As the economy inches toward a rebound, organizations must continue to manage their IT expenses while helping to grow the enterprise. According to industry experts, print technology is helping to simplify complex document processes, reduce the costs associated with paper-intensive workflows and create new and better ways to increase organizations’ revenue.
Notwithstanding the challenging economic climate, businesses face transformations with an added challenge – maintaining technologies that support best business practices at every stage of change.
For New Zealand-based KiwiRail, that comes in the form of its decade-long reliance on the Open Text Fax Server, RightFax Edition electronic document delivery. Based partly on Fax Server reliability, the company also added Open Text Document Server, Alchemy Edition. KiwiRail directs critical operations via fax, relying on the technology as a main source of communication.
KiwiRail is New Zealand’s leading freight-forwarding and distribution company, operating rail services over New Zealand’s national rail network. Previously, the company’s operations were largely manual, according to Jono Armstrong, network consultant with KiwiRail. For freight booking, employees took orders, and then printed confirmations to be delivered via fax machines. While overall fax volume varies, confirmations alone generally total 300 to 400 per day.
“It would take employees most of the night to fax sheets manually,” Armstrong said. Even longer during Christmas season when daily booking confirmations numbered in the thousands. Unfortunately, paper-based processing led to reporting delays and challenges for help desk personnel who lacked an easy way to access the latest files.
Like faxing, annotating and storing other scheduling or financial documents by hand also led to inefficiencies. KiwiRail first installed Open Text Fax Server, RightFax Edition in 1998 for electronic document delivery. Rather than standing by fax machines, employees send and receive time-sensitive faxes from the desktop. Since its initial installation, Open Text Fax Server has seamlessly adapted to changing technology and business needs for the line haul service provider, KiwiRail officials said.
Open Text is an enterprise software company and enterprise content management provider that helps organizations manage and gain the value of their business content. Open Text brings two decades of expertise supporting 50 million users in 114 countries.
Interestingly, IT research firm Gartner expects a mix of fax-over-IP and the skyrocketing sales of all-in-one printers to spur an 80 percent growth of fax servers in enterprises.
“One of the biggest benefits of Open Text Fax Server over the competition is its reliable server integrated with the Brooktrout (News - Alert) SR 140 T.38 Fax over IP platform,” Armstrong added. “From a technical perspective, Open Text fax-over-IP is a very simple set-up and helps you get going without any flaws.”
In addition to a virtualized fax-over-IP solution, KiwiRail turned to Open Text Fax Server for integration with other critical business applications, even as these solutions were expanded or replaced over time, company officials said.
“The automation of our business processes and related time-savings are definitely the biggest benefits for our use of Fax Server and Alchemy,” Armstrong said. As an example, he pointed to integrated freight booking procedures: the process to deliver and archive confirmations is completed within minutes, without touching paper. “We believe it even creates a better experience for our customers.”
Even through company buyouts, renaming and other changes, KiwiRail continues to rely on Open Text solutions. “One of the reasons KiwiRail has remained loyal is the support that has been offered up at every occasion,” Armstrong explained. “When it came time to upgrade, we didn’t even look at anything else.”
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Erin Harrison is a Senior Editor with TMC. To read more of her articles, please visit her columnist page.Edited by Erin Harrison