When to Shred Your Old Documents


In a modern office, paper and computers are used side by side for the sharing of information and the creation of content alike. Paper is a time-honored method of communication, and despite the rise of the Internet and computers, it has not been made totally obsolete like some people might think. Rather, a modern office space will use both methods for their respective strengths and capabilities, and often to good effect. Most businesses today have paper suppliers for making financial reports, memos, visual charts or diagrams, and more on paper of all sorts. This may even include blueprints for engineering work. What is more, many businesses work with printing firms so that specialized documents can be printed, or flyers or posters in great quantities.

Paper has its uses, but too much of it in the office can be a liability for a number of reasons. When an office space has an overflow of paper, the manager is advised to contact commercial paper shredders who can bring high capacity shredder machines onto the scene and use them. Secure paper shredding will destroy documents beyond use, and of course, before a high capacity shredder is used, those old documents will be digitally scanned to preserve their contents. When is it time to hire a high capacity shredder company, and what are the benefits of level 6 shredding?

The Problems of Paper

This is not to say that paper is more trouble than it is worth, or that the Internet has made it obsolete after all. Far from it, since paper haws a number of perks when used properly. But when there’s too much of it, problems arise. For one thing, it takes time to get up, find and retrieve a paper document, use it, then return it properly. At best, this will take up a lot of time when done often, and what’s worse, paper documents may be lost in a cluttered filing cabinet. It costs a company time and money alike to recover or recreate lost documents, owing to the productivity lost during recovery. It may cost as much as $150-200 to replace lost of misfiled paper documents, and that may add up fast.

That’s not all. When there’s too much paper at the office, all of those documents need space, and filing cabinets, cardboard boxes, folders, and more will take up a lot of space that could be used for something else. What is more, all of that paper is a fire hazard, and stray sparks or a frayed electrical cord might easily set them on fire. Such a fire might spread pretty fast. And finally, excess paper is an issue since a dishonest employee can easily steal or photograph a paper document for purposes that would hurt the company. Managers want a way to crack down on unlawful use of documents, and shredding them is a fine way to do just that. This is when a high capacity shredder from a dedicated scan/shred crew may be used.

Digitize Those Documents

On a regular basis, a company manager may have a local shredder company visit the premises and take care of excessive paper documents. This outsourced labor can allow for the fast and efficient scanning of many thousands of documents, and all of those digitally scanned documents may be uploaded into the company’s data center as well as its Cloud data storage. Once all of those documents are safely scanned, they are destroyed in a high capacity shredder that can handle a huge input of paper. That shredded paper may then be set out for recycling.

This has many benefits. When excess papers are shredded, the fire hazard that they represent is gone, and a lot of room will be freed up in the office as well. Having all those documents digitized also means that it’s more difficult to steal documents, and such papers can be more easily shared with remote workers. Many modern office workers are either working on board a jet during travel or even at home in a dedicated home office, and paper mail is a slow way to share documents with them. Instead, digitally scanned documents can be easily e-mailed to and from them. The company’s Cloud storage also makes document sharing fast and easy.


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