Document scanning can preserve vital historical documents
While many businesses now see the benefit of digitizing documents as a means of being more efficient and reducing costs, the technology they have come to rely on so heavily has another potentially significant purpose. Alongside companies in a variety of industries, historical societies and government agencies alike are now utilizing scanning solutions to ensure that vital historical documents are preserved digitally, so that they can be used and viewed for years to come.
For example, Killingly, Connecticut's historical society recently received a $2,000 grant to buy a scanner and other equipment that will help them digitize local residents' old journals, as well as tax records and family trees, according to the Norwich Bulletin. And like many historical societies the effort in Killingly encompasses hundreds of old documents that otherwise would be difficult to move out of the physical space and save it digitally.
Businesses can do it too
However, it's also worth noting that some companies – those that have been around for decades or more – may also have need for scanning services when it comes to historical documents. The motorcycle titan Harley-Davidson recently sold nearly 250 original drawings from the early 1900s – of everything from gas tanks to motor components that would go into the iconic bikes – to a pair of businessmen intent on scanning them, according to Ultimate Motorcycling. More than a decade ago, these documents were scanned into microfiche by Harley-Davidson itself, but the company believes it has already lost those files.
Instead, Scott C. Hall (a businessman from Wichita with an interest in motorcycles) and historical motorcycle restorer Mike Smith have partnered to scan these documents so they can be preserved, and not only keep a piece of history history, but help restorers like Smith bring classic motorcycles back to working order.
The more companies or organizations can do to digitize documents as soon as they come through the doors these days, the better off they will be when it comes to dealing with ongoing needs. That means never misplacing these documents, and making sure they end up being available to everyone who may need them on an ongoing basis.
