Say Goodbye To Inefficient Filing With Scan 1-2-3 - by Cameron Healey

Scanning documents is nothing new. I use a scanner at home to scan bills, receipts, and other important documents; it eliminates filing space and allows me the opportunity to access files and documents simply and quickly. Filing cabinets take up too much space and are not the most secure storage options for valuable files and documents either.

OCMUSA, a division of Gresham Toyota in Portland, OR has a scanning solution that allows dealers the ability to store and retrieve documents for every department. Known as Scan 1-2-3, this scanning solution saves dealers time and money in a number of different ways. Scan1-2-3 was born out of a need to reduce the handling and re-handling of the service department ROs at Gresham Toyota. The challenge of keeping files for all their ROs had become cost prohibitive and the other option was to outsource filing at huge cost.

Your dealership probably has a room full of filing cabinets filled with hard copies of documents, right? Every time you need a past RO, it must be pulled and then re-filed. Periodically these documents must be moved, stored, and/or purged. Scan 1-2-3 allows a designated staff member the ability to scan the ROs and other documents using a scanner that the dealership purchases (Gresham Toyota recommends the Fujitsu 5110c scanner). Repair orders remain safe, secure, and are immediately accessible. No more physical document storage costs. Human labor is reduced and a host of IT related expenses are avoided. If you are worried about the security of your files, the data or scanned documents are stored on redundant servers behind secure firewalls, not unlike your bank account information. The dealer, however, remains firmly in control of who scans the documents and has access to them, so document security is ensured.

The cool part with Scan 1-2-3 is that any document for any department can be accessed via the Internet 24/7 provided you are using Windows XP, Windows 2000, or Vista. So how do you find documents that you’ve previously scanned? Dealership personnel access the dealership virtual file cabinets (see image) to which they have been granted access by the controller or dealer principal. Each document is indexed by criteria that you think is appropriate and can be searched using either RO numbers, account numbers, social security numbers, text fields, and more. In addition, the Adobe Acrobat viewer allows you to zoom, print, fax, or email the document directly from the browser. Virtual file cabinets can store service ROs, sold sales documents, contracts, AP/AR documents , employee files, and more. This solution is particularly useful for multi store groups because they can share files between stores easily and safely. The cost to the dealer is a monthly fee based on the volume of data storage and ranges from $299-599 per month. The average dealer, however, selling 100 units per month can expect to pay $499 per month, and this includes unlimited users and you are not charged for extra stations or clicks on stored virtual documents.

If you want to use a dealer-designed and tested document storage application that is proven to work, call them for an online demo at 888-481-3727 ext193. You just might save some money and make your document storage more streamlined and efficient. For more information, view their online video.