Government Department Profits from The DocFinity® Suite of Document Management Solutions

They protect the United Kingdom from the transfer of public health threats. They shield their neighborhoods from smuggled illegal drugs. They guard travelers by eliminating all weapons from airports and shipping docks. This Government Department is one of fourteen individual units in the UK who serve their country in this fashion.

Located in the north of England, where defending the UK from prohibited merchandise, such as weapons, drugs, questionable animals, obscene material, etc., is only one of their duties. They are also responsible for collecting tariffs on all merchandise entering or leaving the country and enforcing tax restrictions on all imported goods. Each year, they have over 250,000 import entries, each one requiring an average of ten documents, which must be kept for three years. Managing their paper situation was beginning to be as difficult as managing the millions of travelers passing through their watch. With the guarantee of a reply to any complaint within ten working days, the management decided that manually filing and maintaining over 2.5 million documents per year just wasn’t keeping up with their pace.

They began their search for an electronic document management system in 1995. After reviewing several solutions, The Department selected modules from Optical Image Technology, Inc.’s (OIT) DocFinity Suite of Document Management Software that was purchased from and installed by OITUK, OIT’s European Distributor. OIT products selected: DocFinity COLD-ERM (Computer Output to Laser Disk-Enterprise Report Management), DocFinity Imaging, DocFinity Workflow, and DocFinity HSM (Hierarchical Storage Management).

legality of electronic storage

The introduction of an electronic document management system has presented the opportunity to reduce costs on paper filing by replacing active filing systems with deep storage. Their long-term goal is to eliminate their paper filing system, but this is subject to UK statutory requirement. The Department must retain all documents for three years from the last inquiry.

Another issue is that the documentation itself is complex. The Department must stick closely to set procedures that govern its completion. The importer or agent completes an import entry form that describes the goods, their value and country of origin. Supporting documentation, such as invoices, certificates and import licenses must also be submitted. All of this paperwork must then be recorded and filed by The Department’s Entry Processing Units (EPUs) before tariffs can be collected and goods finally cleared.

Further complications are introduced by goods imported on a temporary basis. For example, merchandise used for exhibitions or tradeshows, will be exported when the show is complete. In these cases different documentation must be completed and retained ready for when the goods leave the UK again.

scanning documents

When the Department came to choose an electronic document management system, it clearly had a number of demanding requirements. The system had to store considerable volumes of information, provide sophisticated indexing facilities to make retrieval of information simple and quick, and also provide tools to monitor and control workflow through an organization ensuring that all cases are handled in a timely and efficient manner. Based on SQL, OIT is a fully integrated, Windows-based, enterprise-wide solution that manages all forms of documentation. It is also based on a client-server architecture.

Since the legal admissibility of scanned images is still unclear, documentation has to be retained in its paper format as well as electronically. However, the OIT system means that the Department’s staff does not actually have to deal with the paper on a day-to-day basis and can deal with inquiries much more effectively without having to leave their desks.

Information and documents are scanned into the document management system by a special team at the Department. These individuals are responsible for the preparation and scanning of around 10,000 documents daily. Additional employees are responsible for indexing the documents with, for example, an entry ID number and a code relating to any post clearance action required, so that they may be retrieved using a range of different criteria. The ID number is used both to identify cases and to monitor the workflow documents as they move through various processes.

CD storage

Initially, the documentation is scanned onto the file server. This information is then downloaded overnight and burnt onto CD for storage in the 500 CD jukebox that users access from their desktops. Each CD holds up to 13,000 images, yet even with the vast amount of information held, OIT retrieves documents within seconds.

Documents may have to be retrieved for a number of reasons. Sometimes importers or agents want to declare the miscalculation of duty to be paid or inquire about payment levels.

The staff on post clearance duties is able to retrieve documentation in response to external requests to the EPUs. Once images have been retrieved they are printed and faxed or mailed to the inquirer.

a job well done

Since installing the system in 1996, the Department has profited from greater productivity and enhanced customer service. "The OIT system retrieves our documents in just a matter of seconds," says the management team. The DocFinity Workflow module allows for multiple tasks to be performed simultaneously. Results are now seen within days, not weeks. Everyone benefits from such a solution. Customers receive timely responses to inquiries, the Department has very manageable data, and the entire country has yet one more weapon protecting them from dangerous materials entering the country.

For more information or to schedule a demonstration, please Contact DocFinity now.