Simplifying Data Capture and Document Management

Reducing paperwork is one thing; managing the resulting electronic files is a completely different proposition altogether.

For documentation-heavy industries like finance and insurance, scanning paperwork and storing it as images is just the beginning of document management. Once they have digitised paper records, users must edit them and move the data they contain into line-of-business applications. Otherwise, the paperwork might just as well be hard copy.

Captaris has integrated its RightFax image capture solution with Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 to create an office business application that seamlessly integrates paper documents into business processes.

Built on Microsoft .NET technology, the Captaris solution receives images from fax devices and scanners, then moves the images into SharePoint. The system notifies recipients that documents have arrived via RSS feeds or by adding them to a SharePoint work queue, where they can be accessed from anywhere on the internal network or the internet via a web browser or email. Users can then view, edit, collaborate on and search documents with SharePoint using the familiar Microsoft Office interface.

Captaris’ new Single Click Entry product highlights metadata within the digitised documents such as names, addresses and financial information. After users verify its accuracy, they can export that data from SharePoint to Microsoft Dynamics and other line-of-business applications – including Oracle E-Business Suite, Oracle CRM and SAP R/3 ­ – with a single click, without leaving Microsoft Office.

For example, the Abbey Company, a real estate management company with more than 1200 tenants in commercial properties throughout California, uses Captaris solutions to process and store thousands of documents – from rental applications and credit records to leases and insurance certificates. Employees can easily access the most recent versions of documents from their desktops. They receive incoming faxes promptly in Microsoft Outlook, which also creates an audit trail for backup and security. The Abbey Company has even eliminated the need to purchase additional filing cabinets, which would have been required to store the original volume of paper records, and 75 percent of its fax machines as well as the paper and toner required to keep them running.

“From a user perspective, the product acts as a service for populating images and index information into SharePoint because it’s transparent,” says Paul Yantus, Captaris’ Executive Vice President of Product Development and Marketing. “For companies, it’s a seamless way to integrate critical information from static documents with the business processes that require it.” He adds that the OBA is a time-saver for IT departments because it requires no additional tools. Installation and configuration take place through SharePoint Administrator.

In brief: Captaris

Founded 1982

Headquarters Bellevue, Washington

CEO David P. Anastasi

URLwww.captaris.com

Profile Captaris is a leading provider of software products that automate document-centric business processes. Captaris specializes in document capture, recognition, routing, workflow and delivery. The company develops exclusively on the Microsoft platform for a customer base that includes all of the Fortune 100 companies and the majority of Global 2000 companies. While Captaris works with all industry verticals, it particularly focuses on insurance, finance and mortgage lending.

Microsoft partner profile A Microsoft Gold Partner, Microsoft Global ISV

“From a user perspective, the product acts as a service for populating images and index information into SharePoint because it’s transparent” – Paul Yantus, EVP of Product Development and Marketing at Captaris