w ill promote overall

To maximize a scanner's productivity, take into account "batch size", the number of

productivity from those that won't. This varies widely from system to system and depends

documents loaded into the scanner's feeder at a time. In general, it is more productive to feed larger batches than smaller ones. A t the

entirely on the goals and requirements of the application. Users who deal with both blackand-white and colour documents, for example, should consider activating

same time, scanner operators should do what they can to keep batch setup time — the time it takes to remove scanned documents from the scanner and load the next batch of documents into the feeder — at a minimum.

Take, for instance, a scanner with a speed of 125 pages per minute. If a company's average batch size is 20 pages and its average batch setup time is 30 seconds, the scanner can process about 14,500 pages in a continuous eight-hour shift. Increase the batch size to 100 pages and reduce batch setup time to 15 seconds, though, and the imaging operation will be able to scan more than 45,000 documents in the same period of

automatic colour detection — a feature that automatically scans colour documents in colour and black-and-white documents in bitonal, even when the two types of documents are mixed. On the other hand, users who don't have a business need for the colour information in their documents may do better not to activate the feature.

Similarly, users must consider the benefits of preparing documents so they are oriented the same way throughout each batch. The first decision may be whether to load documents in landscape o r portrait orientation.

Aside from these scanner productivity

Since portrait scanning takes slightly longer, users may be inclined to scan in

gains, increasing batch size also reduces the frequency with which the scanner operator

landscape and engage auto-rotation — a feature that electronically rotates an image a

time.

FEATURE

based on text orientation.

However, depending on how long it would take to manually orient each page — and whether the company needs its images to appear right side up — the automated approach may or may not improve the imaging system's overall productivity.

In the same way, users should weigh the pros and cons of other scanner options designed to increase scanning efficiency, such as ultrasonic multifeed detection or image enhancement technology. Evaluate these features individually to determine whether they should be activated and, if so, how they should be configured.

Ultimately, there is some trial-and-error involved. Companies should start with a pilot test to experiment with their scanners' various settings. Users can simulate their applications with and without advanced features activated to determine which configurations result in the greatest scanning, and overall system productivity. A reliable reseller, software provider or scanner manufacturer represen­ tative can offer valuable guidance for pilot testing.

3) Promote scanner uptime.

Every minute a scanner sits idle represents lost productivity, so it is important to keep the scanner up and running as much as possible.

To promote scanner uptime, have scanner operators and other staff prepare documents while the scanner is running. That way, when a batch gets to the scanner operator, he can feed the documents into the scanner almost immediately. Document preparation might include removing documents from files, extracting staples or paperclips, opening envelopes and unfolding documents, or inserting patch code sheets that signal to the scanner what documents are being scanned.

Likewise, after a batch is scanned, staff

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5

should work quickly to remove the documents from the exit tray and return them to their file folders, reorganise them or prepare them for the next step in the workflow process. W ith the scanner running nearly continuously, scanning personnel will complete their work sooner, and their time will be freed up for other activities.

To maximise scanner uptime, it is also important to manage supplies of scanner consumable parts. Keep end user replaceable parts like extra lamps and skimmer and

are always on hand. Simple preventive

critical business processes from disruption is

maintenance goes a long w ay toward promoting uptime — and a clean scanner

to maintain a backup scanner and workstation in case the hardware experiences

generally is a more productive scanner. So clean the scanner's components, including the

downtime. A spare scanner also helps in handling overflow documents during busy

feed mechanism, rollers and lamps, daily.

periods. Another way users can be prepared for the event that a scanner goes down, is by

Dust the image sensors and the inside of the paper transport, and clear o ff any staples or other debris. In addition, schedule regular maintenance checkups for a service profes­ sional to clean the hardware thoroughly and make sure it's calibrated to the manufacturer's

separator rollers close at hand, so they can be replaced instantly when needed. Also, monitor the imaging system continuously to

specifications.

Like any information technology, even the most reliable document scanners can go

anticipate when consumable parts will need replacement, thereby avoiding unnecessary

down from time to time. Thus, users should be prepared, especially with applications where

downtime.

it is essential that the scanner be operational at all times. The best way to protect these

Additionally, make sure cleaning supplies

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upgrading their service contracts for a shorter response time.

No matter how airtight your imaging system is, there's likely more you can do to maximise your document scanner's produc­ tivity. A critical eye and a few simple adjustments can help you achieve greater efficiencies and increase your return on investment. And aren't those the reasons you went digital in the first place?

Visit: www.bbhscanners.com

FEATURE

Voice Over IP.... ....will it make your boss love you or hate you?

By Rick Marshall, Managing Director of Comunica Limited

More than a decade has lapsed since the IT and telecommunication industries heralded a new era of convergence. Few, at the time, had any real concept of what they really meant and that included the vendors themselves.

As the market grew to understand how to manage convergence between voice and data, it needed to find someway to make this happen. It also needed a compelling reason as to why business would ditch something it knows well and is proven technology in favour of the unknown.

The Internet Protocol (IP) dominates the way we move data in a digital world. As voice looked for a new way outside of analogue, it willingly embraced digital. For the operators, digital offered a more resilient network capable of carrying vast amounts of extra data. Networks were already going digital to deal with data so simply adding voice, made perfect sense.

Having resolved the how, the next issue is the why. Cost savings, lower costs, reduced costs are the mantras of the VoIP sales teams. On the face of it they have a very compelling case.

Whenever you make a call over a traditional Public Switched Telephone Networks (PSTN), you pay a charge. Even in the USA and some other countries who claim free local calls, there are no indefinite calls and there is an initial connection charge. Voice minutes have underpinned the financial stability of the telephony market for decades. Even though they are at an all time low cost few companies have experienced lower call costs year on year.

The costs of telephony to a company are not just limited to call minutes. PBX equipment, telephones, fax machines, setting up call groups, writing software to integrate into applications such as call centres, voice mail, and follow-me services - are all examples of applications and costs associated with a corporate network. Some of these are real issues such as software integration solutions that are hard to programme, unreliable, difficult to keep synchronised with the user and, when they don't work, a support nightmare. VoIP has built itself a position by offering to eliminate, or severely reduce, all of these issues. The problem is, this is a clear case of overselling. VoIP is not the universal healing potion for voice that it has been said to be.

So what is a real saving and what is mythology?

Call costs can be massively reduced, at least at the PSTN level. Reduced not eliminated. There is no guarantee that you will be able to only use IP end to end on the call. As soon as you touch a PSTN link, you will have some cost associated with the

FEATURE

call. Some services such as Fax over IP (FolP) are a long way behind VoIP and therefore cannot be counted as a real saving.

Replacing PBX equipment is only really going to occur when the equipment has already been amortised out. These were high value purchases that the organisation will want to wring every last penny from. Replacing early will need a compelling case. If the equipment is on lease or outsourced, then there may be significant charges associated with early replacement.

Handsets on the desktop can be a huge problem. VoIP handsets have dropped massively in price over the last year but they are still many times the cost of a standard desk telephone. If you think that plugging a headset into the soundcard of a PC or laptop is going to be acceptable to users, then you are going to be in for a rude awakening. Entry level prices for handsets can be around ÂŁ80 rising to over ÂŁ140 depending on the handset chosen.

Try multiplying that by the number of users.

While some handsets draw little power and can be provided for via Power over Ethernet (PoE), the more fully featured handsets will need a power socket. The network administrators will already have a numbering plan for IP addresses. This plan is almost certainly under extreme stress as the IT department tries to cope with the influx of laptops, PDA and SmartPhones as well as other IP enable devices, being connected to the network. Adding roaming IP devices that require external IP addresses inside the corporate LAN may also cause management issues.

A number of vendors are using VoIP as a vehicle to persuade companies to move away from IPv4 to IPv6. This has an impact on all the equipment in the network, on management as well as on training for administrators and network staff.

It's a cost that is rarely ever mentioned in any discussions over cost of implementation.

Application integration is a big gain for IP telephony. With everything digital, developers can build new classes of enterprise messaging applications that combine voice and data seamlessly. Follow-me truly does follow the user.

You have a single IP address for all your telephony.

It could be assigned to the telephone on the desk beside them, their laptop, PDA even their SmartPhone. No matter where they are in the world, when they connect to the Internet, they are connected to their phone number.

But let's not lose sight of the network. Greenfield sites are wonderful examples of what can be achieved. The network can be designed from the ground up with all the equipment and cabling capable of carrying much more traffic than it initially needs to. In the real world, the network might be capable of carrying the data but without

sufficient metrics to prove that, it cannot be taken for granted.

Much of the data we move around corporate networks is not time sensitive. VoIP is. Get this wrong and users will not trust the service. When you pick up a PSTN handset today, you have a level of expectation that has been set by standards bodies and ensure no echo, no interference, just a clear channel where you can hear the caller and understand the message. Mobile telephony is different. While we all complain about mobility being used as an excuse for an inferior service it certainly doesn't seem to have damped our love affair with mobile telephony.

If the users get drop-out, interference, cross-talk and a poor experience, all the cost justifications in the world will be so much hot air. Telling the CEO that the savings are more important than his being able to talk to the corporate bankers over a reliable, quality service is a quick way to a new career.

If this sounds like you shouldn't even be considering VoIP then stop. This is about setting expectations, identifying the challenges not the problems. If you are going to implement VoIP then maybe the following points will help you establish what the real business benefits of enterprise voice over IP are: 1. Test the network to ensure it can manage the additional data.

2. Ensure that Quality of Service can be implemented and is sufficient to support VoIP. 3. Assess the impact of roaming IP devices.

4. Agree a Service Level Agreement with the business that provides clear targets for performance.

5. Roll out slowly. Big bang will destabilise the network from IP address down to the architecture, switches and cabling.

6. Be realistic about the costs of implemen­ tation and the savings. ROI sounds good but make sure that you can deliver it before promising it.

7. Look carefully at the new enterprise messaging applications you want to build and ensure that you factor in time for training developers so that they can deliver this.

8. Create an ongoing set of metrics and a monitoring system to predict failure rather than react to it.

VoIP can be delivered to the Enterprise with remarkable results and but only if you go into it with realistic expectations and not just focussed on the hard sell.

Visit: www.comunica.co.uk

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THE P O S S I B I L I T I E S ARE I N F I N I T E

EDM SOFTWARE

Electronic Document Management must have software behind it.

There are as many software products as there are applications.

I have gathered together just a few - as many as available space would allow.

New, improved solution from ITESOFT Early in July ITESOFT launched a key new version of its solution for processing supplier

dependent on image quality, FMFIv2 uses

characters, line items, VAT number, invoice date, order reference number, net total, VAT,

invoices, ITESOFT.FreeMind for Invoices.

ITESOFT's exclusive FreePixelize technology to optimise the quality of images and reading

ITESOFT.FreeMind for Invoices version 2 (FMFIv2) is the first solution-specific

performance. FreePixelize is an intelligent image digitisation technology that replaces

gross total, and will also carry out detailed cost allocation and analytical accounting.

FMFIv2 w ill integrate images, index

application to be launched from the ITESOFT.FreeMind version 2 processing automation platform.

the standard process performed by scanners and, from an image unreadable to the naked

numbers and data into any ERP. ITESOFT claims to be the only document processing

eye, creates a clean document ready for processing by recognition algorithms.

solution vendor with invoice functionality directly into SAP.

Document matching

June Dean, managing director of ITESOFT UK commented: "FreeMind for Invoices 2 can

FMFIv2 uses free text capture technologies to achieve optimum processing of invoices, irrespective of format. The solution features three key innovations to further automate invoice processing, improve efficiency and accelerate return on investment.

Full-Text document reading

The solution's Full-Text invoice reading capability reduces or even eliminates the prelim inary steps of invoice template modelling for each individual supplier, and enables extraction of individual invoice line items.

Image optimisation

As automatic invoice processing is often

FMFIv2 also automates the purchase order acceptance and invoice matching process, using an approach called "EasyMatch" which maximises the automatic matching rate by means of automatic selection of the appropriate matching mode (validation by invoice footer or line-item by line-item). This also helps integration with the user's ERP or accounting software.

FMFIv2 automatically classifies all invoices into groups, whether the supplier is known or new. Once classified, FMFIv2 will automat­ ically

detect

useful

data

and

extract

clearing

make a tremendous difference in the finance sections of organisations, helping to streamline and automate invoice processing.

It cuts business invoice turnaround times from several weeks to a matter of days, while realising substantial savings. The greater the volume of invoices received, the more money users will save through automation."

Contact: Tom Fox, ITESOFT UK Ltd, Headway House, Crosby Way, Farnham GU9 7XC Tel: 01252 741500 Fax: 01252741515 Visit: www.itesoft-uk.com

Version One's solutions are now available on seven different Sage platforms Version One, announces that its award-winning product portfolio of 'paperless technology' solutions is now available on Sage MMS Version 3 (MMS v.3).

Integration into this mid-market business management system means that users of

solutions, they can now offer their customers and prospective customers an enhanced and more appealing MMS v.3 product."

Sage Line 100, Sage Line200, Sage Line500, Sage 1000, Sage MME, Sage MMS and now Sage MMS v.3 have access to Version One's

Alan Cobbald, Technical Director from CPiO, one of the leading resellers of Sage Mid Range software in the UK, comments,

technology for the electronic storage, delivery, authorisation and management of incoming and outgoing business documents

"Over 150 of our customers use Version One's products and when Sage MMS v.3 was

(invoices, purchase orders, statements etc.).

Lynne Munns, Channel Manager from Version One says, "I am delighted that Version One's products have been integrated into yet another Sage offering enabling even

launched at the end of 2005, we were immediately faced with demand for more functional document management and imaging solutions on this platform. I am obviously thrilled that our MMS v.3 users can now also benefit from the power and flexibility of Version One's technology, and look forward to working closely with Version One on future Sage integrations."

more Sage users access to Version One's functionally-rich product suite. W ith just a click of a mouse and directly from Sage MMS v.3, users can now access electronically archived documents and automatically deliver, authorise and manage these, further streamlining their business whilst making savings of time, money and storage space.

E D M SOFTW ARE

"O ur Sage resellers are also delighted that with Version One's integrated portfolio of

Contact: Liz Ebbrell, Version One Ltd Tel: +44 (0)1625 856500 Email: Liz. ebbre!l@versionone. co. uk

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Accounting W ith the Lights Out How do businesses cut the paper chase in their accounts departments and gain control of the payment cycle?

Bob Goodwin, MD of specialist Digital Vision explains how automating the AP function pays off Accounts Payable would be easy if it wasn't for all the paper, as anyone who works in that area will tell you.

Paper-based, manual accounting systems have been the bugbear of corporate AP departments for decades.

Even the most rigorously organised AP system has plenty of opportunities for problems, including lost or misplaced invoices; incorrect manual data entry; time lost sorting and filing paper, or trying to locate matching purchase orders. All of which leads to slow processing, which can impact directly on the organisation's financial reputation with partners and suppliers.

What's more, manual AP systems make it almost impossible to meet the regulatory and compliance demands of Sarbanes Oxley, IFRS and others for complete document traceability and auditability. All in all, it's a recipe for a fruitless paper chase.

Throwing manpower at the problem isn't a viable solution. More people means more invoices processed - but employment and labour costs are significant for such skilled staff, which limits expansion in the AP function.

On average, a full time AP employee can process around 8500 invoices per year using manual processes. Yet world-class companies can process upward of 80,000 invoices per person per year - a quantum leap in efficiency.

Flicking the switch So how is a ten-fold boost in productivity possible? It's simply a question of automating as many aspects of the AP function as possible.

The real costs involved in AP are the man­ hours involved in manual tasks, including: finding purchase orders and goods received notes; checking and matching these; manual data entry into core business systems, such as ERP; manual validation; processing complex invoices which may involve checking against service level agreements, and more. Even more costs are incurred in tasks such as long­ term filing and storage of documents, staff turnover and teaching systems to new staff.

If these tasks can be automated, then accounting staff can be redeployed in more strategic roles such as data analysis, and not be involved in time-consuming paper trails.

The ultimate aim is sometimes referred to as "lights-out accounting" - in other words, switching off the lights while the work proceeds automatically. And although it's not yet possible to flick off the light switch all the time, the latest-generation invoice data capture and

processing solutions really do deliver gains in productivity of up to 1000%, helping to turn AP into a profit centre, not a cost centre.

Let's take a close look at exactly how this can be achieved. We will use a real-life example of the AP department of a large business in the licensed trade, which undertook a phased migration from paper-based manual processing to fully automated invoice processing.

Raising a glass to automation DrinkCo is a UK-based business that owns several well-known pub chains. As one of the largest pub operators in the UK, the company processes 600,000 invoices per year. As a Peoplesoft (now Oracle) Accounts user, DrinkCo wanted to deploy an invoice capture solution to bring key financial data directly into the Peoplesoft solution and accelerate processing.

With ROI being a key factor in the decision to deploy, DrinkCo undertook a proof-ofconcept exercise with Digital Vision that demonstrated that ROI was possible within months, rather than years.

The proof-of-concept was based around an invoice capture solution from Paradatec, integrated with data extracts from the Peoplesoft system so that invoices can be matched with purchase orders and goods received notes. This demonstrated that high levels of accuracy were possible with data capture on the majority of invoices received.

Before optimisation of the capture process, data capture on general invoices was 73%. By focusing on invoices from large-volume suppliers, this was raised close to 100%.

Furthermore, the process proved that the artificial intelligence system performed regardless of invoice layout, and that that the invoice capture engine's A1 rules could be adapted to handle different invoice layouts, or those from new suppliers.

On completing the proof of concept, Digital Vision gave a detailed specification to DrinkCo to integrate the Paradatec capture solution, SpeedKey validation and Contempus invoice processing with Peoplesoft Accounts, with invoice images stored in an IBM Content Manager repository.

Going live When the green light was given to proceed with the automation project, additional pressures reared their heads.

One of DrinkCo's offices was to be closed and the work transferred to its Midlands HQ. This also meant redundancies amongst AP staff - which

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applied additional pressure to get the automated invoice processing system live as quickly as possible. As staff was leaving, a backlog of invoices was building up.

The solution was deployed in just 8 weeks.

The backlog of 4500 invoices built up while staff were leaving was dealt with by just four staff, who validated and corrected the backlog in less than three days. Under its previous system, clearing a similar-sized backlog would have taken 12 staff over 10 days - clearly demonstrating the savings in time and manpower possible with the automated solution, and immediately delivering ROI. The AP team continues with four validation staff, and the project achieved full return on the original investment in just 8 months.

Planning for lights-out accounting As well as showing the ROI possible from automation, the process followed by DrinkCo is an excellent example of how businesses can plan their move toward lights-out accounting.

First, evaluate the invoice capture solution, and, if possible, conduct a pilot to ensure that invoices can be captured ready for processing with near 100% accuracy and with high levels of automation. This builds the 'funnel' for automated processing and helps in defining subsequent workflow paths.

Second, integrate capture with core business systems to automate invoice matching with supporting documentation such as purchase orders, and to highlight any exceptions (e.g. invoices without orders) which need to be escalated into the workflow of an authorised member of staff.

This workflow should be governed by customised, business-specific rules, to enable AP staff to manage invoice processing by exception rather than hands-on - freeing staff to perform more strategic tasks.

Third, use an invoice automation system which ensures that every transaction, amendment and movement of data is fully audit trailed, providing irrefutable evidence of any work-around and non-sanctioned processes. The log should be stored with the electronic version of the invoice to give complete visibility of the invoice's path through the organisation. This evidence eases audit pressures that, in turn, can be converted to reduced audit costs.

Given the compelling evidence of ROI from AP automation, it's not a case of if you'll ever be able to turn the lights out, but whether you can afford not to.

Contact: in fo@dvti.co.uk or visit www.dvtl.co.uk

E D M SOFTW ARE

Keeping track of MiFID Managing documents, information, and records looks set to be a cornerstone of The Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID). With 1st November 2007 - the current deadline for MiFID compliance - too close for comfort for many financial organisations. Gary Fisher, CEO Europe and North America, Objective Corporation, outlines the key issues MiFID raises with regard to content and document management.

Turning to Technology N ot surprisingly, given

files, let alone guaranteeing accuracy or the

number of

promptness of disposing of records at the

documents, records and notes involved in any financial transaction, MiFID's determination

appropriate time.

To comply with MiFID you must not only be

that information should be made more

able to send or publish required information, and be seen to be complying, but must also

available, and requirements that financial organisations can prove they have provided clients and other parties with certain advisory documents or updates, interest in methods that can automate these processes is high.

Enterprise Content Management or ECM (providing electronic document and records management plus support for the online G ary

Fisher is one of the founding

members of Objective Corporation which was formed in the late eighties in Australia, where the company has its headquarters.

W hile much has yet to be confirmed, content and document management will be a key component of complying with the

functions that are now a fundamental part of the finance environment) is one of the solutions under the microscope at present.

However, analysts at TowerGroup predicted earlier this year that an average sized broker will have to spend $22 million on IT alone to meet MiFID's demands. Clearly

upcoming Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID). A European initiative to

the cost of getting any 'IT' decisions wrong could be considerable. Also, while an ECM solution can potentially provide the

update investment banking regulations, MiFID aims to create a single market for financial services and reduce the cost of conducting cross-border business - therefore

document/records repository, file sharing structure, tracking and automation being sought, a standard ECM solution cannot

opening markets up to more potential clients.

However, with much of the regulatory

possibly fit all financial organisations requirements. An ability to tailor to current processes, adopt industry or organisational

requirements still under consideration and aw aiting approval, and a deadline for

language and terminology and support

be able to prove without doubt that you have complied. So, if a financial organisation cannot prove that it followed procedure in the timescales determined it could still be fined, even if it has actually complied. Without some way of managing information (virtually) in one place, where all actions related to each document, records or insert are recorded and tracked - this could present a major problem.

Tracking when

information has been

published, by whom, to where and so on, plus methods that enforce the process being tracked are critical. MiFID and other regulations call this ability to prove 'best practice' - what it comes down to is account­ ability - and a financial organisation's only protection may be the ECM solution it has installed. That alone should make you think twice!

Flexibility should be the watchword for any organisation looking at ECM solutions to support compliance with legislation. ECM can provide an invaluable method of enforcing and proving compliance, but it has to work in

compliance in 18 months, it is creating

specific and possibly unique structures is critical, and all in a dynamic environment

concern among financial organisations.

Any organisation that must comply with

where the change is a constant.

So what I am about to say will hopefully

tivity or reduce effective response times. ECM

MiFID faces potentially considerable changes in business process and practice. Those that will have most impact relate to changes in

make some sense, even if it does seem shocking coming from a company that

solutions are most effective when they have all the functionality you require, in one place, but can be tailored to fit your business

how financial organisations publish information and retain records. W orryingly for industry commentators and the financial markets in general, research conducted by the MiFID Joint Working Group on IT earlier this year revealed that 60 per cent of respondents still did not know how they were going to tackle many of the publishing obligations that will be enforced by MiFID. The overall complexity, the number of 'documents' to be managed (authorisation, legal, client records, process and tracking, internal resource, information sharing and publication within given frameworks), the tight timescales and no confirmation yet as to final requirements MiFID will demand, is leading to a certain level of trepidation in the finance industry.

E D M SOFTW ARE

ultimately provides technology-based solutions. MiFID should not be seen as an IT project - to do so is to invite disaster. MiFID

a way that is best for the particular organi­ sation so that it does not impact on produc­

requirements.

is a piece of legislation. That makes it a business process problem, but one that uses IT

Lastly, MiFID is an ongoing process.

November 1st 2007 is a deadline, not a cut­ off point. Reporting and tracking processes

as a key enabler.

As with any

are going to be critical; and achieving this is something that IT executives will be central to

regulation,

records

management will be a cornerstone of MiFID enforcement. Surprisingly, given the amount of regulation already in place across the finance industry, this could still cause a problem - Working Group research also indicated that only 20 per cent of respondents have a unified data storage strategy. This suggests the data and records

the directives on the publishing and sharing of information should not have to be one of them. And if you are keen on installing ECM, which I strongly recommend financial organi­

always try before you buy!

Contact: Objective Corp. Ltd, Tectonic Place, Holyport Road, Maidenhead, Berks SL6 2YE access to Tel: 01628 640460 Fax: 01628 640461 Visit our Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

are being held across various business units and branch-offices and a lack of any central repository could cause problems, especially with regard to retrieval and fast

delivering. For financial organisations MiFID presents incredible opportunities, and significant challenges - but complying with

sations do, a final piece of advice -

N ew Technology sends Business Cards into the 21st Century

A N E W

WORLD

OF

INTELLIGENT S C A N N I N G

N O K IA

15:56

0 5 / 06/05

T-Mobile

Business Card

Business Card

Email edmburgh (iFlexus.co.uk

(Z _ )L _ £ X 1 ..1 £ 3

Do you wish to receive a business card via Bluetooth from Lexus?

Yes

Name Lexus Edinburgh Tel. (business)

Web (business) www.lexus.co.uk Note Welcome to Lexus.

Your message here.....

0845 130 5497 Fax. (business)

0131 335 6555

InoTec introduce a new world in paper scanning for the United Kingdom with Inotec UK Limited.

Flexibility and high quality are trade marks of the SCAM AX range of papers scanners. Designed to withstand a range of challenges unlike any other (hey are built without

Business cards haven't changed much over the last 600 years....until recently.

unique

number

on

the

ecard.

Ian

Now they have been brought into the digital age and can be delivered direct to

Reynolds, Dealer Principal at Lexus Edinburgh said "This is an excellent way of enhancing the customer experience at

mobile phones and PDAs using wireless

our dealership. It is the perfect way to

technology.

The new technology, Toroblue.com, is

greet our customers and shows our commitment to innovation. It works 2 4 /7

a software programme that automatically sends the company's business card to a customer's mobile phone as they enter the premises. The customer has the choice to either accept or decline the card. When accepted, the ecard is stored directly in the phone's address book, ensuring that contact details are accurate, available and accessible. The ecard contains all the information found on a paper business card, including the company logo. Cards

so even captures window shoppers who visit the showroom after hours."

The technology was also piloted by Lexus at the Sydney International Motorshow in October 200 5 where 15,000 ecards were sent to Motorshow visitors. Vin Naidoo, Product Manager Lexus Australia said "This technology enables us to provide consumers with key Lexus

contact

details,

as

well

as

are sent and received free of charge using Bluetooth and importantly, never sent to

inform ation about Lexus, delivered directly to their phones. The 88% acceptance we achieved shows it is well

the same phone more than once.

Toroblue.com reports the number of ecards offered, accepted and declined.

received by customers".

Toroblue.com is now being launched across a range of businesses such as

ToroBlue.com founder, Gregor Isbister,

hairdressing and beauty salons, car dealerships, dental surgeries, IFAs, estate

said "Every other aspect of business has been brought into the paperless digital age. Now toroblue.com does the same for business cards. It's the perfect way to ensure your contact details are stored accurately in your customer's phones address book letting them contact you at the push of a button - and refer you to a friend or colleague just as easily. In effect, it's a simple cost-effective tool that makes it easier for your customers to do business with you".

Lexus Edinburgh dealership initially piloted Toroblue.com back in August 2004. Since then, on average, 70% of ecards are accepted by customers and 36% make a follow up call using the

agents, recruitment agents and home delivery restaurants. Gregor Isbister states that toroblue.com has clear benefits for

compromise to run 24-hours a day seven lays a week filly two weeks of the year.

*® 5 !!5 5 E -

Incoiporatm g Intelligent Automatic Colour

3M j

Recognition (IACR) the

^Sri

new range of Scamax’ high production scanners open up

*

a whole New World of possibilities when scanning colour documents.

With its unique failsafe process of automatically differentiating between colour and bitonal images, scanning jobs can be streamlined by simplifying the process. The outcome of such technology saves time and money by delivering scanning jobs more efficiently than ever before.

eitnoTec. Paper Scanning Systems

See the IACR enabled Scamax* range of scanners at the Inotec UK launch day on the 10th of October in Wokingham and on the 12th of October 2006 in Manchester.

both the business owner and customer "A ny business can easily order a customised system online and use it to send their contact details directly to customers' mobile phones.

For customers, it is a really easy way for them to store contact details and takes out the need to manually transfer information to their phone".

Further information please contact Gregor Isbister on 0207 223 0608 or gisbister@breeze-tech. co. uk

Visit our Directory on wvrw.green-sheet.net/directory

E J5 5 3 3 !

O rgan.sationssystem e

Contact Sharon Chalmers at Inotec UK Limited and book your place. schalmers @ inotecuk.co.uk Tel +44 (0) 20 8255 2011 Fax +44 (0) 20 8255 2093 www.inotecuk.co.uk

Integrated EDM - Solutions for Finance

By Richard King, Sales Manager, Version One Limited emailed statements and reminders costing nothing, it is possible to email out as many as is needed with minimum effort, enabling

Electronic document management (EDM) and imaging solutions have been around since the late 1980s, but until recently their use in finance and accountancy tended to be restricted to stand-alone systems for scanning supplier invoices or proofs of delivery. Now at last - this is changing. More and more organisations of all sizes are recognising the benefits of electronic document management

fax, email, copy or add notes to a document.

Several people in different offices can look at

credit controllers to spend less time on tedious

the same document at the same time.

Importantly, a good system should not allow

jobs and more time on building relationships with customers.

anyone to remove, delete or change a document.

Nowadays, it is even possible for reminders o r simple statements to be

of

automatically sent as text messages straight to a customer's mobile phone. For instance, text messages can be sent when a customer's account becomes overdue or when they are close to their credit limit. This can be very effective in sectors such as professional services and construction when key contacts are rarely in the office or are difficult to get hold of.

All sorts of queries can delay the payment invoices. By having a document

management system tightly integrated into the accounting software, most queries and requests for copy invoices, statements and proofs of delivery can be dealt with while the customer is still on the phone. By having a single document archive for all documents, it is possible to move seamlessly from an

technologies that are tightly integrated into accounting and ERP systems.

An output management system does not just send documents to the customer, it can

invoice to a proof of delivery and then to past correspondence. Any copy documents the customer needs can be forwarded instantly by email or by automated fax.

There are many ways that document management technologies can assist finance

also file a copy of each outgoing document autom atically in the document archive.

Once documents are stored electronically, they can be viewed and processed on screen,

departments.

For instance, output management software integrated into the accounting system will produce clear, high-

Businesses in the UK have an obligation to retain accounting records for seven years (longer in some European countries).

without the need for the original piece of paper. Electronic workflow software - or even

quality invoices, statements and reminders etc., even from old character-based systems.

W hen customer payments are overdue,

Traditionally, this means printing two copies and filing one. O f course, most modern accounting systems offer the ability to reprint invoices, but this will not meet the stringent

simple email messages - can be used to notify people that they have something to do, look at, review a n d /o r approve. W orkflow is also useful for ensuring that all relevant

requirements of auditors. If there is no

people are kept 'in the loop' and that everything is properly recorded. W ith

manual effort. These systems are much more sophisticated than 'laser form' systems of old and the format of invoices and statements can

intention to retain paper records, documents need to be reproduced exactly as they looked originally. By relying solely on the accounting

workflow systems, details are forwarded to all relevant staff for approval, or simply for information, before action is taken.

be automatically varied according to the customer, the sales division or the country the goods are being shipped to.

system, it is easy to be caught out should the system need changing or restructuring or if

Today's businesses are faster moving than ever, putting increasing pressure on finance

Electronic delivery solutions such as automated fax (which enables documents to

the ledger is cleared, accounts closed, product codes changed, invoice layouts redesigned or stationery changed.

teams to be as efficient as possible. Electronic document management can help in many ways, from automated document generation

be automatically faxed to the recipient's fax machine at a touch of a button) and email, allow copy invoices, statements and other

Invoices and credit notes are not the only documents that should be retained in the document archive. All correspondence with

and automated delivery, through to electronic document storage and workflow. And,

documents to be sent out to customers instan­ taneously, either as an image of the paper document or as a PDF file. For instance, whilst

debtors, whether generated automatically or on an 'ad hoc' basis using a word processor should be kept, and capturing statements,

a customer is on the telephone claiming to have not received an invoice, an invoice can be emailed across so that it is in the customer's inbox within seconds. The sooner

while not essential, can be very helpful in resolving queries.

W h ile outbound

serious and professional-looking letters with signatures can be generated without any

the invoice or reminder notice reaches the customer, the sooner payment can be expected.

Electronic delivery rather than the posting of documents also saves costs - typically ÂŁ1 per document when stationery, postage and labour costs are taken into account. With

E D M SOFTW ARE

documents can be captured, filed and crossreferenced automatically, a scanning system will be required for inbound correspondence, order forms, certificates, proofs of delivery and receipts from couriers, for example.

Once documents are filed electronically, they can never go missing! Document management systems allow people to view and - with the relevant permissions - to print,

although a completely paperless office is still more of a myth than a reality, there are now numerous solutions in the marketplace that are tightly integrated into accounting and ERP systems, which help to eliminate the slow and inefficient paper-based processes that still exist in many finance departments (whilst saving significant amounts of time, money and storage space). These systems are part of an ever-growing document management industry that is making its mark on businesses throughout the world, and will continue to do so for a long time to come!

Contact: Liz Ebbrell, Version One Ltd., UK. Email: liz. ebbrell@versionone. co. uk

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

Improving document w orkflow can help planning for paperless information flow Workflow decisions made by clients and vendors aren't easy but they can be critical There are lots of definitions of EDMS (electronic document management systems) document workflow. Most translate to the system

performance of an EDMS workflow system is usually a poorly designed workflow process or a flawed workflow software product.

under which information is received and how it is acted upon. An efficient workflow system can cut out problems before they arise. An inefficient one can aggravate them. Some of these problems may arise from non- or under-performance and that can be due to many complications that never

Workflow software is the technology that automates the workflow process. The tasks it controls include scanning, uploading, faxing, quality assurance, sequential routing, printing out, etc. Good workflow software can also provide measurements of the workflow process.

This includes the speed at which individual elements of the process are received, indexed, routed and acted upon. Many workflow software

should have arisen.

These include erroneous user expectations resulting from unrealistic achievement targets.

Paper scanning bottlenecks might be the product of improper setup of scanning systems. Poor routing of documents can result from users storing documenls on their own PCs rather than in networks. Incomplete document index design can be an outcome of users preferring their own document indexes instead of being required to follow a standardised index design. Finally, the document workflow system could have recognition gaps or slowdowns because the time needed wasn't budgeted for scanning units to manually correct unrecognised handwriting or

products offer users simple point-and-click programming.

Workflow software design issues include the difficulty of setting up, the amount of custom programming, if any, that is required, volume of work accommodated, as well as volume and speed of throughput. O f course, workflow software varies greatly upon need. W ith a good system from a reliable vendor who understands client needs, it can be a relatively easy product to achieve.

fonts.

Avoiding a poor system A poorly designed workflow system might be

Major reasons for failure The major reason for the non- or under­

caused by a poor design process, over or under workflow automation, and the lack of sufficient

• • •

integration to existing systems. Symptoms of a poor system include workers and managers not understanding the detailed work that goes across such a system. If anyone is not sure of anything, it's time to step back and recalculate before putting the system into place.

Vendors should be leaned upon for support and guidance in the design process. They should be true partners with clients. Some organisations will ask a vendor to implement a workflow module without providing enough time or budget to perform process base lining, testing or redesign. The vendor, in turn, should have sufficient trained and experienced business process design staff to be able to take on this work and accomplish it in a speedy fashion.

An essential part of the process should be for users to write down what steps occur in the process and to identify the most common way the process works. If possible, the current process, if there is one, should be rendered as a flow chart for review by the vendor with the client.

In a true client/vendor partnership, a document workflow system can be an invaluable EDMS tool. In a poor relationship, it can be a bottleneck rather than an aid. Determining what is truly needed and anticipated can be the secret to success.

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E D M SOFTW ARE

14

INFORMATION STORAGE Document Management can be split quite simply into three main categories - Image capture, retrieval and storage. Without the storage element, however, the capture would be pointless and the retrieval impossible.

Therefore, I think it is time that we put some emphasis on information storage.

The type of medium, the importance of the information being stored and the frequency that it will need to be retrieved, will decide the best storage method.

It may be in cardboard boxes, filing cabinets, fire-proof safes or even on-line.

Evolution of Storage

By John Fogarty, Design Director at Bisley There is a dark rumour, even amongst hard-core office product anoraks, that storage is unchanging. That it is still just rowupon-row of identical, metal boxes painted in various dull shades of grey.

H ardly... like any viable business-tobusiness product, storage is a solution to a contemporary problem and because these problems change over time, the solutions change too.

desks. It's no wonder that employees and employers want it hidden away.

So how do organisations 'police' personal spaces? O r alternatively, if you're an itinerant worker, how do you sensitively personalise a space that isn't 'yours'? You can't leave work spread over your desk if you'll be working elsewhere tomorrow, but even if it is your desk... there's the clean desk policy to contend with; there are security issues; and you can't even hide behind high screens anymore because these are being scrapped in favour of something much lower, preferably translucent and ideally sticky bud resistant.

Seemingly attempting the impossible, this was the background to the Bisley Pedestal Towers design 'brief'. Pedestal Towers offer a

Storage is changing... because the way we work is changing, where we work is changing and, in particular, what we need to keep at our desks is changing, and these translate into specific product-function issues.

So storage design has evolved with the changing nature of the office, as seen by the new types of desk storage being developed and the move to highly ordered and higher density, mobile storage for 'team' or depart­ mental storage.

Personal Storage

Though we still haven't reached a completely paperless office, the prevalence of the personal computer means that most of us now w ork in a less-paper office. And,

variety of internal configurations including filing drawers, open storage, adjustable shelves and work surfaces, and in both desk top or screen heights allowing it to be used as an extension to the w ork surface and integrate with screens to provide privacy.

Today's personal storage needs to be more than just a box for your files. There's a requirement that says I want 'personal', personal-storage. As well as somewhere to file, I need a space that can be personalised, where I can handily house those working essentials and which can be easily tidied and cleaned when I'm finished for the day.

Team Storage

Both the cost of office space and the trend for increasing centralised 'team' storage with

because we all have busy lives, we use the space where we used to put paper, to store other things... shoe polish, make-up,

more ordered filing methods have lead to the development of mobile storage designed specifically for the front office, releasing space where you need it most.

prunes... and that's just my office! Frequently, the only place for our belongings is by our

For most organisations, the ability to increase storage capacity by more than

STORAGE

100% in the same space, or provide the same storage in only 50% of the space is reason enough, but other factors drive suitability for use. For example, office-use, aesthetics and portability were the drivers that have distin­ guished Bisley InnerSpace from any preceding mobile storage. Key design decisions were made about dimensions, physical effort required, noise and cleanliness that lead to a completely new type of mobile system using belt drives instead of chains - a design borrowed from high specifi­ cation motorbikes.

Aesthetics drove the requirement for the distinctive styling, symmetry and unbroken lines of InnerSpace, while the reality of whole-life ownership costs and office churn informed the need for a completely transportable design that can actually be reconfigured to its new resting place. The difference is a mobile storage system that is entirely appropriate in the modern, evolving office environment Changes

Filing and more generally office storage has become a dynamic process and though the requirements continue to expand, the basics remain; an efficient storage system enables the user to achieve optimum benefit with maximum economy. The real and increasing cost of space means that the office has to work as hard as those in it, and storage innovation can result in real increases in office productivity.

Contact: Bisley Office Furniture, Queens Road, Bisley, Woking, Surrey GU24 9BJ Tel: +44 (0) 1483 485600 Fax: +44 (0) 1483 489962 Email: marketing@bisley.com

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Lost documents at a record high Poor filing efficiencies and productivity problems lead office managers to consider alternative document management strategies Files go missing in over 84 percent of offices nationwide, and the average lost file takes up to one and a half hours to find, according to the 2006 National Filing Survey.

The survey run by the document management specialist Kardex, exposes filing related problems found in offices nationwide, in a | variety of businesses including banks, hospitals and universities.

In offices surveyed this year, for every 100 j files retrieved, 48 took longer than 5 minutes to find - an increase of 12 percent over figures | from 2003.

"The escalating problem of lost or misplaced documents causes damage to growing i businesses where time and, hence, money are important for gaining an edge over the competition. An efficient office with a strong document management strategy can bring a much needed boost to filing related productivity issues," explains marketing director for Kardex, Nick Tuggey.

In response to the flood of information in today's offices, almost 40 percent of survey | respondents predicted paper requirements would increase. Legal requirements mean archival documents can build up and the

resulting sea of files hinders the ability of users to find useful information fast.

Most offices house documents in traditional filing cabinets or shelving which can be bulky and require users to pull heavy drawers, reach and stretch for folders and sift through masses of paper. The inefficiency associated with these conventional solutions is bound to result in misfiling and lost documents, as volumes increase.

Little can be done to reduce the volume of paper in the office, since only 0-10 percent of documents can safely be discarded, according to the new survey, however, as Tuggey suggests, solutions that can help to raise the efficiency of storage and retrieval in the office could bring the productivity benefits offices need.

"Respondents to the survey confirmed that the most important reason for a change in filing system would be increased filing efficiency. The solution that a group of respondents felt brought the most benefits in this area, was automated storage systems," says Tuggey.

Automated storage and retrieval systems, comprise of trays which rotate inside a

computer controlled machine that can securely store a variety of media ready for retrieval on demand at a convenient height.

Such solutions often have a filing accuracy of over 99 percent, since all the files inside are tracked. For further integration, document databases can be linked to the machine enabling users to access scanned documents as well as hard copies, with the same ease.

One such solution from Kardex, called the DataStack is a vertical carousel based solution that can retrieve files in less than two minutes, offering a filing efficiency gain of around 60 percent over manual file retrieval. The system can save up to 80 percent of storage floorspace in the office when compared with traditional filing cabinets, offering more layout flexibility for office managers.

"Traditional filing solutions are struggling to cope with the modern office document deluge.

At a time when documents are being lost or misplaced on such a large scale, and filing efficiency hinders productivity, office managers may find the benefits that automated storage and retrieval solutions bring, indispensable," explains Tuggey.

For more Information visit www.kardex.co.uk

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Phone: 07000 - 785368 Fax: 020 - 7691 9661 info@best-tec.ltd.uk www.best-tec.ltd.uk

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STORAGE

Removable storage: the new breed

By Joseph Saroukhanian, Senior Product Manager, Professional Storage systems, Iomega Corporation.

Iomega Corporation, 10955 Vista Sorrento Parkway, Suite 300, San Diego, CA 92130, U.S.A. www.iomega.com

Today's advancing broadband technology has allowed large amounts of data to be placed online very cheaply. However, the reliability of internet hosts, and the possible difficulties with ensuring continual access, means traditional backup technologies must not be ignored. As a result, the format war between disk and tape continues.

Storage formats such as tape have enjoyed year upon year of being in pole position as the format of choice for secondary backup, though in recent years hard disk technologies have caught up with the aging medium. Hard disk technologies, however, deliver a more realistic approach to data security by removing many of the usage restraints of tape technology, while allowing the following advantages: ★

Faster backup and recovery

★

Instant failover to maintain constant

★

availability of your data Improved reliability

★

Less maintenance: no more need to clean your tape drives

★

Random access for single files

★

Lower costs

One fundamental challenge for hard disk technology is to prove its ability to provide cost effective off-site security, something of a hardship for a fixed disk technology. Unlike tape, disk technologies are traditionally not as removable and have to be handled carefully due to the drive mechanics being transported with the media. Off-site security,

3 stage solutions

Autoloader is available from www.iomega.com

- disk-to-disk-to-tape (D2D2T)

The D2D2T solution meets the demands of both high performance backup and the ability to take data off-site, which is one of the more complex choices for companies that have a single location but require both high performance backup and a third layer of hardware to provide off-site security and archiving ability.

data set fail. Storing a backup copy isn't the only consideration, though when data loss

technology,

disk

technology over tape is to improve performance and reliability, and conversely the reason for choosing tape technology over disk is simply because of removability, then

occurs the likelihood is that you'll need that data back fast. Removable technology, for

why not provide a disk technology that's removable?

performing storage technology available today - disk.

Iomega has done that with REV disk technology, an advancement of hard disk

3. Protect against human failure

technology that uses removable instead of fixed disks, to provide both high disk-to-disk performances along with the removability of

daily backups by using one cartridge per day, another option is aggregated backup

tape. Iomega launched REV in 2004 and by 2006 Iomega had already shipped nearly one million pieces of media to customers using REV drives and Autoloaders.

The challenge for this type of media is to keep the capacities growing, in order to remain within the key capacity points of small and medium businesses.

Your data heath check - security you should have for your network data

Should hackers manage to navigate their way through your layers of protection and

this method is not only reliant on your business having more than one office location, but also on an abundance of budget that many SMB's can't justify.

STORAGE

fact that data needs to regularly accessed, changed or moved exposes it to high usage risks of both hardware and software failure,

If the one and only benefit of choosing disk

disk

removable disk (D2RD)

1. Protect against the outside world

removes the need to take data cartridges off­ site each night for remote security. However,

Data failure continues to be a challenge, particularly with primary storage. The very

to

Removable

Disk technology has been attempting to achieve off-site security and archiving in three main ways:

Remote site replication is an attractive option as it can be deployed in a way that

failure

which could potentially lead to data loss.

Secondary storage was introduced to provide an extra layer of security should your primary

therefore can be a difficult, cumbersome job.

Remote site replication

2. Protect against hardware and software

cause data loss, you need a physical copy of your data from which you can restore from.

If the attack happened days earlier it's likely you will need to revert to earlier backups, therefore having a backup rotation scheme in place can provide you with multiple data sets from which to restore from. Autoloader products are capable of holding around 8 disks full of data which can equate to either 8 days or even 8 weeks of data sets. A REV

example, enables you to retrieve your data quickly and effortlessly by using the highest

W hile automation can provide you with

automation which enables all slots to work together as one location. Iomega's REV Autoloaders have around 8 slots capable of working as one aggregated backup and restore device. This choice of storage method eliminates the need for users to manually change cartridges when backup capacity reaches or surpasses the single cartridge capacity. Compared to stand alone drives automation doesn't rely on manual intervention, a responsibility that's often delegated. As 98% of backup errors are caused by human intervention it's best to keep these to a minimum and choose automated disk technology.

The final choice will lie with the businessleader. W hile internet and tape technologies both, have their benefits, they are also susceptible downsides, such as poor reliability and difficulties with removability. „ Ultimately, we feel removable disks are the best option and, as capacities increase in line with industry needs, will continue to be so into the future.

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Since the beginning of time, man has worked to record and preserve data. From

data being recoverable at 1 hour intervals.

A t the end of the 12 hour window, the oldest

the earliest cave paintings through to the modern day, creating a permanent record

write area is merged with the original data

has been a quest - but today's data deluge has created a set of challenges that previous generations could not even have guessed at.

Data is the lifeblood of today's organisations and the inability to access this data for whatever reason, directly impacts the bottom line.

For most organisations, the period for which they are willing to accept a loss of data access is a cost/risk analysis based on two

and the cycle continues. This approach offers a level of granularity and operational transparency which is impossible to match using traditional tape backup techniques.

The value proposition for resellers is that this is a proven technology which can use a customer's existing disk types and offers a level of functionality beyond traditional backup systems based on a pricing system which scales with system implementation.

Backing up over a W AN also introduces another concern for organisations - data security. Moving sensitive commercial data over a W A N creates the potential for interception.

Choosing a solution that incorporates some of the most sophisticated encryption techniques commercially available today solves this issue.

major factors, the Recovery Point Objective (RPO) and the Recovery time Objective

W hile Snapshotting provides a valuable solution for the headquarters operation in an organisation, managing the backup of data

(RTO). The RPO is basically how long ago the last backup was taken and RTO is how

in a remote office can often be problematic.

W hile this could be done directly by a tape

both headquarters and remote office backup, there is one other area still left to consider archiving. Archiving is often positioned as

long it takes to restore backed up data.

It can be all too easy to fall into the mindset of thinking this is all about traditional

system at the remote site, the processes, disciplines and skill sets may be lacking.

Many organisations are now centralising

part of the family of backup techniques but it is much more of a distant cousin than a close relative. The significant difference between

tape backup solutions which despite techno­ logical advances, has not kept pace with the

their backup at their headquarters to not only save the expense of tape systems at each

double challenges of escalating data volume and shrinking backup windows.

There are a number of leading edge

remote office but also to ensure that regulation and compliance requirements are met.

the two is that backup is primarily about the restoration of data to known good point in time while archiving is about the long term

vendors, who have innovative solutions to solve the age old data retention challenges.

Each of these fits a market segment addressing particular customer requirements.

Snapshotting addresses the market which requires very tight RPOs and RTOs. Essentially this process allows the contents of a disk to be 'frozen' and any changes made to the data written to another area of disk.

As most activity in disk systems is data reads,

Having provided effective solutions for

storage of unchanging data.

new

Optical media is one of the main storage mediums for long term archiving because the

challenge - how do you move large volumes of backup data over a slow W AN (Wide Area Network). Agentless online backup and recovery software is the answer. Not only is

stored data is unchangeable - making it suitable for legal submission as a true record.

Most of the optical media that has traditionally been used, such as CDs and

the backup data stored at the remote site for rapid restoration of lost data but it is also sent

DVDs, suffered from limited data storage capacity making the number of platters

over the W AN to be backed up at the central site. When the next backup is invoked,

required to archive any serious amount of data, excessive.

As a result of ground breaking research and development new

Centralising

backup

creates

a

the 'write area' of disk does not need to be large.

Snapshots can be set to happen at

because it has a record of the previous backup at the remote site, it only needs to send changes that have been made, over the

optical media has been created specifically for serious archiving - Ultra Density Optical

pre-set time intervals, perhaps every 10 minutes, half an hour or an hour.

W AN to the central site, thus reducing the impact of slow W AN speeds.

W hen the time comes for the next Snapshot, both the original data and the newly written data*are 'frozen' and a new

Even with this technique W AN speeds can still be too slow for significant backup data to

(UDO). UDO can store 6 times the data that DVD based system can and as the technology develops this will soar to 18 times. UDO has

'write area' of disk allocated for changes to be written. The number of times this can

be transferred in good time and that's where the leading vendors have yet another embedded solution - compression.

By

happen can be pre-set so, for instance, 12 snapshots could be taken at hourly intervals.

compressing the data, the size of the W AN transfers can be reduced by four times or

In this way a lost file or data could be recovered, within a 12 hour window with the

even more, speeding up the transfer time by the same amount.

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now been adopted by major industry players such as HP and Xerox, with the media second sourced by Sony.

The range of backup, restore and archive options offered today provide business with solution to meet the requirements of legal and regulatory compliance whilst still serving them well in to the future.

STORAGE

Simplifying Storage Management New tools provide top-down view of all storage elements

By Maziar Tamadon, Director, Product Marketing, Emulex Corporation

With every new product release, the "building blocks" of storage (such as storage switches, arrays and HBAs) become more intelligent and capable of better fine-grained control over how enterprise storage is configured, provisioned and secured.

But these building blocks need to be managed efficiently and cost-effectively, so that storage management costs do not wipe out the savings and agility an organisation seeks from its networked storage. Adding layer upon layer of storage management

management, which allows an administrator to balance the amount of data stored among

create, delete and change the size of the volumes, which are available to applications

various arrays to maximise performance, to and operating systems.

Virtualisation software is designed to lower cost or to achieve specified levels of I make it easier for multiple servers and reliability; performance management, which applications to access the same physical allows administrators to tune specific attributes such as bandwidth, the level of arrays by making multiple physical arrays RAID protection on an array or port appear as a single, "virtual" storage assignments to ensure devices operate at their resource. Virtualisation software may run on maximum performance levels; security I a server; on a storage controller; within a storage array or within a dedicated virtuali­ management, which includes zoning, LUN

software, on top of the physical storage hardware, makes the environment more complex, and increases (rather than reduces)

sation appliance in the storage network.

SAN design and validation tools allow levels to various devices; trend analysis of metrics such as the capacity available on ) administrators to perform "what-if" analysis storage arrays or bandwidth bottlenecks in a of how different SAN designs and the use of

ongoing operational and capital costs.

A well-implemented Storage Resource

SAN, as well as the automation of routine tasks such as provisioning volumes as

Management (SRM) strategy eliminates these unnecessary layers of software and provides an easier-to-manage, top-down view of the

applications need more space or moving older, or less valuable, data to slower disk

storage infrastructure. Such a strategy allows storage managers, from within a single application, to view their overall storage infrastructure and to perform detailed management of individual storage elements.

SRM basics

Storage resource management refers to the management, provisioning, trouble­ shooting and resolution of problems within the storage infrastructure (consisting of storage arrays, switches in storage networks, the storage fabric itself and the host-bus adapters, or HBAs, which link servers to the storage network.)

SRM tools commonly provide discovery of each element in the storage infrastructure; topology mapping which describes how the elements are connected; reporting of critical information about the devices (such as the version of the operating system or firmware installed on them), as well as statistics about the performance of each element; and event management which reports on specific events (selected by the storage administrator) such as the failure of a storage device.

They may also provide

STORAGE

capacity

masking and the assignment of encryption

arrays or to tape libraries.

W obbly software stack

different components w ill perform under actual business conditions and to identify compatibility or interoperability issues before the design is set in stone.

Finally, there is software for managing elements within the infrastructure, such as the

HBAs that link servers to storage networks.

In an ideal w orld, a single software Adding each of these management tools product from a single vendor would provide probably made sense at the time as a logical all these capabilities in any level of detail an point solution to an immediate need. But over administrator needed, for any storage device | time that approach results in complex or combination of devices. software stacks that are difficult and In the real world, different SRM solutions expensive to learn, administer and manage. have been built around specific hardware Storage administrators are forced to switch platforms, or to focus on different elements | from one application to another to perform w ithin the storage infrastructure. M any even routine, but time-consuming tasks. This products touting themselves as "SRM" only makes SRM far more complex and costly than deliver some of the functions customers need, it needs to be, resulting in excessively high or work only with a certain vendor's storage management operating costs. hardware.

This approach also reduces efficiency by Therefore, many administrators have making it more difficult to balance ever added "stacks" of software atop their j changing storage provisioning needs. Rather physical storage infrastructure to manage its | than go through the burden of a timedifferent elements. consuming and error-prone re-provisioning One example is path management, of volumes across existing, unused storage meaning the configuration and management when an application needs more space, the of multiple data paths between servers and I storage administrator may simply buy more storage to increase performance or provide physical storage for that application. This fault-tolerance. results in higher than necessary capital Another example is volume management spending, the creation of yet more ineffi­ software, which works at a layer above path ciently-used storage, and more physical management and allows administrators to

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devices to manage over time - all of which increases storage operating costs over time.

An overly complex SRM "stack" also reduces business agility by making it harder to expand, reduce or redeploy storage capacity as companies deploy new applications, create business partnerships or find new ways to distribute, share and analyse data.

Unified approach A far more effective approach is the use of a high-level SRM solution, which is tightly integrated with tools that provide detailed information, and configuration capabilities, about elements deep

graphicdata Document and Data Management Senior Management Vacancies

within the hardware stack. This gives managers a consistent and coherent view of their storage infrastructure from a single management interface, and combines the overall view of higher-level SRM applications with the power and flexibility of the software used to manage individual hardware elements.

One example would be integrating the software used to manage an HBA with an SRM tool that can view and manage the entire storage infrastructure, for example, Emulex's HBAnyware 3.0 is used for managing HBAs, but integrates with leading SRM solutions. This allows a( storage manager, from the same SRM environment, to both view their overall infrastructure, and to perform detailed tasks such as updating the firmware on every HBA in their environment.

The benefits of this integrated, centralised approach include lower administrative costs; increased storage efficiency and lower capital expenses; greater business agility and a reduced burden on over­ stretched and limited storage administrators.

In looking for such "integrated" stacks, many customers will have already chosen their overall SRM environment. If they have not, they should look for how well it supports the SRM features (such as discovery, automation and event reporting) that are most critical to them now and in the future. For the lower-level software for managing the individual storage elements, they should look for detailed diagnostics, the ability to provide centralised management, and the ease of use and reduced training requirements that result from close integration with the overall SRM environment.

Summary

Networked storage infrastructures are becoming more complex all the time, encompassing a greater variety of storage arrays, servers and network topologies. Each of the elements in this infrastructure, such as switches, HBAs and arrays are gaining more intelligence, which requires more and better management of each of those

Production and Customer Services Graphic Data is a leading managed services company that enables large organisations to streamline document processes and do more business, more efficiently. We transform paper-centric processes into automated business workflows, enabling regulatory compliance, significant cost savings and increased efficiency.

Our solutions include the processing of purchase invoices, credit card and mortgage applications and claims, as well as the management of internal business processes. Our services include scanning and indexing, microfilm digitisation, archiving and storage, records management and live file management.

Each year we convert 200 million documents from paper to electronic formats, process 7 million credit card transactions, manage 25 million live records and we currently store around 3 billion documents. We are IS09001: 2000 certified and are currently expanding our management systems to include both ISO 27001 and Six Sigma.

elements.

Customers can try to manage their storage environments by adding layer upon layer of storage tools to their storage infrastructure, but this only adds to the complexity and cost that networked storage is supposed to reduce. W ith each new "point" management solution that makes it harder to manage, configure and secure its storage, the enterprise becomes less efficient and less agile.

Customers should instead demand that their storage vendors deliver "element-level" management tools that provide both highly detailed management of individual storage components such as HBAs, switches and arrays, and that also integrate tightly with highlevel SRM tools. With a centralised, consistent "single pane of glass" storage managers can reduce both their capital and operational expenses, and delivej the most business value from their networked storage infrastructures.

Emulex Corporation is exhibiting at Storage Expo 2006 at the National Hall, Olympia, London from 18 - 19 October 2006 www.storage-expo.com

Visit: www emulex.com Telephone: USA, + 714 662 5600 or UK/Europe, + {0)118 977 2929 Visit our Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

Through a large increase in new business sales, we have a number of opportunities within our Operations Teams and are at present looking to recruit Senior Managers in both Production and Customer Services Departments. We have document processing centres located in Southend, Ashford, Bedford and Manchester.

Suitable candidates must have a proven track record in Operations Management, ideally within the document processing arena and display a high level of energy and enthusiasm to continuously improve our services and processes.

Interviews for the above roles will be conducted during September 2006. Please apply by emailing your CV with a covering letter explaining your suitability for either role and state salary expectations to mark_lowe@graphicdata.co.uk.

20

Digital Archive Hidden on Paper The key benefit compared with normal data capture technology is that any damage or added notes will be ignored and still enable easy capturing of all relevant information.

Document Boss is working closely together with a research and development company, based in the Slovak Republic, that has developed a solution which enables digital information to be stored on paper with the use of printed

marks.

eDM and

eCM

★

Metadata can be added on to paper

companies would be able to incorporate this

ensuring an automatic inclusion into any

technology to extend their solution offerings

archive or workflow.

The key benefit is that instead of automatic indexing where the exact location o f fields needs to be recognised and agreed, this is now simply included in the data hidden in the layer o f marks.

and develop completely new applications.

The core technology of this company enables

the

inclusion

of small,

almost

invisible, marks in the background of any paper document, which, after scanning with any standard office equipment, results in a

★

after creation, thus preventing fraud.

The software has proven itself in numerous large scale implementations. Business case descriptions are available for severalapplication areas.

The company is interested in gaining access to international markets via various partners. This can be an OEM relationship, in which the technology becomes an internal engine

w ithin

the

partner's

software

solutions, or for solutions providers who may have the need for such technology on a project basis. Enquiries from interested

Data and instructions can be added

distributors or

perfect representation of the original. These small marks, spread over the document,

beyond the image of the document to automatically include it into third party

represent fully digitised information. This can

applications such as ERP or CRM systems.

welcomed.

If you like to know more about this opportunity there is a comprehensive set of documentation including business cases,

The key benefit is to be able to facilitate a paper based EDI system without heavy investment in infrastructure using familiar paper based processes.

work even if the paper copy is damaged.

W ithin the value chain of companies and organisations, this opens up a variety of new applications. For instance: ★ Instead of scanning, manual data entry

★

It enables a secure validation of the

and checking before a scanned document can be processed this technology creates a

document data content. Legal documents (notary, immigration, visas, certificates,

100% fluent process as the original copy of the document and any additional data

logistics, contracts, health care documen

is hidden in the background layer of marks.

tation).

The key benefit is that it becomes impossible to forge or modify documents

resellers would

also

be

success stories that would allow a more indepth understanding of this technology. Also available if required would be additional technical papers and competitive analysis against other technologies such as OCR, Bar­ coding, and RFID.

In the first instance please feel free to contact Ceert Kruiter for further information gkruiter@documentboss. com

Save your back - with DataStack Automated document storage and retrieval solutions reduce back injuries and boost productivity In the UK over 4.9 million working days

"DataStack

brings

documents

to

all

are lost due to back pain every year, caused by bending and stretching in the workplace.

employees, including wheelchair users, at a height that's perfect for them, eliminating the

Companies that are happy to invest in welldesigned, ergonomic workstations are still

bending and stretching previously required to retrieve files. Employers see benefits too, as they save over 50 percent of floor space and

asking their staff to use unfriendly, inefficient filing cabinets, requiring employees to spend long periods stooped in uncomfortable and dangerous postures as they search for documents. The inevitable consequences are

solutions

are

most critical of

as standard and a range of heights from 2 to 20 metres, even allowing for document sharing between office floors.

W hile completely customisable and available in a large variety of finishes and colours to match any work environment, Kardex DataStack is the perfect cost-effective solution to preventing back injury in the workplace and providing efficient document

the document retrieval experts Kardex, is a software-controlled automated media

STORAGE

for even the

manager at Kardex.

available,

convenient shelf height for the user.

required

documents.

DataStack comes in three different widths

however, that combine ideal ergonomics with a host of improvements in storage density, security and filing accuracy. DataStack, from

storage and retrieval system that can hold thousands of files, videos, CDs or DVDs, bringing them at a touch of a button to a

system tracks all media and simplifies picking, while electronic locks and a PIN system provide the secure environment

often see productivity shoot up by around 40 percent." explains Clive W illiams, UK sales

lost time, reduced productivity and even long-term damage to worker health.

Alternative

four drawer filing cabinets in almost half the space. The intelligent light and colour index

flow.

DataStack uses a speedy vertical carousel system which can store the equivalent of 16

Contact: Kardex Marketing Department, Tel: 08702 422 224 Email: info@kardex.co.uk

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PRODUCT NEWS Eleksen Launches Fabric Keyboard With no mechanical parts the 100% fabric keyboard is lightweight, flexible and ideal for busy executives on the move Eleksen Group pic, the inventor and manufacturer of ElekTex smart fabric touchpads for consumer electronics, today announced that they are offering their innovative wireless fabric keyboard through certified

resellers and directly to large

enterprises who have implemented mobile working solutions using smartphone platforms.

mobile workers by complementing existing smartphone devices, which rely on small thumbpads for data entry. Thumbpads are excellent for quick messaging, but can be awkward for more elaborate tasks and applications. As such, enterprises may not be getting optimal productivity returns on their investment in these devices.

In addition, the keyboard opens up new possibilities for corporate IT departments to roll out further sophisticated applications to their mobile workers and further enhance their productivity.

In a study for Palm's Treo conducted by Frost and Sullivan, median downtime recovered for workers using the Treo smartphone was estimated to be 41 minutes per day, equating to $8,572 per year. In a 1,000-user enterprise the average produc­ tivity gains associated with using the Palm Treo amount to over $8 million per year. The Eleksen keyboard aims to stretch these productivity gains even further.

The keyboard is a laptop-sized QWERTY accessory that delivers all the capabilities of the office keyboard to corporate 'road warriors' and busy executives in an ultra­ portable and compact package. It is compatible with most popular devices from BlackBerry, Nokia, Palm and Microsoft

full list at www.eleksen.com).

(see

The keyboard increases productivity for

"W ith the Eleksen keyboard, companies can realistically expect productivity to be doubled," said Michael Averbach, co­ founder of DynoPlex, a leading developer of wireless document management solutions.

"We chose to bundle our document editing solutions with the keyboard, aiming to extend capabilities typically found in the PC environment to the mobile worker."

Designed around Eleksen's ElekTex smart fabric touchpad technology the keyboard's lightweight (65gms) and compact design means it fits easily into a pocket or the smallest briefcase for maximum portability.

W ith no mechanical parts and with a wipeclean finish it's extremely durable and won't get damaged by coffee spillages or cake crumbs.

Andrew Newman, Product Manager for the keyboard explains: "Smartphones and mobile applications are a real growth area for enterprises who want their employees out with their customers as much as they can be.

The keyboard works for either sophisticated smartphone users or novices because it combines the fam iliar functionality and layout one expects in a traditional keyboard with a greater degree of portability to ensure it can be used in any location."

Pricing and Availability

The Wireless Smartphone Keyboard is available now and will be sold direct from Eleksen to corporates and through certified resellers. The keyboard is available to corporate customers at prices from £40 per unit with quantity discounts available.

Minimum order quantities apply.

Interested parties should contact M ark Boardman at Eleksen on 08700 727272.

DocuWare announces Connector for eCopy Capture DocuWare announced the DocuWare Connector for eCopy ShareScan OP, which

access, can quickly and easily incorporate paper-based information into DocuWare

provides integration between the DocuWare Integrated Document Management product suite and eCopy-enabled multifunction

supported workflows. The Connector can be used with networked MFPs from Canon and

products (MFPs). The Connector provides the capability to rapidly and easily incorporate paper-based inform ation into existing electronic business processes.

Toshiba. "eCopy enables office workers to maximise their use of the MFP by transforming it into an on-ramp for incorporating paper-based

Document management and the automation of papec-based workflow is the

information into a corporation's central intelligence," said Stefan Schindler, director DocuWare Ltd. "It is now possible to capture

key for increasing productivity for the knowledge worker. This new solution provides a simple, easy to use, walk-up

an image at the MFP and DocuWare can manage it, which often eliminates the need to maintain inefficient, expensive paper-based

interface for capturing and storing documents to DocuWare from eCopy ShareScan OP

document workflows."

software. Any individual, provided they have

According to Alan Cornwell, eCopy general manager, Europe, "By participating

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in our eCopy Connections Alliance Program (eCAP), DocuWare was able to easily add cross platform MFP scanning capability to its w orld class application. O ur software developers kit (SDK) makes it incredibly simple for ISVs like DocuWare to extend their applications to the MFP and provide their customers with an intuitive user interface that requires little or no training."

Availability

The DocuWare Connector for eCopy ShareScan OP is available through any authorised DocuWare partner.

Contact: dwsales@docuware.com for pricing or additional information information.

P R O D U C T NEW S

N ew range of Sunrise SpeedScan scanners | dealers operating in EMEA helping to further

Sunrise Imaging EMEA Limited the I distributor of Sunrise products within Europe the Middle East and Africa announce the launch of the new SpeedScan range of

grow their system sales thus expanding the customer base by creating greater product

j

awareness.

To celebrate this new product Sunrise

Sunrise high production film scanners.

| EMEA will be hosting two open days, one in the South on the 10th October at Wokingham

Introduced to provide the bureau and end j user, with a more affordable option when looking to scan microfilm. This new range j

and one on the 12th October for the North in Manchester.

offers all the functionality and quality y o u ! would expect from the Sunrise stable.

We hope to work closely with the existing I

Visit: www.sunriseimaging.co.uk ' Tel:+44 (0)208 255 2011

|

Robust keyboard for demanding applications ideal for those subjecting their hardware to

and easy to clean and customers can choose

brutal treatment.

from three different action types: linear, soft

These devices use MX technology, individual mechanical modules on circuit boards which offer low bounce times, high

and click tactile feel.

The keyboard is suitable for heavy users

switch security and a service life of over 50 million actions. Gold Cross Point contacts ensure a Mean Time Between Failures of

Compact

and

long-lasting,

Cherry

Electrical Products' G 80-1800 keyboard is

80,000 hours.

Measuring only 16", the keyboards are designed to fit into 19" rack applications for servers. Keycaps symbols are wear resistant

such as gamers.

Cherry Electrical Products is a global leader in the design, development, and manufacture of computer keyboards and mice.

Contact: Michael Groom, Cherry Electrical Products Ltd., Tel: +44 (0)1582 506140

SpeedScan- A New Mid-Point Microfilm Scanner from SunRise SpeedScan - The a ffo rd ab le scanner fo r use in an y en viron m ent.

In keeping with its tradition since 1991, Sunrise Imaging continues to lead the microfilm scanner industry by incorporating the latest that technology has to offer in its new family of products. Following in the footsteps o f the S3000 RapidScan, the New SpeedScan range delivers high-speed production film conversion along w ith point o f use on-demand scanning more competitively than ever before. Whether a single format or multi format user, every business will benefit from the high Return on Investment (ROI) the new SpeedScan offers.

Top Ten Reasons to Invest in a SpeedScan • A Scalable Solution

• Affordable Production Scanning

• Best ROI

• Optional 3 in 1 Design

• Dual Stream Output

• True DPI Output

• 12-bit Greyscale

• Low Total Cost of Ownership

• Ease of Use

• Local Support I nfrastucture

The SpeedScan system incorporates the latest in computing hardware and proprietary ScanFlo film scanning software. Designed to enhance and simplify the process o f converting film into electronic images helping make storage and distribution of valuable data more efficient and economical than ever before.

I /

C o m e a n d see th e n e w S p eedS can a t its la u n c h on th e 1 0 th o r 12 th O c to b e r 2 0 0 6 .

iunRise P R O D U C T NEW S

C o n ta c t S h aro n C h a lm e rs

SunRise Imaging (EMEA) Ltd. Tel: + 4 4 (0) 20.8255.2011 • Fax: + 4 4 (0) 20.8255.2093

www.sunriseimaging.co.uk

s c h a lm e rs @ s u n ris e im a g in g .c o .u k

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TRADE NEWS Inotec UK is created InoTec GmbH announce the appointment of Inotec UK Limited as their distributor within

confident in this product's ability to compete

the United Kingdom for their high speed range of production paper scanners. Based

within the UK market" said Klaus Atzbach, Sales Director of InoTec GmbH. W ith over 25% of sales within Germany and with

awareness".

Flexibility and high quality are trade

in SBC House, Wallington in Surrey Inotec UK

dealers throughout the world InoTec have

marks of the SCAMAX. Designed to withstand a range of challenges unlike any other, they are built without compromise to

are committed to delivering this important product line to the market.

become a serious contender in this ever competitive market. By partnering with Inotec

run 24-hours a day, seven days a week, fifty two weeks of the year.

Leveraging off the successes created with

UK Limited and offering a higher level of

InoTec GmbH have already realised great

the supply channel for the SunRise high

personal service, coupled with a robust and sturdy product line their continued growth seems assured.

success within mainland Europe, Asia and the USA with the Scamax range and see the

production film scanners, Steven Godfrey (Commercial Director of Sunrise EMEA) has joined efforts with InoTec GmbH. He formed the new company Inotec UK Limited as the distribulor within the UK for their Scamax scanner line earlier this year.

Looking at the synergies between the two

"W ith the new partnership carrying the InoTec brand I'm confident that once the industry and market appreciates the benefits of the Scamax product line, InoTec will very

organisations it made total sense to expand the business introducing a new product line

quickly establish itself as a key supplier to the UK market". Said Inotec UK Commercial Director, Steven Godfrey.

such as the renowned Scamax range of document scanners from InoTec in Germany.

"W ith precision German engineering and

"We hope to work closely with the existing dealers operating in the UK helping to further grow their system sales, thus expanding the

the high quality of manufacturing I am

customer base creating greater product

UK as an ideal target market in which to expand their sales and support infrastructure.

To celebrate this new partnership Inotec UK Limited are co-hosting with InoTec GmbH two launch events, one in the South and one in the North where the full range of products will be available to test and see in action.

Contact Sharon Chalmers at Inotec UK for further details on schalmers@inotecuk.co.uk Tel +44 (0) 20 8255 2011 Fax +44 (0) 20 8255 2093 or visit: www.inotecuk.co.uk

IMR UK acquired by Avon quest IMR UK Limited was purchased by French company Avanquest SA on M ay 11th 2006.

Through the acquisition Avanquest are now the Distributor of all 3 Captaris products (RightFax, Alchemy and Workflow) in the UK. The rapid growth of IMR UK Limited since the spin off from the MBS Group since the sale of the services businesses in March 2004

that has resulted in sales of Alchemy for both in-house and scanning bureau applications (with web delivery) increasing by 35% per annum.

Integration with Sharepoint using Captaris Alchemy Web Parts has taken place and this

The integration of Alchemy with the key

party line of business systems, Captaris Workflow, Rightfax and Alchemy.

business systems (Housing files, accounts, HR and finance) is the key to adding value in this scenario.

integration provides seamless operation for users who are using MS Sharepoint, third

Contact: IMR UK Ltd., Tel: 01462 832896 Email: info@imruk.co.uk

EDM Group and Squirrel w ork in partnership Electronic

document

management

specialist, EDM Group has formed a strategic partnership with Squirrel Storage Limited, as the popularity of 'scan on demand' soars amongst 'paper heavy' businesses.

W ith both companies operating

at

opposite ends of the document management spectrum, the partnership between EDM's online facilities and Squirrel's storage capabilities should .have complete synergy and prove to be a highly successful commercial relationship.

Peter Smith, CEO of the EDM Group, comments: "Paper heavy businesses, such as banks, law firms and accountancy practices

w ill always have a need for document management solutions. A large number of them are turning to electronic alternatives.

However there is still a huge need for physical storage solutions. Scan on demand is becoming increasingly popular, so the new partnership will mean that while Squirrel Storage Limited will house the documents and manually retrieve them, EDM w ill then scan them and make them accessible to the customer online.

Microsoft, one of the most technologically advanced companies, still has two million boxes in storage, indicating that we still have a long way to go before we achieve the paperless office!

"W e are looking forward to working closely with the EDM Group. I am confident that the partnership will prove to be a good business move for us both."

Squirrel Storage Limited, based in the UK at Birmingham, London, Manchester and

Jason Schofield, managing director at Squirrel Storage Ltd, said: "Paper

Leeds, offers businesses fully managed archive storage and retrieval solutions.

documents are likely to play a big part in every business for many years to come.

Contact: Tel: +44 (0)1625 858828 or Email: sales@theedmgroup.co.uk

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TR AD E NEW S

DocuWare Group Expands Spanish Presence Applying Proven Recipes for Success DocuWare is fortifying its presence in Spain. DocuWare Espana located in Bacelona is responsible for the Spanish market.

Spain for the past 13 years. They count many of the most recognisable names from the worlds of industry, finance and government

Approximately 4,500 users in Spain and another 500 in Latin America are currently using Chaman.

Costaisa President, Julian Casado,

The DocuWare Group's international sales have been developing very positiviely for

as its DocuWare customers.

Now this experienced team based in Barcelona is part of the DocuWare family

several years. The EMEA region (Excluding Germany) grew in 2005 by 29 percent.

and committed to developing the Spanish market. They will have the benefit of proven

indirect sales model created by DocuWare AG are a clear recipe for success. We're

Now, in addition to subsidiaries in USA and Great Britain, the company is adding another

concepts for developing a Partner Network from success in Germany, England and the

convinced that this software developer's approach will help us maximise the high

in Spain. Costaisa S.A. based in Barcelona will now serve as the representative for

US. This includes ADP (Authorised Partner)

growth potential in Spain."

Jurgen Biffar, DocuWare President, adds:

DocuWare Espana. This subsidiary is also charged with optimally supporting existing Partners and customers, expanding the Partner Network and accelerating sales growth in the Spain.

Well-Known Customers in Spain

Costaisa S.A. was one of the first interna­ tional DocuWare Partners and has been selling document management solutions in

contracts, service and support agreements and a collection of marketing activities.

Very Experienced IT-Specialist

Founded in 1968, Costaisa S.A. today has a team of 200 employees and is considered a pioneer in the information technology industry. As software developers they created a Health Information System (HIS) called Chaman that has made them a market leader in software for the healthcare industry.

welcomes the new expanded relationship: "The document management solutions and

"W ith Costaisa we've had a long-standing, reliable Partner. And now with DocuWare Espana, we'll be able to combine forces to further expand the document management business in Spain. We are also looking forward to leveraging these synergies to further develop the South American market."

For more information on DocuWare, visit their website at www.docuware.com.

Open Text plans to acquire Hummingbird Open Text Corporation, a provider of enterprise content management, has announced its plan to make an offer, through a wholly-owned subsidiary, for all of the common shares of Hummingbird Ltd. Open Text said it intends to buy the company for USD 27.75 per share in cash, representing a premium of about 20% over the closing price of the Hummingbird Shares on the Nasdaq on M ay 25, 2006, the day before Hummingbird announced it had entered into an agreement with affiliates of the Symphony Technology Group to be acquired for USD 26.75 a share.

The price per share offered by Open Text is USD 1 more than the one offered by Symphony Technology Group.

Open Text said it has entered into lock-up agreements with Hummingbird shareholders holding 3.2 million common shares, or about 18 percent of Hummingbird's outstanding stock. Prior to the lock-up agreements, Open

offer, Open Text said.

The Company intends to finance the offer through cash on hand and committed loan facilities to be provided by a Canadian chartered bank pursuant to a binding commitment letter. Open Text does not intend to issue equity in connection with the completion of this acquisition.

Open Text said it planned to commence

Text and its affiliates owned about 4.3 percent of Hummingbird, it said.

Other Hummingbird shareholders holding

the offer by no later than July 15, 2006.

about 18.2 percent of the company's outstanding stock have indicated their support for a superior offer to the Symphony

(Note from Ed - I have heard nothing since, so do not know how it's progressed)

TiS reports all-tim e record quarterly results Fifth consecutive quarter of growing profitability

Top Image Systems, Ltd. the leading Israeli innovator of data capture solutions, has announced its financial results for the second quarter of 2006.

Revenues for the second quarter of 2006 were $4.93 million, an increase of 22% from the $4.04 million revenues recorded for the second quarter of 2005, and a 9% increase from the $4.54 million revenues for the first quarter of 2006. 34% of second quarter revenues were generated from services and 66% from products.

Net income for the second quarter was $285 thousand, compared with a net income of $68 thousand in the second quarter of

TRADE NEW S

2005, and net income of $181 thousand in the prior quarter. Net income per share in this quarter was $0,032 compared with net income per share of $0,007 in the second quarter of 2005, and net income per share of $0,021 in the first quarter of 2006.

Second quarter highlights

•

Record quarterly revenues with 22% year

over year growth.

• Gross margin increased to 63% and net income margin reached 5.8% • 50% of the quarterly revenues generated from existing customers and 50% from new customers.

• Success in APAC, Germany and the rest of

Europe, which generated 16%, 19% and 24% of company's quarterly revenues, respectively.

High levels of activity in France, the thirdlargest market in Europe.

Partnerships with major players including Xerox and IBM bore fruit and generated 34% of the company's quarterly revenues.

Growing success for TIS's solution for automatic mail sorting and routing, with four new projects in Europe.

5 new customers implemented eFLOW Ability, TiS module for invoice processing integrated with SAP, in Europe and Australia.

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25

Does Branding Matter to Dealers?

By Gary Carr, Marketing Manager, Bisley office furniture The office furniture industry is increasingly price-led but there is an emerging trend that sees

dealers

looking

for

well-known,

established and respected brand names when choosing office furniture for their customers.

Bisley has invested heavily on efficiency in its manufacturing processes in order to offer quality products at increasingly competitive prices. But pricing is not the only important factor to consider. Branding is still an issue.

W hy is branding important to your customers? We like to think that most office workers will have some awareness of Bisley because they will have seen the Bisley brand.

More visibility equates to more advantage, so our longevity and wide product range is a

source of competitive advantage if that

the unknown - it might be a new customer, it

visibility can be 'rolled forward' into customer

might be an established customer but buying a new product, it might just be a very large

expectations.

Effective branding raises expectations and reinforces purchasing decisions with the effect of actually creating customer value. You w on't see a customer wearing a Bisley logo on their right shoulder, but you will hear people say "I'm a Bisley customer"; that's why branding is important.

W hy is branding important to dealers? It helps their customers to make purchase decisions; from thinking that a solution to their requirement might exist and where to find it, to conferring trust and confidence in

order. If your customer believes in the brand, a positive outcome is much more likely. And there is a further benefit... because brands invariably support a premium price, there should be more profit in the transaction.

W ith more emphasis being placed on branding combined with a production capacity that can deliver on supply lead times and a product range that leads the way in

the sales channel and helping to remove any last minute hesitation. Brands smooth each

stimulating a better office environment, Bisley are making sure they cover all the major issues driving the office furniture supply industry today.

phase of the purchase decision by reducing

For more information visit www.bisley.com

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TRADE NEW S

C A SE STU D IES M id Bedfordshire Council boosts customer service Local governments are faced with the challenge of meeting compliance with the eGovernment Agenda, Gershon Inquiry and the Freedom of Information Act by increasing efficiency and electronic accessibility to information for both government workers and

environmental and planning services at one location responding to 3,000 calls a month with a team of 21 staff.

"We have efficiency targets set by central

Having completed the EDRMS implemen足 tation in May 2006, Mid Beds has opened

government, but we are also determined to keep costs down for our citizens and

new customer service departments, and seen

customers, so we can maintain one of the lowest council tax rates in the country, and

the public.

In an effort to meet government targets,

a fourfold increase in customer response rate.

W ith Hummingbird Enterprise in place,

Mid Bedfordshire Council is the first council to roll out an Electronic Document and Records Management System (EDRMS) across the

the council's 18 customer service staff can now respond to 12,000 phone calls a month,

entire organisation, with a user base of 300 people.

The EDRMS from Hummingbird electron足 ically links information and people by managing various forms of information such as documents, e-mail or financial data. By eliminating paper documents the council has accomplished compliance and increased efficiency by providing Mid Bed's employees with access to all available information from any location.

allowed officers to work from home, which aligns with the eGovernment agenda.

with an average of 150 walk-in requests each day and 40 incoming emails per day.

The new customer service department can solve 80% of inquiries first time, as staff are no longer tied to a single department, but can

access information across the council, so customers can come to any location, rather than visit particular departments.

The new system has also enabled the council to move to a new headquarters where there is no longer a need for a central filing room for thousands of planning files, as

deliver the best possible service," said Clive Jones, Director of customer services at Mid Bedfordshire District Council.

Mid Beds is ahead of its targets set by the Government as part of the Gershon Inquiry for driving traffic to its Web site, with 64,660 visitors in May, an 11% increase from April figures. Having reached its millionth visitor since its launch in 2003, the Mid Beds Web site and EDRMS are enabling more people to use self-service to find and download planning documents on the internet 24x7, driving further efficiencies.

Mid Beds now plans to integrate the EDRMS and the content management system

archived and current information is available electronically on a Storage Area Network.

to ensure that any new documents are automatically uploaded and available on the

environmental services. Lack of immediate access to inform ation in two different premises meant the council only had a

Mid Beds has also introduced remote working with IP telephony. The fact that all information and documents are accessible from the records management repository and

Web site for customers.

"EDRMS is the bedrock of our organi足 sation and has proved to be the first building block in enabling transformational change

customer service contact centre dealing with

the rapid access mass storage system has

and driving efficiencies," added Clive Jones.

Before the EDRMS was installed customers had to go in person to individual departments, such as planning, council tax or

Country-wide access to a central document pool Bulgarian Ministry of Justice introduces DocuWare 5 The Bulgarian Ministry of Justice has selected DocuWare for installation at about 150 locations with 600 concurrent licences.

Everyone working for the Ministry and the courts will be able to easily organise paper and digital data through one central document pool.

The decision to use a document management system was made as part of an international project set forth by the European Union, the Phare Programme. The goal of this project is to automate the organi足 sation and procedures of all structures of the Ministry of Justice in Bulgaria. All integrated locations should w ork with the same standards and on the same level. The Bulgarian M inistry o f Justice opted for integrated document and w orkflow management from the German specialist DocuWare due to the easy usability and administration of their system.

CASE STUDIES

A critical aspect in their decision making was the ability to handle documents of any format - whether paper or digital - and from any source, and to store them together electronically. DocuWare also met their criteria for workflow functionality and rapid access to one central document pool. The entire DocuWare installation will include about 150 locations with 600 concurrent

Justice and the courts, so that all locations will access one central document pool. Their existing Oracle database can also directly feed into DocuWare 5.

As a first step, existing documents will be progressively scanned with internal resources and integrated in the new electronic file cabinet. Dimitar Tzvetanov, the executive director of the Registry Agency, Ministry of

licences.

The Ministry of Justice began its search

Justice, Bulgaria, comments on the new software solution: "By storing all of our

with a set of clearly defined requirements.

After the contracts were signed, Nemetschek

documents and providing access to this central document pool from all of our locations, we are hoping to greatly simplify

O O D , a DocuWare Authorized Partner based in Sofia, was charged with the tasks of analysing the previous document workflow processes. They also had to define the file cabinet structure, to implement the system and to train the administrators and system users.

The goal is to integrate the Ministry of

our work processes. O ur goal is to provide better service whilst still achieving a saving in time and warehousing space."

Contact: Patricia Herion, DocuWare AG, Therese-Giehse-Platz 2, 82110 Germering, Germany Tel: +49 (0)89-89 44 33-54 Email: patricia. herion@docuware. com

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21

Your Family History improved as largest online genealogical data supplier goes didital MyFamily.com, lnc.,entrusts the scanning of their valuable film to nextScan scanners An early leader in making family history available online, MyFamily.com,Inc. features

companies in North America, with a growth of 102 7% over a five year period.

These records include US and UK census information, immigration passenger lists,

a suite of premium content sites that have

b irth /d e a th

over 1.5 million paid subscriptions and more than 10 million people using their web resources every month.

newspapers, border crossings, passport applications, land records, maps and patent applications.

These

sites

include

MyFamily.com,

Ancestry.com,Genealogy.com, Ancestry.co.uk and RootsWeb.com.

"The Eclipse scanners from nextScan have the better,faster and newer hardware and software that we need to process and improve some of these degraded images."

-

Jack Reese, MyFamily.com

and one another, by providing the tools and

MyFamily.com has been ranked in the

content that enable these people to find the information they need. W hat this all means, behind the scenes of these various websites,

2003 Deloitte Technology Fast 500 as one of the 500 fastest grow ing technology

is making as much data as possible available online for those researching family history.

read. Most of the images that MyFamily.com needed to scan were imaged decades ago, and the original source content that was filmed many times was over 100 years old.

images to an electronic form to make available online. Three years ago, and after much evaluation of the products available in the market, MyFamily.com determined that nextScan Technology was the best fit to keep up with a magnitude.

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

A

never-ending

task

of

this

Visit www.nextscan.com

OIT UK’s Total Solution for Document Management?

Scalability to address corporate/enterprise needs 4 1 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 4 1 Assured service levels 4 V Operational efficiency IV Standardisation

data,

Millions of these records are on microfilm.

Many are old, degraded and very difficult to

I s n ’ t it t i me you f o u n d out a b o u t

4V Migration to web-based and portal based business A Improvement and enhancement to current business streams

m arriage

MyFamily.com needed the best method and equipment to scan and convert these

The key to MyFamily.com's success is their ability to connect families with their history,

Optical Image Technology UK provides:

records,

q

cube

ComenlCopn^

onMI

b e y o n d th e C o n te n t P o r t a l ^ Im a g in g ' EDM HSM W o rk flo w i XML F o r m s ^

^ C O L D /F ic h e ^ ^ f l

O I T U K LTD Momhor nl the tha Cam IOCrai ir\ Member of Genus Group

Hammond Close 'N un eato n - Warwickshire -C V 11 6R Y • U.K. Telephone (024) 7625 4 940 • Facsimile (024) 7638 2319 E-mail sales@oituk.com • W eb-Site www.oituk.com

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CASE STUDIES

Hybrid imaging system proves time-, money- and labour saver A relatively small system provides large benefits for county deed registry office Kathi Guay, Registrar o f the Merrimack

originals while they were being filmed. W e

G uay realized it was time to look for a new

County Registry of Deeds in the capital of New

also couldn't send the originals back until we

improved, less labour-intensive and more time-

Hampshire, lived in fear o f the day when her

had finished a roll o f film, had it processed

sensitive system. Ideally she wanted a solution

microfilm technician might decide to retire or

and checked," said Guay. And that was before

that

move. "I don't think I would have been able to

a real estate boom that moved properties

microfilming to occur in one pass, that would

find someone w illing to do her job with our old

faster and faster, creating more and more

a llo w

equipment and setup."

paperwork. Recently the Registry office was

immediate quality checking, and the return of

handling a variety o f land

original documents in a shorter period of time.

The then existing system consisted of an

records and

operator who sat in a darkroom with original

processing between

documents

about 1,000 to 3,5 00 pages - daily.

and

a

small

camera.

The

documents were fed one page at a time. Once upon a time, the system may have been sufficient but that day had long passed. "W e had to use the original document for filming, which meant no one else could access these

130-280 documents -

In addition to personnel worries, a not holding

on

to

o rig in a l

documents for an overly long period o f time,

MORE

in-house

both

processing

scanning of

film

solution

that w ould

incorporate

duplication of effort going on, and speed up the entire records retention process.

"W e were scanning the originals into our imaging system and then repeating a similar when

we

put

them

through

microfilming. W e knew there had to be a better w ay that wasn't so time-consuming," remembers Guay.

BizTech developed a Reference Archive approach for Merrimack County that included

LESS

View and annotate both TIFF and PDF document files.

a Kodak i9 62 0 Archive W riter, Kodak Proscar Archive Processor, and Kodak i7 30 0 Film Scanner.

The i9 6 2 0 takes scanned images and puts them onto microfilm for long-term

The Prizm Viewer* provides powerful document image display, annotation, manipulation, navigation, and printing through a toolbar within your Web-based browser.

PRIZM' VIEWER

B » *A —

IN L E S S TIM E

View over 20 image file types without opening and closing multiple software applications.

90 .

/v/Ff/rS

-«a

I

_________

*»!««•

B*«

WITH LE SS OUPLICRTION

View and annotate document image files managed by your document management system, complementing without replicating features.

Prostar A rchive

record

processor

quickly processes and develops the film and allows for immediate quality checks and does again if needed. The i7 3 0 0 pulls older images

onto a network for easy electronic access.

Better work conditions and productivity

t a p - o - i - m w c g i w w i — «U 'aT,

OrmBHo D o fk

In addition to making in-house processing easy and practical, the new system has improved w orking

Group different image file types into one single file to view and print as if it were one multi-page document, without opening and closing multiple image files.

G E T M O RE

The

form at so that they can be printed or moved

■ /♦!/♦! om H. .....:.............

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retention.

from microfilm and puts them into a digital

®«j & * ip -

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O i-

DO M O RE > WITH LE SS EFFORT

w ith

microfilm and digital images, eliminate the

process

IV I U f l Em

SEE MORE

and

The County Registry asked an outside im aging

inconsiderable factor in the mountains of New and

allow

provider, BizTech Solutions, to create a hybrid

Overdue time for change

Hampshire,

w ould

conditions. "There's no

longer any need for an employee to sit in a darkroom and flip pages," said Guay. "She is freed up to help with other functions so we are more productive. The savings in personnel time

Download a Free Trial at www.pegasusimaging.com Software Development Kits and Image Cleanup Applications Also Available

that can be spent on other projects alone is impressive."

She also noted, "W e've gone back and rescanned a number of our older volumes of records and now are able to write film for these records. W e typically are running 6-10 rolls o f film a day.

"O u r

productivity

has

im proved

so

much..... we've even been able to do some filming for other counties, which gives them a backup of their records on film. W e now also provide the service for private entities who

P E G R S U S I M R E IN G CORPORRTION

TH E L E H D E R I N D I G I T R L I M R G I N G

want to buy our records on film ."

She noted

still another benefit, "now that we don't have to hold on to originals for long, w e're saving

WWW.PEGnSUSIMRGIN6.CDM o r c a l l 0 1 - 8 1 3 - 8 7 5 - 7 5 7 5

CASE STUDIES

space in our offices, too."

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tJ'a j! 2& John Irwin joins Bisley John Irwin, former M.D. of Ofquest, has

growing ever since. Bisley's commitment to investment in product design and manufac­ turing technology, they claim, is unrivalled in the industry; a policy that enables Bisley to

joined Bisley as Commercial Director. Initially John will oversee all Sales, Marketing and Design functions across the Group in addition to Bisley's new subsidiary Tract.

Tony Brown, Bisley's owner says "I am

meet the changing demands of the steel storage market and continuously improve product quality.

delighted that John has agreed to join us. He brings considerable experience in operating at a senior level and will help us with the next phase of our development."

The Bisley name is famous for storage. By employing its experience and expertise, Bisley has produced a technically advanced

John Irwin said, "I have always admired what Tony has achieved at Bisley and I am

Bisley is now the UK's best selling brand of

looking forward with great enthusiasm to being involved in the future."

office storage. Bisley has produced specialist products from sheet steel and has been

range of products designed to meet today's storage needs and into the future.

Visit www.bisley.co.uk

N ew VP M arketing for DICOM Group Andrew Pery brings 24 years Software marketing experience DICOM Group pic, a global leader of Information Capture and Business

markets.

"Throughout his career, A ndrew

Communications solutions, has announced the appointment of Andrew Pery as its new

demonstrated measurable developing strategic marketing drive business growth. We are w ill have the same impact

vice president of marketing. Andrew joined DICOM Group on 1 July 2006.

has

success in initiatives to confident he for DICOM

Group," said Rob Klatell, chief executive officer, DICOM Group. "A ndrew brings valuable experience in the software industry, and we look forward to having him work with us to further enhance our industry-leading position."

Prior to joining DICOM Group, Andrew served as chief marketing officer and senior

A ndrew w ill oversee all strategic marketing initiatives including corporate and product brand development. His duties include market analysis and development, as well as increasing brand visibility and reach into the company's existing and emerging

vice president of marketing at Hummingbird Ltd., an established provider of enterprise content management solutions. During his nearly 15 years with Hummingbird and its acquired companies, Fulcrum Technologies and PC DOCS, Andrew had a broad range of responsibilities and contributed greatly to the successful repositioning of Hummingbird

in the enterprise content management space with particular emphasis on a comprehensive product re-branding and market diversifi­ cation strategy.

"DICO M Group is exceptionally well positioned to take advantage of accelerating demand for information capture and communications solutions that support business process automation across key vertical markets," said Andrew Pery. "The opportunity for increasing our footprint in the market

is

unprecedented.

O ur

valued

partners and customers recognise that intelligent content capture and business communication are vital to the efficient management and preservation of corporate information. Organisations today are looking to us to empower them with solutions that reduce operating expenses, manage risk and improve customer satisfaction."

For more information, visit http://w ww .dicomgroup. com.

Estenson named VP of M arketing at SpaceSaver Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin in June Dennis Estenson was named vice president of marketing at SpaceSaver Corporation.

Estenson will participate as a member of the executive team and be responsible for developing and executing focused marketing

College in Public Communications and Business Management.

Paul Olsen, SpaceSaver President, says, "We feel fortunate to have Dennis join our team and think his impact will be immediate, considering his tenure with Integre."

strategies. He will work closely with the product development teams, sales and distri­ bution to develop innovative solutions to meet

leading manufacturer o f high-density mobile

market needs.

shelving

Prior to joining SpaceSaver, Dennis was the Director of Account Service for Integre,

1972, SpaceSaver has successfully produced

SpaceSaver C orporation

is the world's

storage and filing systems, as w ell as steel and

related

accessories.

Since

storage solutions for all types o f applications.

Contact: Abbey Freeman, SpaceSaver Email: afreeman@spacesaver.com Visit our Directory on www.green-sheet.net/directory

Spacesaver's marketing communications agency. He holds a B.B.A. degree from Luther

PEOPLE

Information from every angle: bringing paper into the fold

By David Thorpe, Director of Business Strategy EMEA , Vignette

Information is the lifeblood of every company. But when that information exists in the form of large quantities of paper documents, organisations face the risk of their business processes grinding to a halt if they are not able to digitise these documents and electronically manage all of their information. Implementing technology to enable this, however, is not enough in itself. Unless the digitised documents are easily accessible to authorised customers, employees, partners or suppliers, their true value cannot be realised.

As many companies' operations become more and more global, and as regulatory mandates require them to store ever greater quantities of information, businesses are facing a potentially crippling content explosion. At the same time, with the business environment becoming increasingly competitive, companies face the need to realise resource and cost savings and differentiate themselves from the competition with high levels of customer service.

If crucial customer documentation is used and stored in paper form, it is extremely difficult to meet these business needs. Not only does processing, managing and filing paper-based documents manually take up valuable resource, but it is extremely challenging to improve customer service when content is in paper form and it is thus divorced from other, related, information in digital form. This challenge is part of a greater issue that many organisations face - the need to make up-to-date content available to all their varied audiences, whether internal or external, in an efficient and compelling manner.

Information-critical and paper-intensive business processes are common in many industries, but particularly in financial services and healthcare organisations. In the financial services sector, organisations are required under European regulations to verify the identity of individuals; as a result, opening a new account, taking out a loan or mortgage, or putting together a new insurance policy generates significant quantities of paperwork.

Administering and managing these documents in paper form requires substantial resource and the associated manual business processes can take a considerable length of time; and as players within this competitive industry are all too aware, business efficiency and customer

FEATURE

accurately, rather than needing to search out the service are critical to success.

Within healthcare organisations around the relevant paper-based files and then call the globe, patient treatment is based upon the customer back.

Imaging and workflow solutions enable availability of huge amounts of information, whether these are X-rays, prescriptions or companies to be flexible about their employee patient records. Throughout the treatment and distribution. With documents in paper form, aftercare of a single individual, these documents sorting and filing is often carried out in bulk by will often be needed by various different a dedicated team of employees in one experts, departments and even different organi­ geographical location. However, digitised documents made available through a portal can sations. If records are in paper form, this will inevitably have consequences for the speed the easily be managed, shared and processed by employees in different locations. Since imaging quality of patient care.

To alleviate these growing issues, organi­ and workflow allows faster processing of sations are beginning to realise the exceptional documentation, it also enables companies to increase profits through higher turnover rather benefits of imaging and workflow solutions.

Imaging and workflow allows the automation of than through headcount reduction. Finally, high-volume, paper-intensive processes. This is managing, sharing and storing documents in achieved by transforming paper documents into digital form means that implementing business digital ones through imaging. These can then be continuity plans and meeting regulatory developed and processed electronically, using mandates requiring records of business processes is much more straightforward and sophisticated workflow processes which transform previously manual business processes less time-consuming.

Within the financial sector, this has obvious into automated ones.

However, whilst this brings huge benefits, it is implications for streamlining and speeding up not enough in itself. In order to realise the value the processes behind opening new accounts, of their information, it is vital that organisations policies, loans or mortgages. Additionally, choose a solution that allows this content to be policy and account administration (such as securely and dynamically delivered through a renewals) can be automated, reducing the error portal-based composite application (which often inherent in these processes and freeing up aggregates up-to-date information such as staff to focus on more valuable activities.

Healthcare organisations can also realise digitised documents and images along with content from various other sources, such as e- significant benefits. The ability to digitise and mails or content management and CRM electronically share a whole range of images systems, and presents it in a single view via an and documents helps to reduce patient waiting employee intranet, an extranet or a website). times and frees up staff to focus on patient care, These composite applications can be person­ rather than spending time searching out alised to ensure that the audience's online records. Medical claims processing is also made simpler, as medical documents such as doctor's experience of that information is as efficient, certificates can be shared electronically, so targeted and rich as possible.

The impact of implementing imaging and claims are processed quickly and more workflow solutions in this way can be massive. efficiently.

So, the technology is already out there to Digitising paper documents and automating previously manual processes can result in enable companies to transform their business processes and the way they communicate with significant resource savings. If digitised documents are then combined with content from customers and employees as well as suppliers partners.

Now companies must other sources, and associated with information and captured from the multiple channels used to acknowledge that the true value of paper-based interact both internally and externally, they can documents can only be realised through be delivered through a composite application to digitising them, automating the associated processes, and delivering them along with upthe appropriate audience. By reducing errors, speeding up processing times, and making the to-date information from other sources through most up-to-date information available instantly composite applications. If businesses embrace to employees and customers in this way, there is the capabilities of imaging and workflow along a direct effect on business efficiency as well as with making information available online, it will customer service levels (and, as a result, allow them to become efficient, effective and customer-centric organisations which can truly customer retention).

For example, the single view of all relevant thrive in today's competitive business information provided by a composite environment. application allows employees in a call centre to Contact: Vignette on 01628 772000 or by email: euroinfo@vignette.com respond to customer queries immediately and

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