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 the profit motive (such as government offices or nonprofit groups) can benefit from EDIS as they are able to accomplish more tasks with fewer people.
Another benefit of EDIS is the ability to handle information more effectively. Not only does EDIS make it possible for a company to file invoices (for example) without a paper copy in several files, but it makes access to that information more readily available. This can be especially critical in environments where there is a great deal of telephone interac...