Paperless office

Last updated

A paperless office (or paper-free office) is a work environment in which the use of paper is eliminated or greatly reduced. This is done by converting documents and other papers into digital form, a process known as digitization. Proponents claim that "going paperless" can save money, boost productivity, save space, make documentation and information sharing easier, keep personal information more secure, and help the environment. The concept can be extended to communications outside the office as well.

Contents

Definition

The IBM 2260 Console-ecran IBM 251-3-006.jpg
The IBM 2260

The paperless world was a publicist's slogan, intended to describe the office of the future. It was facilitated by the popularization of video display computer terminals like the 1964 IBM 2260. An early prediction of the paperless office was made in a 1975 Business Week article. [1] The idea was that office automation would make paper redundant for routine tasks such as record-keeping and bookkeeping, and it came to prominence with the introduction of the personal computer. While the prediction of a PC on every desk was remarkably prophetic, the "paperless office" was not. Improvements in printers and photocopiers made it much easier to reproduce documents in bulk, causing the worldwide use of office paper to more than double from 1980 to 2000. [2] This was attributed to the increased ease of document production [2] and widespread use of electronic communication, which resulted in users receiving large numbers of documents that were often printed out.

Since about 2000, at least in the US, the use of office paper has leveled off and is now decreasing, which has been attributed to a generation shift; [2] younger people are believed[ by whom? ] to be less inclined to print out documents, and more inclined to read them on a full-color interactive display screen.[ citation needed ] According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the average office worker generates approximately two pounds of paper and paperboard products each day. [3]

The term "The Paperless Office" was first used in commerce by Micronet, Inc., an automated office equipment company, in 1978. [4]

History

Traditional offices have paper-based filing systems, which may include filing cabinets, folders, shelves, microfiche systems, and drawing cabinets, all of which require maintenance, equipment, considerable space, and are resource-intensive. In contrast, a paperless office could simply have a desk, chair, and computer (with a modest amount of local or network storage), and all of the information would be stored in digital form. Speech recognition and speech synthesis could also be used to facilitate the storage of information digitally.[ citation needed ]

Once computer data is printed on paper, it becomes out-of-sync with computer database updates. Paper is difficult to search and arrange in multiple sort arrangements, and similar paper data stored in multiple locations is often difficult and costly to track and update. A paperless office would have a single-source collection point for distributed database updates, and a publish-subscribe system. Modern computer screens make reading less exhausting for the eyes; a laptop computer can be used on a couch or in bed. With tablet computers and smartphones, with many other low-cost value-added features like video animation, video clips, and full-length movies, many argue that paper is now obsolete to all but those who are resistant to technological change. eBooks are often free or low cost compared to hard-copy books.[ citation needed ]

Others argue that paper will always have a place because it affords different uses than screens. [5]

Environmental impact of paper

Some believe that paper product manufacturing contributes significantly to deforestation and man-made climate change, and produces greenhouse gases. Others argue that paper product manufacturing, especially in North America, supports the ecological and economic balance of sustainable forestry. According to the 2018 American Forest & Paper Association Sustainability Report, paper manufacturing decreased greenhouse gas emission by 20% in an eleven-year period. [6] [7] Measures such as recycling can help reduce the environmental impact of paper. Some paper production outside of North America may lead to air pollution with the release of nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2), [8] and carbon dioxide (CO2). Waste water discharged from pulp and paper mills outside of North America may contain solids, nutrients, and dissolved organic matter that are classified as pollutants. Nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus can cause or exacerbate eutrophication of fresh water bodies.[ citation needed ]

Printing inks and toners are very expensive and use environment-damaging volatile organic compounds, heavy metals and non-renewable oils, although standards for the amount of heavy metals in ink have been set by some regulatory bodies. [9] [ which? ] Deinking recycled paper pulp results in a waste slurry, sometimes weighing 22% of the weight of the recycled wastepaper, which may go to landfills. [10]

Environmental impact of electronics

A paperless work environment requires an infrastructure of electronic components to enable the production, transmission, and storage of information. [11] The industry that produces these components is one of the least sustainable and most environmentally damaging sectors in the world. [12] The process of manufacturing electronic hardware involves the extraction of precious metals and the production of plastic on an industrial scale. [13] The transmission and storage of digital data is facilitated by data centers, which consume significant amounts of the electricity supply of a host country. [14]

Eliminating paper via automation and electronic forms automation

The need for paper is eliminated by using online systems, such as replacing index cards and rolodexes with databases, typed letters and faxes with email, and reference books with the internet. [15] Another way to eliminate paper is to automate paper-based processes that rely on forms, applications and surveys to capture and share data. This method is referred to as "electronic forms" or e-forms and is typically accomplished by using existing print-perfect documents in electronic format to allow for prefilling of existing data, capturing data manually entered online by end-users, providing secure methods to submit form data to processing systems, and digitally signing the electronic documents without printing.

The technologies that may be used with electronic forms automation include –

One of the main issues that has kept companies from adopting paperwork automation is difficulty capturing digital signatures in a cost-effective and compliant manner. The E-Sign Act of 2000 in the United States provided that a document cannot be rejected on the basis of an electronic signature and required all companies to accept digital signatures on documents. Today there are sufficient cost-effective options available, including solutions that do not require end-users to purchase hardware or software.

One of the great benefits of this type of software is that OCR (Optical character recognition) can be used, which enables the user to search the full text of any file. Additionally, user-defined tags can be added to each file to make it easier to locate certain files throughout the entire system.

Some paperless software offers a scanner, hardware and software and works seamlessly in separating and organizing important documents. Paperless software might also allow people to enable online signatures for important documents that can be used in any small business or office. Document management and archiving systems do offer some methods of automating forms. Typically, the point in which document management systems start working with a document is when the document is scanned and/or sent into the system. Many document management systems include the ability to read documents via optical character recognition and use that data within the document management system's framework. While this technology is essential to achieving a paperless office [15] it does not address the processes that generate paper in the first place.

Digitizing paper-based documents

Another key aspect of the paperless office philosophy is the conversion of paper documents, photos, engineering plans, microfiche and all the other paper based systems to digital documents. Technologies that may be used for this include scanners, digital mail solutions, book copiers, wide format scanners (for engineering drawings), microfiche scanners, fax to PDF conversion, online post offices, multifunction printers and document management systems. Each of these technologies uses software that converts the raster formats (bitmaps) into other forms depending on need. Generally, they involve some form of image compression technology that produces smaller raster images or use optical character recognition (OCR) to convert a document into text. A combination of OCR and raster is used to enable search ability while maintaining the original form of the document. An important step is the labeling related to paper-to-digital conversion and the cataloging of scanned documents. Some technologies have been developed to do this, but they generally involve either human cataloging or automated indexing on the OCR document. However, scanners and software continue to improve with the development of small, portable scanners that are able to scan doubled-sided A4 documents at around 30-35ppm to a raster format (typically TIFF fax 4 or PDF).[ citation needed ]

An issue faced by those wishing to take the paperless philosophy to the limit has been copyright laws. These laws may restrict the transfer of documents protected by copyright from one medium to another, such as converting books to electronic format.

Securing and tracing documents

As awareness of identity theft and data breaches became more widespread, new laws and regulations were enacted, requiring companies that manage or store personally identifiable information to take proper care of those documents. Paperless office systems are easier to secure than traditional filing cabinets, [16] and can track individual accesses to each document.

Difficulties in adopting the paperless office

A major difficulty in "going paperless" is that much of a business's communication is with other businesses and individuals, as opposed to just being internal. Electronic communication requires both the sender and the recipient to have easy access to appropriate software and hardware. Costs and temporary productivity losses when converting to a paperless office are also a factor, as are government regulations, industry standards, legal requirements, and business policies which may also slow down the change. Businesses may encounter technological difficulties such as file format compatibility, longevity of digital documents, system stability, and employees and clients not having appropriate technological skills.[ citation needed ]

For these reasons, while there may be a reduction of paper, some uses of paper will likely remain indefinitely. [17] However, a 2015 questionnaire [18] suggested that nearly half of small/medium-sized businesses believed they were or could go paperless by the end of that year.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Optical character recognition</span> Computer recognition of visual text

Optical character recognition or optical character reader (OCR) is the electronic or mechanical conversion of images of typed, handwritten or printed text into machine-encoded text, whether from a scanned document, a photo of a document, a scene photo or from subtitle text superimposed on an image.

A document management system (DMS) is usually a computerized system used to store, share, track and manage files or documents. Some systems include history tracking where a log of the various versions created and modified by different users is recorded. The term has some overlap with the concepts of content management systems. It is often viewed as a component of enterprise content management (ECM) systems and related to digital asset management, document imaging, workflow systems and records management systems.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Multi-function printer</span> Office machine

An MFP, multi-functional, all-in-one (AIO), or multi-function device (MFD), is an office machine which incorporates the functionality of multiple devices in one, so as to have a smaller footprint in a home or small business setting, or to provide centralized document management/distribution/production in a large-office setting. A typical MFP may act as a combination of some or all of the following devices: email, fax, photocopier, printer, scanner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Image scanner</span> Device that optically scans images, printed text

An image scanner—often abbreviated to just scanner—is a device that optically scans images, printed text, handwriting or an object and converts it to a digital image. Commonly used in offices are variations of the desktop flatbed scanner where the document is placed on a glass window for scanning. Hand-held scanners, where the device is moved by hand, have evolved from text scanning "wands" to 3D scanners used for industrial design, reverse engineering, test and measurement, orthotics, gaming and other applications. Mechanically driven scanners that move the document are typically used for large-format documents, where a flatbed design would be impractical.

An electronic document is any electronic media content that is intended to be used in either an electronic form or as printed output. Originally, any computer data were considered as something internal — the final data output was always on paper. However, the development of computer networks has made it so that in most cases it is much more convenient to distribute electronic documents than printed ones. The improvements in electronic visual display technologies made it possible to view documents on a screen instead of printing them.

Optical mark recognition (OMR) collects data from people by identifying markings on a paper. OMR enables the hourly processing of hundreds or even thousands of documents. For instance, students may remember completing quizzes or surveys that required them to use a pencil to fill in bubbles on paper. A teacher or teacher's aide would fill out the form, then feed the cards into a system that grades or collects data from them.

Document processing is a field of research and a set of production processes aimed at making an analog document digital. Document processing does not simply aim to photograph or scan a document to obtain a digital image, but also to make it digitally intelligible. This includes extracting the structure of the document or the layout and then the content, which can take the form of text or images. The process can involve traditional computer vision algorithms, convolutional neural networks or manual labor. The problems addressed are related to semantic segmentation, object detection, optical character recognition (OCR), handwritten text recognition (HTR) and, more broadly, transcription, whether automatic or not. The term can also include the phase of digitizing the document using a scanner and the phase of interpreting the document, for example using natural language processing (NLP) or image classification technologies. It is applied in many industrial and scientific fields for the optimization of administrative processes, mail processing and the digitization of analog archives and historical documents.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Data entry clerk</span>

A data entry clerk, also known as data preparation and control operator, data registration and control operator, and data preparation and registration operator, is a member of staff employed to enter or update data into a computer system. Data is often entered into a computer from paper documents using a keyboard. The keyboards used can often have special keys and multiple colors to help in the task and speed up the work. Proper ergonomics at the workstation is a common topic considered.

Enterprise content management (ECM) extends the concept of content management by adding a timeline for each content item and, possibly, enforcing processes for its creation, approval, and distribution. Systems using ECM generally provide a secure repository for managed items, analog or digital. They also include one methods for importing content to bring manage new items, and several presentation methods to make items available for use. Although ECM content may be protected by digital rights management (DRM), it is not required. ECM is distinguished from general content management by its cognizance of the processes and procedures of the enterprise for which it is created.

A fax server is a system installed in a local area network (LAN) server that allows computer users whose computers are attached to the LAN to send and receive fax messages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Microform</span> Forms with microreproductions of documents

Microforms are scaled-down reproductions of documents, typically either films or paper, made for the purposes of transmission, storage, reading, and printing. Microform images are commonly reduced to about 4% or 125 of the original document size. For special purposes, greater optical reductions may be used.

Intelligent character recognition (ICR) is used to extract handwritten text from image images using ICR, also referred to as intelligent OCR. It is a more sophisticated type of OCR technology that recognizes different handwriting styles and fonts to intelligently interpret data on forms and physical documents.

Information International, Inc., commonly referred to as Triple-I or III, was an early computer technology company.

CuneiForm Cognitive OpenOCR is a freely distributed open-source OCR system developed by Russian software company Cognitive Technologies.

Forms processing is a process by which one can capture information entered into data fields and convert it into an electronic format. This can be done manually or automatically, but the general process is that hard copy data is filled out by humans and then "captured" from their respective fields and entered into a database or other electronic format.

Document Capture Software refers to applications that provide the ability and feature set to automate the process of scanning paper documents or importing electronic documents, often for the purposes of feeding advanced document classification and data collection processes. Most scanning hardware, both scanners and copiers, provides the basic ability to scan to any number of image file formats, including: PDF, TIFF, JPG, BMP, etc. This basic functionality is augmented by document capture software, which can add efficiency and standardization to the process.

Enterprise forms automation is a company-wide computer system or set of systems for managing, distributing, completing, and processing paper-based forms, applications, surveys, contracts, and other documents. It plays a vital role in the concept of a paperless office.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Digital mailroom</span> Automation of incoming mail processes

Digital mailroom is the automation of incoming mail processes. Using document scanning and document capture technologies, companies can digitise incoming mail and automate the classification and distribution of mail within the organization. Both paper and electronic mail (email) can be managed through the same process allowing companies to standardize their internal mail distribution procedures and adhere to company compliance policies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OCRFeeder</span>

OCRFeeder is an optical character recognition suite for GNOME, which also supports virtually any command-line OCR engine, such as CuneiForm, GOCR, Ocrad and Tesseract. It converts paper documents to digital document files and can serve to make them accessible to visually impaired users.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OCR Systems</span> American computing company

OCR Systems, Inc., was an American computer hardware manufacturer and software publisher dedicated to optical character recognition technologies. The company's first product, the System 1000 in 1970, was used by numerous large corporations for bill processing and mail sorting. Following a series of pitfalls in the 1970s and early 1980s, founder Theodor Herzl Levine put the company in the hands of Gregory Boleslavsky and Vadim Brikman, the company's vice presidents and recent immigrants from the Soviet Ukraine, who were able to turn OCR System's fortunes around and expand its employee base. The company released the software-based OCR application ReadRight for DOS, later ported to Windows, in the late 1980s. Adobe Inc. bought the company in 1992.

References

  1. "The Office of the Future", Business Week (2387): 48–70, 30 June 1975
  2. 1 2 3 "Technological comebacks: Not dead, just resting", The Economist, 9 October 2008
  3. "Wastes – Resource Conservation – Common Wastes & Materials – Paper Recycling". US Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieved 26 January 2013.
  4. The Paperless Office Trademark Registration, United States Patent and Trademark Office , retrieved 13 December 2015
  5. Sellen, A. J., & Harper, R. H. R. (2003). The myth of the paperless office. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press
  6. "American Forest & Paper Association 2018 Sustainability Report" (PDF). American Forest & Paper Association.
  7. "American Forest & Paper Association Sustainability Report". American Forest & Paper Association. 2018. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  8. "Air Pollutants of Concern". New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services. Retrieved 26 January 2013.
  9. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 May 2007. Retrieved 27 May 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)[ full citation needed ]
  10. "Recycling Paper and Glass". US Department of Energy. September 2006. Retrieved 30 October 2007.
  11. "The digital economy's environmental footprint is threatening the planet". The Conversation. 8 December 2019.
  12. "Digital Technologies Are Part of the Climate Change Problem". ICTworks. 20 February 2020.
  13. "Smartphones Are Killing The Planet Faster Than Anyone Expected". Fast Company. 27 March 2018.
  14. "Why Ireland's data centre boom is complicating climate efforts". Irish Times. 6 January 2020.
  15. 1 2 Walker, Richard (7 August 2009), "Achieving The Paperless Office" (PDF), Efficient Technology Inc, archived from the original (PDF) on 23 December 2018, retrieved 4 September 2009
  16. Hashmi, Ruheena. "E-Office: An Eco-friendly Advent of Cloud Computing Technology" . Retrieved 16 August 2016.
  17. Sellen, A. J., & Harper, R. H. R. (2003). The myth of the paperless office. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press.
  18. "Nearly Half of Businesses are or could go Paperless in 2015". margolis.co.uk. Retrieved 13 July 2015.

Further reading