Frederick, Maryland – In the wake of growing demand for the mass digitization of paper records, The Crowley Company (Crowley) has expanded its physical footprint with the addition of a dedicated digital document scanning facility to its corporate campus. The secure, state-of-the-art studio is specific to high-volume, guideline-compliant paper record and large-format document scanning.
Running double shifts since its opening, the operation adds 30% to Crowley’s current scanning operation square footage and provides for document box and pallet staging, a record preparation production line and multiple scan and quality control stations.
Each document scan station, run by an experienced imaging specialist, is equipped with an industry-leading InoTec SCAMAX scanner, notable for its ability to digitize more than 400 pages per minute (duplex). In addition, the InoTec scanners are uniquely able to capture images that meet three-star FADGI (Federal Agencies Digital Guidelines Initiative) compliance at a high speed (120 ppm). FADGI is a set of technical guidelines created to ensure digital image quality and storage viability and is a standard used by both the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) and the Library of Congress, among other U.S. Federal and non-government archive and records management facilities.
Examples of paper records include but are not limited to:
- Federal records
- Court case files
- Corporate records
- Financial records
- Student records
- Insurance records
- Military records
- Unbound books
The studio also utilizes ROWE map, blueprint and large format scanners for the digitization of oversize documents up to 60” wide. These documents can include engineering drawings, architectural drawings, maps, posters and newspapers among other large-size document types.
Patrick Hill, Crowley’s Director of Digitization Services, notes that since its opening, the imaging team has scanned over a million images monthly. “This is a great example of ‘If you build it, they will come.’ Since our soft opening in January, our document scanning services has grown exponentially. I believe it’s a combination of the M-19-21 mandate by the Federal government to ensure that all Federal records are created, retained and maintained in electronic formats by December 31, 2022 and also Crowley’s enhanced ability to scan large collections of paper documents with high image quality and production efficiency at a competitive price.”
Patrick Crowley, company president, agrees. “Since expanding our document scanning operations physically, we’ve seen a steady increase of very large document collections come through the door. Our Crowley Imaging division has always offered paper scanning, but by dedicating a new facility with its own staff, we’ve been able to reach production heights which were previously unattainable. The client feedback has been nothing short of positive and we’re excited about the opportunities to partner with both traditional customers, as well as to lending subcontractor support to service bureaus who have the projects but not the capacity to be financially competitive. It’s a win-win for all parties.”
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About The Crowley Company
The Crowley Company is a world leader in digital scanning technologies manufacture and resale and provides an extensive number of digital document and film conversion services to the library, academic, publishing, commercial, government and archive sectors.
