How We Scan

The Scanning Process

The scanner takes a snapshot of your document and converts the image into a digital format that can be stored and displayed on a computer. The output of this image varies depending on the resolution (dpi) and the file format (e.g.: tiff, jpeg) that is required.

E-file uses state of the art Kodak document scanners that scan up to 130 pages per minute. Pages can be single-sided or double-sided as front and back pages are captured simultaneously (blank pages are automatically deleted). With the use of sophisticated software, the image can be “cleaned” to remove speckles, improve clarity and de-skew the page. This “cleaning” process can often produce images that are better than the original.

Once captured, the image can also be manipulated in a number of ways including:

• Converting it to another format (JPG, PDF , etc.)
• Uniquely naming it for archiving
• Process it into a text searching format using OCR software

Once all of your documents have been scanned and named, they can either be burned to a CD/DVD or sent to you via FTP. The original files can then either be returned to you or we can have them securely destroyed on your behalf.

Document Preparation

In order to scan documents efficiently, they need to be in a clean, loose format – free from staples, paper clips, sticky tags and bindings. E-file will prepare your documents prior to scanning to ensure that the document scanners are fed with a constant stream of pages. If required, e-file will also fully re-instate your documents prior to returning them.

Manual Scanning

Some documents cannot be fed through high-speed document scanners. These documents are often old and fragile, printed on card stock (too thick or rigid for scanner) or bound books that cannot be cut or unbound.

These documents must be scanned manually - either on a flat bed scanner or on a specialized book scanner.