Document Imaging Systems

For years, the computer industry has promised business a "paperless environment," yet many professionals find that they are confronted with more paper than ever in their everyday work. As computer hardware has become less expensive and scanner technology has become more efficient, a new type of computer application, document imaging, has emerged which offers businesses the benefits of a system which, while not entirely paperless, greatly increases the efficiency with which forms and documents are handled. This research examines electronic document imaging systems (EDIS), and considers the benefits, costs and implementation associated with them.

Electronic document imaging takes traditional paper forms and places them on a computer system where they can be accessed for annotation and text extraction, but where they can also be routed, tracked and processed more efficiently than a paper process allows. In addition, document imaging can result in forms that are never committed to paper, but which are designed, used and processed entirely on-line.

One of the primary advantages of using EDIS is that of processing information more efficiently, which improves productivity and profitability. Using EDIS can help companies strengthen existing lines of business by bringing new products to market more quickly, and it can help free up resources so that the company can become more competitive. Organizations which are not driven by

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ay that EDIS can enter the organization. When conducting a workflow analysis, it is important to focus not merely on the various pieces of paper which flow through the organization, but on the information contained on that paper and required by other people in the company. For example, the workflow associated with the purchasing process may identify several copies of an invoice being distributed: one to accounts payable (for payment), one to the originating purchaser (for approval) and one to central accounting for archiving. With a document imaging system, the invoice received from the vendor would be scanned into the system, approved on-line by the originating purchaser, and forwarded electronically for payment to accounts payable. A sophisticated system would receive the invoice electronically from the vendor and be routed electronically, with the information triggering queuing the invoice for payment in the next check run. The only paper processed at the customer site is a check to be sent to the vendor (and even payment arrangements can be worked out electronically). After performing a workflow audit, some companies will choose not to implement a document imaging system. This may be because of cost considerations (st

Category: Science - D