IBM Datacap

Get rid of your paper headaches by implementing a smart data capture solution using IBM Data Capture Software.

IBM Datacap helps you streamline the capture, recognition and classification of business documents and extract important information. Datacap supports multi-channel capture by processing paper documents on scanners, mobile devices, multi-function peripherals and fax. It uses natural language processing, text analytics and machine learning technologies, like those in IBM Watson, to automatically identify, classify and extract content from unstructured or variable documents. The software can reduce labor and paper costs, deliver meaningful information and support faster decision making.

What is Data Capture?

Data Capture solutions excel at converting paper documents into electronic, easy to manage, and easy to search documents. Leveraging technologies like Optical Character Recognition (OCR), Optical Mark Recognition (OMR) and Intelligent Character Recognition (ICR), DataCap will quickly analyze your scanned documents and identify key data increasing data integrity and workplace efficiency.

Electronic documents can be fed through well-defined workflows enabling consistency, transparency and measurability of your business. Fully leverage your DataCap solution by integrating with an Enterprise Content Management System, like the FileNet P8 Platform, to manage and browse data, enforce document retention policies and most importantly, maintain document security.

Business Challenge

Processing paper is slow, inaccurate and highly inefficient. Many businesses are stuck in a paper centric world where it is difficult to manage, search and enforce business rules on your documents. Some limitations of manually processing paper are:

• Duplication of Data Entry - The same data is being entered into multiple systems causing inaccuracies and slow turn around times.
• Inefficient - Misplaced or damaged paper causes set-backs and issues in processing. Retrieving documents in storage and filing systems further reduces efficiency.
• Costly - Studies show that typical organizations of about 1,000 people waste over 11 million dollars per year in manual document handling and management.
• Laborious - The manual processing, transporting and maintaining of large volumes of paper is a multi-step, slow and labor intensive process.
• Storage Space Requirements - Paper archiving requires large amounts of space as well as staff to manage those documents.
• Accountability and Security - Many paper-based operations make copies and pass along paper in folders which can easily be lost or misused.
• Difficult to Scale - Hiring, training, cost and space limitations make it nearly impossible to quickly scale a manual paper-based process.

A Successful Data Capture Process

• Automates the Process - Reduces cost, labor and inaccuracies. Increases speed and reliability in processing documents.
• Optimizes Scanning and Indexing Operations – The scanning and indexing process is the most labor intensive process of Data Capture. Optimizing this process through the use of technology, such as batch/document separation, OCR/ICR/OMR, forms recognition, barcodes and patch codes can reduce labor time and increase efficiency and accuracy.
• Scales Up - Most organizations need the ability to start small and scale up as the organization grows. The solution can either be decentralized in a manner across many departments, or centralized where it's implemented all at once.
• Quickly Commits Documents to an ECM Solution for Content Management and Workflow - Data Capture extends Content Management and Workflow by providing metadata information for faster processing and retrieving of information.
• Streamlines Workflows - Leverage document recognition and metadata to implement automated workflow systems improving consistency and efficiency of the business.