Efficient & Secure Document Scanning

These days, one of the best ways to maximize office space is by decreasing paper document storage. With the increasing prevalence and convenience of electronic databases, paper record systems are rapidly becoming a thing of the past. That’s because more and more companies are converting their physical documents (e.g., blueprints, engineering drawings, etc.) to digital files. Each scanned document is then stored in the company’s database or cloud storage. But transferring thousands of paper files to an electronic format can be a daunting task for most organizations, especially those who don’t have the time and resources to purchase the proper scanning technology and upload all the records on their own. Sadly, some of them would even resort to shredding services simply to conserve office space. That’s where Southwest Solutions Group’s document scanning services can help. Click here to see pricing for scanning by the box.

Our secure and efficient high-speed document scanning process takes the burden off of the client. Combining over 50 years of document management experience with cutting-edge technology, our team can handle the entire digitization process from start to finish. From a single box (about 2,000 images) to millions of documents, we’ll tackle projects of all scales. You won’t have to purchase, learn, and maintain any costly technology; rather, we’ll use our own professional team and equipment to scan and index your files at a fraction of the time, cost, and effort of doing it yourself.

In this article, you’ll learn about the ins and outs of our document scanning services. Read on to learn about:

• The markets we serve
• Security and compliance
• Prepping procedures
• Our scanning process
• Quality control
• Receiving your files
• Benefits at a glance

For many clients, security is the top concern when it comes to the document scanning process. That’s why we take every precaution to make sure your documents are protected throughout the entire process.

Our services are compliant with HIPAA and CJIS, which entails that all of our team members pass a background check. We offer secure transportation of your records to our facility, but you also can choose to have the entire process done onsite for a higher cost. (Check out FAQs about onsite scanning here.) Our processing room is secured by lock and access control, and it is kept under 24/7 observation by closed-circuit cameras. We will also store your files in a secure location in our warehouse. We have systems in place to track which team members have accessed any paper document, and no one outside of our team will have access to any of your files. So whether you need to scan medical records, court case files, arrest records, financial documents, or more, you can rest assured that your information will be kept secure throughout the entire process.

Before your documents are scanned, we’ll first go through a preparation process. To start out, we’ll send one of our experienced project managers to perform a survey of your scanning needs and help you decide which data capture option is best for your company. Once the process begins, we recommend that you purge your records to ensure that you’re not paying to scan unnecessary documents. Our team can assist you in this process, and we can box your records for you as well. We’ll label each box with a barcode and tracking number which you can follow online. Our system provides 100% intake, which means we’ll know where every file is throughout the entire process.

We’ll work with you to decide on the best transportation method based on your security concerns. Once your boxes arrive at our state-of-the-art facility, they’ll be inspected and compared to the original manifest. Then our team of professionals will prep your documents for scanning. This includes removing staples and paper clips, smoothing out creases and earmarks, ensuring sticky notes don’t cover text, and separating triplicate forms. Then your documents will be ready to scan.

Our Scanning Process

We scan your paper documents through a high-speed production-class scanner which can scan approximately 50,000 images in an eight-hour shift, requiring only a single operator. Documents are scanned front and back, in color if necessary. Our standard resolution is 300 DPI which provides high-quality images at a manageable file size; we can also scan at a higher resolution upon request.

In addition to standard-size documents, we also offer large format scanning, including blueprint drawings, newspaper articles, engineering plans, and more. And we can even accommodate fragile archival documents dating a hundred years back, although this requires a more time-intensive process that comes at a higher cost.

And if you need immediate access to a file in the middle of the process (a patient’s medical record, for example), just let us know. Since we track each document throughout the duration of the process, we’ll have the appropriate box prepped and scanned immediately so that you’ll have electronic access to the needed record within a few hours at most. (Learn more about medical document scanning services here.)

Next, your scanned documents will be indexed based on your specifications and then pass through quality control. While many scan houses only do 20% quality control, we conduct 100% quality control to make sure that every image you’re paying for is high-quality. During the quality control stage, our team members compare each paper page with the electronic image. We’ll crop and rotate images as necessary, remove blank pages so you don’t get billed for them, and rescan files if necessary. Likewise, you won’t be billed extra for rescans, just for the final total of images you receive.

Receiving Your Files

After quality control, we’ll deliver your digital documents to you. Depending on your security preferences, we can either push the images through to your EHR system or ASP during the quality control process, or we can save them to a hard drive which will be shipped to you or delivered by hand. Our standard upload format is PDF; this format facilitates OCR, or optical character recognition, which means that the text of your documents will be searchable and you can locate files using the content of the text.

Once we’ve sent the electronic documents to you, we’ll typically hold your paper records in secure document storage for 90 days. At the end of this period, we’ll contact you to make sure everything is satisfactory.

With your permission, we’ll then conduct a certified shred of the hard copies. We adhere to bank standards for both storing and shredding your paper records. For more details about the document scanning process, check out our full list of FAQs here.