Open Space Technology (OST) is a workshop format that allows a group of people to work through a complex set of issues in a finite amount of time. The time is typically from half-a-day to three days for a workshop. To run OST there must be a well defined question or problem statement. Then OST will allow a group of people to have all the conversations they need, to document all those conversations, to collaborate with all the right people, and to reach a shared consensus on the best way forward.

OST is an Open Source technology, originally invented by Harrison Owen in 1985. It has since been successfully used throughout the world for over twenty years for workshops on subjects as diverse as international conflict, to technology problems, to discussions on new organizational solutions.

OST is typically the right solution when:

- The topic or question can be well defined in a single statement.
- But no one knows the answer!
- The problem is too complex for a small number of people to solve .
- Involving people in finding the solution is the right answer..
- A group of people who do not normally meet need to be brought together to solve the problem
- Time pressure would necessitate moving away from the usual ways of working.
- People are passionate about the outcome.
- There is a sense of ownerships for the problem and for the potential solution.

30-1000 People are involved.

OST is NOT good when:

- Someone knows the answer and is waiting for people to agree!
- The problem can not be defined
- There is no real will or passion to solve the problem.
- OST is not ideal for less than 30 people in our experience.
- There is no owner for the problem or for the solution.

Stephen Hinde, director of Business With Heart has a long experience of running successful OST workshops in a number of sectors: including the Arts, Technology companies, and local government.

In order to run a great OST workshop there is always a requirement for good preparation, a great event in the middle, and good follow-up in order to maximise the impact and relevance of the workshop to your organization. We will tailor it to your needs and guide you through the whole life-cycle of the workshop.

Please contact us to discuss OST and for a no obligation consultancy to find out if OST is the right solution for you.

? Stephen Hinde, Business With Heart, January 2009

By: Stephen Hinde

About the Author:

Since the 1960s the Soviet Aerospace program has used whole-body vibration technology or vibration therapy, also known as Advanced Vibration Technology, to help the cosmonauts battle the effects on the human body while in space for prolonged periods of time. While these individuals lived in space, they experienced zero gravity which caused a myriad of physical problems ranging from loss of muscle strength, flexibility, bone density and prolonged recovery time.

Advanced Vibration Technology helped the cosmonauts to regain strength, bone density and flexibility in faster time and to experience an increase in endorphins, leading to the same sensation as what is referred to as a “runners high.” Due to electronic commerce, this technology is now available around the global.

Benefits of Advanced Vibration Technology

The benefits of vibration therapy continue to increase due to the popularity and effectiveness of new products such as the Power Plate. Power Plate offers professional models that range from $2,500 to $9,995. These training devices are being used by individuals and professional athletes. Teams such as the Carolina Panthers and the Chicago Bulls are taking advantage of this breakthrough technology.

“All of our players are reaping the benefits from using Power Plate. They are improving speed, quickness, jumping ability, balance and coordination,” Eric Hellland, Strength and Conditioning Coach for the Chicago Bulls, reported.

Advanced Vibration Technology is improving the quality of life for individuals who experience bone loss, muscle weakness, diminished range of motion and soreness, while recovering from injury.
In addition, with an aging U.S. population, physical therapists are seeking alternatives to help patients improve their conditions.

“It’s a powerful device; it makes a difference in how my patients feel, and more importantly, it makes what I do as a physical therapist more effective,” Lisa Jurki, MSPT Accelerated Rehabilitation, said about the Power Plate devices.

How does Advanced Vibration Technology Work?

This technology works by stimulating the body’s natural response to vibration. The vibration causes contractions in the body’s muscles which lead to an increase in muscle strength, blood flow and overall relaxation. With as little as 15 minutes a day, three times a week, this cutting-edge technology is redefining the time it takes to combat such problems as aging and injury recovery while helping to maintain overall strength and body relaxation.

How Can Advanced Vibration Technology Fit Into Your life?

You don’t have to be rich or famous to enjoy the benefits of vibration therapy, though many celebrities are jumping on board. Among them are: Clint Eastwood, Madonna, and Brad Pitt.
Since Advanced Vibration Technology is now readily available, why not include it in plans for a home spa or fitness room? In addition to its therapeutic and healing effects, it also helps with balance and flexibility.

If expanding or improving a health-based or fitness-oriented business, Power Plate can provide a competitive edge. For example, general practitioners can use the product to effectively reverse osteoporosis without drugs.

Advanced Vibration Technology Research Studies

Several sponsored studies have been completed or are underway. They include:

National Institute on Aging (NIA): “VIBES” – Low Magnitude Mechanical Stimulation to Improve Bone Mineral Density.”

University Health Network, Toronto. “Influence of Vibration on Bone Mineral Density in Women Who Have Weak Bones After Menopause”.

University of Erlangen-N?rnberg. “Effect of Whole Body Vibration on Bone and Fall Related Parameters.”

The National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases. “Vibration Intervention to Improve Bone and Muscle in Children with Cerebral Palsy.”

Logan College of Chiropractic. Whole Body Vibration Therapy in a Participant With Multiple Sclerosis Related Balance Deficits – A Case Study.

Oregon State University College of Health and Human Sciences. “OSU Researchers to Shake-Up Hip Replacement Therapy.”

Oregon State University College of Health and Human Sciences. “OSU Researchers to Shake-Up Hip Replacement Therapy.”

By: Tom Maroney

About the Author:

The Bulova watch company we know started in 1875 when Joseph Bulova immigrated from Bohemia to New York at the age of 23. Joseph Bulova opened a small jewelry store in New York City. In 1911 Joseph began manufacturing desk clocks and nice pocket watches. He had refined a manufacturing process and began making and selling his products at an accelerated rate.

During World War I wristwatches were issued to soldiers to allow them the ability to organize attacks. Soldiers returning from the war brought their watches home creating a new trend. Since Joseph already had the manufacturing capabilities and jewelry design background he was able to take advantage of the new fashion. To fulfill the need of this new fashion Bulova created his first full line of men’s jeweled wristwatches in 1919. The men’s line of watches was followed by his first full line of lady’s wristwatches and diamond wristwatches.

When the United States became involved in World War II Bulova began creating precision equipment for the military. Bulova manufactured wristwatches, specialized timepieces, aircraft instruments and torpedo mechanisms for the military. This contract of course allowed Bulova’s business to boom. At the end of the war Bulova created a watch making school to teach disabled veterans a new trade.

In 1950 Bulova completed the development of the first electronic watch. The creation of the electronic watch was said to be the first breakthrough in watch technology in 300 years. Because of this technology during the 1960′s NASA asked Bulova to utilize the Accutron technology to work on computers for the space program. This work allowed Accutron’s timing mechanism to be an important part of space technology.

Through the years Bulova Watch Company has continued their tradition of growth and innovation. Due to their innovation and growth Bulova offers a wide range of elegant dress watches, casual watches, and sport watches.

By: Erik Petersen

About the Author:

The animated action movie, Space Jam unleashes the creative powers combined with the state of art technology. It was released in 1996 by Warner Bros. family entertainment and starred Bugs Bunny and the famed basketball player, Michael Jordan. The voice over was provided by Billy West for the Tunes and the movie marks the debut of Lola Bunny, Bugs Bunny’s girlfriend.

The popularity of the film went beyond the normal memorabilia and Acclaim Entertainment produced a video game while Sega went ahead to launch a pinball game based on the movie Space Jam. The storyline plays with the NBA superstar, Michael Jordan pursuing a baseball career after retiring from professional basketball.

Based with animated alien characters, Nerdlucks minions to Mr. Swackhammer, who is a owner of ‘Moron Mountain’, an extraterrestrial theme park which is going bankrupt due to poor business. To gather more attractions, he sends the Nerdlucks to earth to kidnap the Tune characters. In the movie, the home of the Looney Tunes is deep below the surface of the earth.

As a challenge the Tunes ask them to play a game of basketball after seeing that they are not very tall. But Nerdlucks are devious and to make sure that they win, they resort to underhand means such as stealing the powers of the NBA stars- Muggsy Bogues, Shawn Bradley, Patrick Ewing, Larry Johnson and Charles Barkley.

The stolen powers make the Nerdlucks powerful and they turn into gigantic creatures with super powers or Monstars that seem invincible to be defeated by the Tunes. To defeat the Monstars, Looney Tunes enlist the help of Michael Jordan and the game starts. The devious ways and tactics of the Nerdlucks, give Looney Tunes characters a tough time leaving only Michael Jordan, Bugs Bunny, Lola Bunny and daffy Duck in the team.

To help the Tunes, Bill Murray enters the game but it was with the help of the animated extendable arm of Michael Jordan that the Tunes get the winning shots. After winning the game, Looney Tunes leave Michael Jordan on Earth and he gives back the stolen prowess to the players while Tunes return back to their homes. The exciting live animated movie was an instant hit and grossed over $330 million worldwide. The popularity of the movie gave the memorabilia industry a push and thousands of key chains, statues, soft toys and Michael Jordan shoes hit the market where eager buyers of all ages bought them.

By: Cary Cox

About the Author:

JFK officially declared his intent to run for President on January 2, 1960. He won his party’s nomination on July 30, 1960 and on Tuesday November 8, Kennedy defeated Nixon and won the Presidency of the United States. He was sworn in as President on January 20,1961. The most remembered part of his inaugural address is his world famous quote “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.” He was assassinated on November 22, 1963 – ending his short lived but world changing Presidency.

Kennedy’s presidency was very active and addressed many major issues of the day – the Cuban Missile Crisis, Latin America and the spread of Communism, the Peace Corps, Vietnam, Civil Rights, the Space Program and many other issues. Here are the highlights of some of his more memorable activities while in office.

Cuba: Cuba was a very troublesome part of the Kennedy Presidency. He was embroiled in the Bay of Pigs episode and the Cuban Missile Crisis.

The Bay of Pigs was a plan conceived during the Eisenhower administration to invade Cuba and free it from the Communist Fidel Castro. It was orchestrated by the CIA and organized an insurgency built up of anti-Castro Cubans. The United States help train them and on April 17, 1961, Kennedy ordered the invasion to proceed. Fifteen Hundred trained Cuban exiles – called Brigade 2506 – invaded Cuba but did so without U.S. air support, something Kennedy did not allow to occur. The plan failed and the invaders were captured or killed and Kennedy was forced to negotiate the release of the captives.

The Cuban Missile Crisis began on October 14, 1962 when American U-2 spy planes took pictures of an intermediate range missile site under construction in Cuba. The photos were shown to Kennedy on October 16. Against the wishes of his military – who wished to conduct an air assault on the missile sites – Kennedy enacted a Naval embargo of Cuba and entered into negotiations with the Soviets to remove the missiles and dismantle the bases. After a very tense period for the world, Kennedy and Krushchev reached an agreement to remove the missiles in Cuba and in exchange the U.S. agreed to never invade Cuba and to remove U.S. missiles stationed in Turkey.

Vietnam: Kennedy continued Eisenhower’s lead to use limited military action to fight Communism in the Asian theater. As part of this action Kennedy took steps to help the unstable South Vietnamese government by sending 16,000 military advisors and Special Forces troops to the area. In spite of the efforts of these and an increasing number of U.S. personnel, the situation further deteriorated and by July 1963, Vietnam became a full blown crisis. The administration’s response to the crisis was to assist in a change of the leadership of South Vietnam with the overthrow of President Diem. Unfortunately, the assassination of Kennedy shortly thereafter left Vietnam a long term crisis for the United States – one that may have been resolved very differently had Kennedy been afforded the time to fully address the challenges.

Nuclear Test Ban Treaty: In August 1963, Kennedy signed a Nuclear Test Ban treaty to ban the testing of nuclear weapons in the atmosphere, on top of the ground and in the water. The ban did not apply to underground testing activities. The United States and the Soviet Union were the initial signatories to the treaty.

Immigration: Kennedy proposed a major overhaul of the American immigration policy – later known as the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965. This act shifted emphasis on immigration from European countries to Latin America and Asia. It also shifted the emphasis on selection of immigrants towards family reunifications as opposed to meeting quotas from specific countries.

Space program: Kennedy passionately believed it was the United State’s destiny to be the leader in the space race. To this end, Kennedy approached Nikita Kruschchev in June 1961 and in the autumn of 1963 proposing joint ventures in space exploration. At the first meeting, the Soviet Union was far ahead of the United States in space technology. On the second occasion, when America’s space program was moving ahead of the Soviet program, Kruschchev saw the advantages of cost-sharing but Kennedy was assassinated before an agreement could be constructed.

Kennedy first made the goal for landing a man on the Moon when speaking to a Joint Session of Congress on May 25, 1961, saying

“First, I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him back safely to the earth. No single space project in this period will be more impressive to mankind, or more important for the long-range exploration of space; and none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish.”

Civil Rights: Kennedy’s Presidency was plagued by civil rights issues stemming from the 1954 Supreme Court ruling that racial segregation in schools was unconstitutional. He felt the conditions that existed in the South were very explosive and often seemed disconnected from the civil rights movement – fearing that a fully engaged President would cause great strife with Southern whites and make it very difficult to pass meaningful civil rights laws.

However, he did intervene in many actions with use of federal marshalls and troops to ensure that people’s rights were protected – the most notable being in 1962 when James Meredith tried to enroll in the University of Mississippi and on June 11,1963 when Alabama Governor George Wallace blocked two African American students from entering the University of Alabama.

It was on that very evening that Kennedy fully jumped into this issue by delivering his famous civil rights address on national radio and television. The proposal made in the speech became the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Kennedy’s list of accompisments are much longer this the summary offered here. He lived in a truly turbulent and formative time for this country and was the driving force behind many of the changes that has shaped our country since his Presidency.

By: Steven Chabotte

About the Author:

There was a nanotechnology conference in 1998. I realise what some may be saying to this. Either, ‘What nanotechnology conference in 1998?’, or ‘What is nanotechnology?’, or even ‘So what – that was ten years ago!’ At least at the time of writing this… Well, whatever – there was such a conference in 1998 and I decided to mention it as there was a similar conference much more recent to this one in June 2003 held between members of the European Council – and so I ‘smelt a rat’ because frankly, I am certain that the general public at large did not know about either fixture. Back to 1998. The specific or actual title for this event was, ‘Second International conference on Integrated Micro-Nano Technology for Space Applications 1998′.

The FIRST conference was apparently in 1995! Intrigued? Surprised? I certainly was. Nothing was said on U.K television at least… One may ask, ‘why write about this’? Well, this recent area of technology is of considerable importance, or at least it soon will be (especially in light of the more recent EC conference on nanotech’), due to the very ‘nature’ of the subject itself and what it will mean not too far from now. Though as it is already 2008, some of what follows may already be in prototype stage.

This is probable fact, it is not scare scaremongering. But, what is Nanotechnology and Micro-technology (?), irrespective of these or any such conferences. Each in turn, for the two disciplines, though very closely related, are not exactly the same thing – or one and the same, at least in terms of size. Nanotechnology is concerned with the concept of ‘smart’ materials and even semi-autonomous machines or devices, ranging in size from something like an ANT, to near molecular dimensions – small enough to go into a hairline crack in a skirting-board, or to be injected into a living host respectively. Micro-technology however, is concerned with ‘things’ ranging in size from that of an ant to that of a small caterpillar or millipede. The ‘infrastructure’ for nanotechnology and micro-technology is already fairly established – and one of the very first (if not the first) ‘micro-nano bots’ was seen going across our television screens for a few brief seconds, circa 1987-88 (I forget the exact year, but remember seeing it in the late 1980′s). This particular ‘thing’ strongly resembled, and was about the same size as one of those very small hair-clips, only on four tiny ‘legs’. Some sort of ‘synthesis’ between a very small microprocessor and the memory-metal that it was made of, enabled it to move of its’ own accord. But that was the late 80′s – and this is 2003! The ‘speed’ at which micro/nano-technology has developed over the last decade or more since then, is on par with the development of the microprocessor itself during the decade or so before that.

Practical experiments/prototypes have included ‘devices’ that can be placed within the smallest areas or confines, such as minute cavities in walls, or cracks in pipelines or cable-ducts (for micro-technology) – and for nanotechnology, ‘devices’ small enough to be implanted into a living organism – the human body for instance. The implications of this will be considerable – it is their small/minute size that makes them powerful. Imagine an army of ‘titanium-steel silverfish’, or a synthetic ‘germ colony’ that could be controlled at will; either directly through a hand-held radio-control unit, or indirectly via a program stored on a ‘remote’ computer that ‘instructs’ the micro/nano-bots what to do (also by radio-control/telemetry).

These are currently (at the time of writing this) the limitations of nano and micro-technology. Because of the sizes involved, all-in-one ‘on board’ designs are not yet possible – and so they are not yet capable of fully autonomous operation. But this will undoubtedly change.

It won’t be long before we do have micro-controllers (essentially complete computers-on-a chip with memory and everything that have been around since the 1980′s; as opposed to ‘ordinary’ microprocessors/cpu-chips) small enough to fit onto devices of such size (the smallest one’s are in the area of 4.mm-square; although this would already fit into a micro-device the size of say a large caterpillar) – and subsequently micro-bots (if not perhaps nano-bots) that ARE fully autonomous and therefore independent of any host system.

This would mean that your synthetic germ-colony could instruct itself to lie dormant for any period of time and to then ‘awaken’ and perform whatever at a pre-programmed date… Various scientific institutions around the world have already created working micro-robot (and even some nano-robot) experiments, including devices that can crawl, burrow, go across or under water and even one’s that can fly! These developments in both micro and nano-technology have drawn great interest from both public and private concerns (government departments and private corporations). This includes the ‘space race’ authorities that have been quick to realise (in theory at least) both the cost-saving benefits and operational benefits of such devices, especially in maintenance roles – hence the ‘First International Conference on Integrated Micro-Nano Technology for Space Applications’ in 1995 (!) – and subsequently the second one of 1998!! The home-page of the website that I visited quite by chance upon a visit to Hove library in 2001 was entitled, ‘NanoSpace 98 – to the planets and beyond…’ subtitled – ‘Call for papers.’ This is the truth! I know this sounds ‘unreal’, but there you have it.

The overall aim of this conference was to continue the revolution in the development of space technology or hardware through a combination of nano-electronics, nano-scale disciplines and Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) for, or as the ‘building-blocks’ of Application Specific Integrated Micro-instruments – or ASIM’s.

International experts in these fields were brought together to determine or ascertain how they could be best applied to space exploration – and to explore the various aspects (hardware, software, protocol, etc) for both unmanned and manned space missions/activities yet to come. The conference was organised by CNST – Centre for Nano Space Technologies, which is a division of the ‘Institute for Advanced Interdisciplinary Research (IAIR) based in Houston, Texas – and was sponsored by NASA (!) and SAIC – the Science Applications International Corporation. Yes, I know what you’re thinking, but this really, really is the truth).

This conference was a serious business. It was not a bogus or superficial event. Organisations like NASA and SAIC would never have put them selves forward to the level that they did if it was. The concept of ‘smart machines’ that could ‘investigate’ anything, anywhere and operate like any ‘full sized’ machine, but at micro and even nano scales, was a proposition too good to miss. Because for nearly every form of full-sized robot/device, there is already a prototype equivalent at micro-technology proportions and probably will be at nano proportions relatively soon (again; micro-tech’ = ant size to small caterpillar size, nano-tech’ = near microscopic size to near molecular size).

For instance, a typical spot-welding robot in a car assembly plant is about five feet tall and six feet long at the armature and the same thing at micro-tech’ scale approximately one cubic centimetre (overall occupied space). It rotates, it pivots and it welds! The average submarine is forty-feet long and can enter a harbour or a large underground cave. There are micro-technology scale/sized submarines three centimetres long and one centimetre wide that can similarly navigate rock-pools and enter cavities in large boulders, or enter the gap between the outer and inner casings of an underwater pipeline to extract/extricate some small organism that has somehow burrowed through! In space exploration, the micro-welder could detect and repair mission-critical apparatus, whilst the ‘submarine’ could be used to inspect liquid carrying conduits or pipelines, such as for hydraulic equipment.

Most of this is probably hypothetical however. It is not yet certain, even by the space research/exploration people that will use the technology, precisely which micro-scale (MEMS) devices/applications, will be used for what purposes. But what is known for certain, are the specific areas that were covered at great lengths during the conference itself (in 1998).

Main objectives were disciplines for reducing systems costs, adding new capabilities and improving reliability. To identify mission applications and ‘enabling technologies’ for long-term goals. To hold ‘workshops’ for the exchange of information/procedures pertinent to space applications of these/those technologies.

Papers were subsequently submitted (on invitation) by those that attended the conference (many eminent scientists and experts in the fields of micro-technology and or nano-technology) on the following areas:

1. Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS) for space applications.
2. Low-power micro-scale devices.
3. Procedures for data processing.
4. Memory types to be deployed or used on devices.
5. Communications standards that would have to be deployed to enable micro-scale devices – and even some nano-scale, to ‘talk’ to remote or ‘standard’ devices such as normal computers, but most importantly, to each other!
6. Applications Specific Integrated Micro-instruments (ASIM’s), of which the building blocks will be nano/micro-nano scale electronics and Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS).
7. The adding-on of ASIM’s to assist or support existing space-systems capabilities.
‘Now this is the good one!’
8. Applications Specific Integrated Micro-instruments (ASIM’s) as the building blocks for micro-scale SPACECRAFT. And it continues…
9. Operational and applications software for ASIM’s.
10. Sensors for space applications.
11. Biomedical applications for human exploration of space (which basically means the idea or concept for physical interaction of nano-scale devices with human operators on space missions; presumably to help combat ailments, viruses, etc).
12. Defining precise manufacturing and packaging platforms and procedures.
13. Software considerations for design, fabrication, administration and general operations.

It is quite obvious that they wanted to take everything into account during this conference. They really, really were serious! There were three days of general presentations and a following one-and-a-half days of practical ‘workshop’ sessions. Those present focussed on specific conceptual and technological considerations, that led to recommendations for implementations in the future.

The actual decisions reached at, or by the end of the conference is probably not known to anyone who was not there, as no information regarding this is mentioned on this website that I looked through (and I still have it – ‘highest bidders please…’). But it can be said that a great deal of something was reached. Unless this whole thing was indeed, yet another pass-the-buck/sponsorship/tax-fiddle stunt… A gravy boat for an unknown inner, inner circle. Who knows?

By pure coincidence, I came across a copy of the ‘Sun’ a few days after reading this article – and in it was a picture of an ANT with a microchip in its’ JAWS! The newspaper was on a table in a Chinese take-away… Initially a scam involving photo-retouching software came to mind, but the article went on to explain that the article was NOT a hoax, but most very, very real indeed.

The ant was of the kind found in the U.K and approx’ 3.5mm long (which are a lot smaller than those found on the European continent (never mind say Africa/South America) that are approx’ 5-6mm long), so how small was the microchip!? At that scale/proportion, it must have been in the region of 1.5×1.5mm Square! The article stated that 100,000+ transistors were on it!! The ‘VLSI’ (very large scale integration) microchip (a prototype at least) was already conceived as early as 1985-86 (although I herd ‘VLSI’ even a few years before that), so I totally accept what this article said and its accompanying photograph. Perhaps this microchip in the ant’s jaws was the first ‘VvLSI’ device (very very large scale integration)?

The small ‘v’ by the way, is because two upper-case V’s look like a ‘W’ side by side…’ Of all the things you end up discovering… The gist of what the article said is as follows – and more than backs-up or makes feasible/credible, this ‘Nano Space-98′ conference. By 2020, micro-scale and nano-scale technology will be as pervasive as current ‘normal’ microchip/computer technology is today. Apparently, the present (at the time of writing this) so-called pinnacle of ICCT (information, computer + communications technology) forged by the ‘old-guard’ of IBM, Intel & Microsoft; will become obsolete.

In 2020 a standard cell-phone will be a ring on your finger. An entire computer system of desktop/notebook capability will be a roll-out/roll-up flexi-screen, or button-hole-microphone sized high-resolution projector connected to a ‘matchbox’ in your pocket. Smart-bugs in your veins will automatically detect infected cells and carpets will be able to change colour and depth of pile! Flying video-drones moving at twenty, thirty, forty miles-an-hour and powered by the sun, will relay video evidence to the authorities (or to corporations…) A whole new industry will have been created worth ?100+billion a year. The world hasn’t only just got small, it’s getting even smaller. And as to what this is about to begin with – micro/nano-technology in space; is that outer space or INNER space? And why was there no mention of this conference (and what it implies) to the public at large?

By: Andrew Jenery

About the Author:

Despite vast improvements to office technology and the development of procedures to increase efficiency, offices generate a wasteful amount of documents. In time, such paperwork accumulates to a point that it becomes difficult to archive valuable records without consuming large quantities of office space. This is a very pressing problem for the white collar world, as office space is rapidly becoming a premium.

As such, the transition towards the digital office paradigm is in the best interests of any company. This generally involves the digitization of important records and documents for the purposes of conserving valuable office space. This does not mean that physical paperwork should be done away with. Rather, digital records can be very valuable in minimizing the amount of physical copies necessary for the purposes of redundancy.

This is where document scanning comes into play. The development of digital imaging and optical character recognition software means that it is very easy to convert physical paperwork into editable computer text. This means that any important record or document needed by a business can be stored in a flexible and usable file format.

Beyond the matter of conserving office space, document scanning is beneficial because it can be used to save valuable time that had previously been used by employees to handle the task of transcribing and duplicating valuable documents. That means mission-critical tasks take priority over the tedious matter of copying hand written documents.

Additionally, the digital copies of records generated by document scanning can be used to foster stronger inter-office communications within the company. This is because digital copies can be stored on a shared network, eliminating the need to copy or transport a particular document in order for different departments to view the same document. In effect, digital records mean that important information can be viewed across an organization at any time and any place without logistic hassle.

Simply put, document scanning can be used to lower operating costs from document logistics, eliminate inefficiencies from time lost in locating said documents and reduce the amount of space, time and money spent in storing, filing and archiving these documents.

By: Menlo Lippowski

About the Author: