Issue November 2004

Genus Golf Day 2004

SMA 51

Wicks and Wilson Production Film Scanners

High de Havilland Flying

Profile

Digital Document News

Printing News

New Full Colour Digital Print Service

New Web Site


- Download this issue as a PDF

Genus Golf Day 2004
Golf Day – Wednesday 11th of August was the date of the inaugural Genus Golf Day. With divine intervention it was the only day that week that did not have torrential rain. Indeed the weather was absolutely perfect, maybe even too hot – more than could be said for the quality of the Golf!

Twenty four customers and suppliers made it for the day. Like a scene from a Spaghetti
Western a large number of handicap bandits set forth on the excellent Hinckley Golf Course in Leicestershire.

The day took the form of a 9 hole Texas scramble in the morning culminating after lunch with an 18 hole individual Stableford rules competition. Eight teams of 3 including the OIT Rider Cup team (and "Rider" is not a spelling mistake!) fought for the honours. The winning team for the Texas scramble (prizes supplied by Kodak), was the Age Concern Team of Frank Drummond (of Kodak, what a coincidence!), Noel Reilly of Response Technical Services and our very own Don "Legend in his own mind" Hobbis.

The Stableford competition was won by Noel Reilly, of Texas scramble fame, who just pipped Alistair Galbraith of Micrographic Techiniques by one point. Nearest the pin winner was Phil Bull of Access and Archive and Longest drive was won by Tim Shearing of Chelsea Building Society. In addition there was an overall team competition where all the players were split into either the blue or purple team – in keeping with our new corporate colours. Eventual winners were the victorious blue team. A great day was had by all and we thank everybody for making the effort to come along. A special mention must also go to Phil Pearson of Canon for supplying a number of golfing accessories and we hope he enjoyed his day despite his flat tyre!

As the day proved so successful we plan to make it an annual event. If you are an aspiring golfer and would like to come along next year then please let us know.

SMA 51
We are very proud to be able to announce the launch of yet another brand new piece of microfilm equipment. The Microfilm Shop is the exclusive UK distributor and select international distributor for the new SMA 51 digital to microfilm writer. The SMA 51 is unique in that it can write digital images to both 16mm and 35mm microfilm plus it uses CONVENTIONAL 16mm AND 35mm silver camera film, as a result the user is not restricted to expensive bespoke film. The ability to write to both 16mm and 35mm conventional microfilm has already created a stir in the bureau/trade market as it will allow the bureau to offer a number of different clients various options depending on the application. This will obviously allow the bureau to sell the service and to regain their capital outlay much more easily. The Archive, Library and Newspaper world have also shown a great interest due to the ability to properly archive up to A2 size images onto 35mm microfilm, especially as these images can be colour, grey scale or black and white.

As a summary the main features of the SMA 51 are:-

• Both thin (2.5mil) and thick (5mil) film can be used depending on the application and to maximise storage density by using long length thin film.
  
• Can accept TIFF, JPEG, PDF, DOC and XLS etc digital documents in bitonal, greyscale or colour.
  
• Speed of the SMA 51 is 1-2 seconds per image for black and white, 2-3 seconds per image for grey scale and 3-5 seconds per image for colour.
  
• Original document size can range from postcard (A6) all the way through to A2.
  
• Optical resolution on converted images is 300dpi for A4, 200dpi for A3 and 150dpi for A2 size.
  
• Price and system includes operating software which manages the downloaded files. Standard interfaces are used which allow the unit to write the images unattended once transfer has been completed.

Due to the initial interest in this unit, The Microfilm Shop are currently arranging for interested parties to forward digital images to us by disk and then we are handing back film images for evaluation. If you are interested in this service please call us on 024 7638 3998 or e-mail us on sales@microfilm.com with your requirements so that we can offer you either 35mm or 16mm returned film.

Also in the SMA range is the Digifiche that works in exactly the same way but with an end result of 98 frame fiche and with a built in processor.

Wicks and Wilson Production Film Scanners
The Summer has proved to be a very successful period for sales of the Wicks and Wilson production microfilm scanners. A total of 6 Wicks and Wilson scanners were sold including 2 roll film, 1 aperture card and 3 fiche/jacket scanners. Our Wicks and Wilson dealership has proved particularly successful for a number of reasons:-

• Wicks and Wilson are the only production microfilm scanner manufacturer to have a complete range specifically designed for all microfilm formats – including the CS aperture card range, the 16 and 35mm RS roll film range and the FS fiche/jacket range. As a result there is a solution for every need.
  
• The CS Aperture card scanner range is the largest and fastest available with the CS750 capable of scanning up to 750 cards per hour.
  
• The range topping RS300 roll film scanner is one of the fastest roll film scanners available with speeds of up to 325ipm.
  
• The FS200 fiche/jacket scanner has a unique film feed which maximises production quality and speed to allow up to 100 images per minute to be scanned.
  
• We have demo units that we can take to yours or your clients premises FREE of charge. This way you can get a very accurate idea of the throughput and quality for your specific scanning job.
  
• We have a FREE of charge sample service so that you can send us samples of your microforms and we can then return scanned images for you to evaluate.
  
• We offer fully comprehensive service contracts through a third party UK service house that has 5 engineers fully trained on the Wicks and Wilson range.
  
• We can offer full operator training and installation services to ensure your staff are completely comfortable with the Wicks and Wilson scanners.
  
• We can offer short term rental of scanners for one off jobs. With 3 sales representatives trained in the use of Wicks and Wilson scanners we believe that we can support and solve your film scanning needs. Wicks and Wilson have been very happy with the new dealership arrangement with Ian McMinn (Sales Director) saying "Wicks and Wilson are delighted with the recent sales success of the Microfilm Shop team. We have complete confidence in the Microfilm Shop to professionally represent our microfilm scanning product range in the best possible way and know that their
  sales team are fully trained to provide total support to our extensive customer base.

High de Havilland Flying
In the summer of 2003 de Havilland Support Ltd made the decision to upgrade its analogue microfilm reader printer and purchase a digital microfilm scanner/printer and a database document management system. Today almost one year on Bill Taylor, Chief Executive of de Havilland Support Ltd, says " It’s the best piece of equipment we have purchased and it has made a significant contribution to our day-to-day business".

de Havilland Support Ltd is the UK Civil Aviation Authority approved Type Design Organisation for a range of de Havilland and other historic aircraft, based at the Imperial War Museum in Duxford, Cambridgeshire. This commitment requires the company to hold an extensive archive of drawings and other design data. The majority of the drawings are held on microfilm aperture cards and it is essential that the company’s staff have instant access to the data in these drawings.

Access to the drawing data is required to respond to enquiries which originate from around the world. The airworthiness of aircraft is affected by the responses given by the company and most of these enquiries therefore require an almost immediate answer. The ability to select whole drawings or just extracts from a drawing to scan or print at a convenient size for fax and emailing is vital in making such a response.

The new system consists of a Kodak ABR3000DSV digital microfilm scanner, universal film carrier, A3/A4 laser printer and IMIS document management software. The universal carrier has been particularly beneficial with drawings held on 35mm roll film and aperture card. The fact that both film formats can be viewed without the need to swap from one carrier to another has proved a big time saver. Another bonus has been the reliability of the system, which Bill summed up as "totally and utterly reliable".

Following delivery of the hardware, de Havilland developed its own file structurewithin the folders and libraries of IMIS. "Subsequently, as drawings have been viewed we have taken the opportunity to scan into IMIS to allow for future fast online access" comments Bill Taylor. Also
modification leaflets and their associated drawings are filed within IMIS, which facilitates rapid access for reproduction at short notice.

Bill goes on to say that it is not his intention to scan all 300,000 drawings onto IMIS but the company will scan those that are used most frequently. This policy has already paid dividends and a number of long standing customers who have received information off the old system and now the new have remarked extremely favourably on the improved quality and readability of the documents.

In conclusion, Bill Taylor said: "It was a big investment for a small company but it has been worth its weight in gold."

For more information see www.deHavillandSupport.com or email Bill@dhsupport.com

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Profile
This summer Genus has recruited Simon Brown to help coordinate the ever growing service offerings of the Genus Group. Genus sub contracts service contracts, ad-hoc service work and installations of micrographic equipment to a number of specialist service organisations. This has grown to such a level now that it requires specific and experienced management.

The main items that we are currently selling are the Kodak on-demand film scanners, the REAL duplicator range, the Wicks and Wilson production film scanners, the ScanPro low volume film scanners plus a whole host of microfilm production equipment including processors, cameras, reader printers, duplicators, jacket loaders and readers. We also provide service for a number of document scanners.

No matter how old your micrographic equipment we should be able to help you keep it running. It now also enables us to supply a large range of second user equipment as detailed below.

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June 2004 marked the first year for O.I.T. U.K. Ltd
under the Genus Group. The first year proved to be a very successful trading year (being the best year since OIT UK started 10 years ago) which has also brought about significant changes in our business. With strong support and backing from The Genus Group, OITUK Ltd. is poised for substantial growth and has embarked on a three year strategic plan to develop the EDM solutions business.

The 8th O.I.T. U.K. Users' Conference
will take place on 4th and 5th November, in Warwick, UK. This year's Conference will mark another important milestone - our 10th year of a strong and growing partnership with OIT Inc.

OITUK Ltd. is pleased to announce the release of our new Electronic Records Management System (ERMS) towards the end of this year. The ERMS will conform to The National Archives 2002 guidelines and we will be applying for accreditation. The ERMS will be designed to facilitate integration with EDM systems, supporting EDRMS applications.

The scope of ERMS will be as follows:

• To create, manage and organise records
  
• Tracking & Retrieval of organised records
  
• Import and Export of the records and their metadata from and to other ERM Systems
  
• Supports robust access control, authentication and encryption features with built in audit trail
  
• Integrated e-mail management. The ERMS architecture will compose of three layers: Record Management, Record Organisation and Support Activities.
  
  Record Management is identified as the base functionality of ERMS that manages records. The prime activities of the Record Management are Document Management, Retention and Disposal attributes and Audit Trail.
  
  Record Organization allows classification of the record within the TNA defined classification scheme. The classification scheme contains the following layers: Class > Folder > Part> Record.
  
  Supporting Activities for the Record Management includes: Workflow, Tracking and Retrieval, Mail Management, User Management etc. Each of these supporting activities will apply to Records.

Genus takes on a major printing account, through its’ Graphic Press division, and by doing so picks up a new Print Broker client

is a UK based consultancy which aims to put the "oomph" back into business. They provide creative and innovative thinking which helps kick-start company initiatives by motivating and inspiring employees. They tackle everyday business problems in a way that benefits everyone (their "5 Wins" approach), addressing not only the company’s issues, but also those of their employees, employees’ families, the local and global communities and the environment. Details of this approach are provided on their website www.pazzazz.biz

Take a typical problem that a major corporation was experiencing with travel and mobile phone budgets - how could they save money and time by promoting video and audio conferencing? By providing an all-round winning solution that linked travel and mobile phone savings directly with charitable donations, environmental benefits and better work-life balance for employees, it became much easier for them to meet their target cost savings, without alienating anyone.

Two years ago, Paul Ensor of Genus - Graphic Press division oversaw the print production and design of special card packs and posters for one of their corporate customers’ internal promotions (a large confectionery company) which helped start their business relationship.

Business Pazzazz recently contacted Graphic Press again to design their own new brochures and stationery. It was a very tricky project, since attention to detail on colours, logos, exact wording etc. were of paramount importance. Suffice to say that Business Pazzazz were delighted with the final product - so much so that Genus - Graphic Press has now been added to their list of Approved Suppliers.

"Thanks to this positive experience, we have put our own company printing through Paul and Genus, confident that they will deliver a quality job at a good price and with quick turnaround ……..what more could you ask?!!" said Stephanie Harold of Business Pazzazz.

New Full Colour Digital Print Service
The Graphic Press division of Genus has very recently invested in brand new digital print equipment. This allows us to offer full colour print services for those clients with small to medium print runs. Paul Ensor of Graphic Press says "Digital print is suitable for "Up to 1000 prints". Above that level conventional litho full colour printing is more economical per print but below that level digital print really comes into its own." There are a number of benefits full colour digital print offers:-

Linked with our in-house graphic design service we have brochure and a new business that could only afford a small number of brochures but required high quality.

There are numerous small run applications for full colour digital print. Please contact us for more details.