Data Capture, Data Entry, Data Conversion, Data Collection - Are these services all the same?

By wkrautter on August 18, 2009

Some of the most fulfilling moments at the office for me are conversations I have with people about their data processing projects. Even after 22 years of talking with clients and prospects, I still enjoy giving advice and solving their challenges through lively discussions. Many times I receive calls from prospects which start out like this…

Prospect: “Hi - I have a need for data – capture, err.. data - entry ,,ummm data –conver-well… if I describe what I have, can you help me with what service I need?

Me: “Why of course, I would be happy to help you!”

Prospect: ” I have this paper form and it has a bunch of handwritten information that I want in a database.”

Me: “Terrific, let’s talk about your project and see which data processes and technology might best suit your data capture and conversion project”

The terms Data Capture, Data Entry, Data Conversion and Data Collection are used interchangeably and basically address the same result - transfer information from one media form to another. However, we often associate different processes and technology with different terms.

The following are not meant to be absolute definitions of these terms, just a way to think about the term and the related technology and processes behind them:

· Data Capture - a device reads information from one media form and transports it to another media form. Examples are bar code reader, paper scanners using OCR (optical character recognition) technology transferring text information to data files.

· Data Entry - the manual typing information from one media form to another. Examples are people looking at a paper document or scanned image of a document and typing the text into a data file.

· Data Collection - is the process of gathering information and delivering to a media form. It is similar to Data Capture, but often has a manual process to it since marking or handwriting text onto a form or recording device might be part of the information transport process.

The terms Media Conversion and Data Conversion are also often used interchangeably, which can be confusing.

· Usually, Media Conversion is the process of converting information files directly from one media form to another without interpolation or conversion of the information inside the file being transferred. Some examples are converting VCR tape video files to DVD disk files OR using a hardware technology and software processes to read diskettes and transfer data files to CD-Rom disks.

· While, Data Conversion refers to the process used to read information from the media and when applying a set of rules interprets and changes or replaces the information. Examples are converting a date from August 13, 2009 to 08/13/2009 or 2009/08/13 or a name from “Joseph E. Jones” to “Jones, Joseph E.”

Understanding these terms in more detail may help you when describing your next “data” processing project.

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Why is “peak period” processing an important concept to recognize for an organization?

By wkrautter on June 5, 2009

Just as a company would evaluate whether to buy or rent equipment, a similar decision should be made for staffing or outsourcing. Many companies look at their business cycle over the year but neglect the monthly cycle. If a company is going to use a piece of equipment everyday, then buying makes sense, but if they only use it 5-10 days each month, renting would be the better choice. For years, professional efficiency management consultants have helped businesses with these decisions and the results are often very beneficial for the bottom line.

Some companies are fortunate to have talented, trained and qualified staff that can serve in multiple types of job assignments and perform, but for many firms “smartsourcing” or “peak period sourcing” during these times is a better approach. Staff utilization will improve, a consistent level of service during peak periods is maintained and costs are lowered as a result of sourcing these processes during the monthly business cycle.

How might smartsourcing or peak period sourcing work for your business? Here’s a scenario:

A manufacturer receives 8,000 invoices per month from suppliers. In order to take advantage of payment discounts on 6,000 of these invoices, the business has only 10 days to make payment. To meet this kind of deadline (including mailing, review and payment scheduling) all the information needs to be entered into the accounts payable system within 3 days from receipt. While regular trained clerical staff can enter most of the normal pay term invoices through the month,  this “peak period” occurs once a week twice a month due to the way suppliers invoice. During these times someone else must enter 3,000 invoices over a three day period. If you use other trained staff to enter invoices in a timely, accurate manner for only 6 days each month, what are those employees qualified to do for the rest of the month? Probably not invoice data entry.

In tough economic times, like the current business climate, it’s important to make the most of your staff and budget. Peak period sourcing or smartsourcing may be the best way for your company to efficiently meet project deadlines.

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What does STATCO do and just what IS a data processing “service bureau”?

By wkrautter on April 10, 2009

I am asked this a lot so I thought this should be my first blog topic.

STATCO Data Processing Since 1959Since 1959 STATCO has provided data capture and document imaging services. The technology we use has changed through the years but the service remains the same; digitizing information for the first time. Whether the information is captured from hand-written paper forms, survey instruments or file documents, data is transcribed and converted into prescribed fields and organized into databases. These databases are delivered in various formats designed to plug into a customer’s information management system for transaction processing or statistical analysis.

The paper documents we convert into digital image format can be almost any size and quantity. Document imaging services include document preparation and organization, scanning, indexing and formatting into PDF, TIFF and other digital file formats. Optical character recognition (OCR), intelligent character recognition (ICR) and bar code recognition technologies are used to assist in the digital data conversion process. Where automated recognition technology is not possible manual data entry is used to index the document information.

In the early days of computer system use during in the 1960s and 1970s only a select few organizations could afford to purchase and operate a computer system. It was not uncommon for a larger company to rent computer time or services to a smaller firm who needed computing services but lacked the resources to purchase and maintain a computer system of their own. In the beginning banks, universities and very large corporations would “lend”  or “host” computing power on a “time-sharing” basis to those who needed computational services. The time these host organizations shared was always after their own computer processing tasks were complete. It was not unusual for a computer time-sharing service customer to wait an entire month before receiving the results of their processed information from the host. This lead to the computer “service bureau”, a company designed from the beginning to provide computing services to companies who required more timely computing services. Early on these new computer service host companies became bureaus or divisions inside the same time-sharing host bank or company. Occasionally computer service bureaus grew from a completely new entrepreneurial venture, as was the case for STATCO.

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Welcome to My Blog

By wkrautter on March 21, 2009

I’m very pleased to be launching my first blog page. There are several people I have to thank for helping me get started on this journey. First is my daughter Kara for all her social media knowledge and interest in my personal communication strategy. Many thanks to Mat and Steve for providing me the technical tools and design work to get things started.

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