User Guide

Automated Forms Processing
What is form processing?
Forms processing is a process whereby information entered into
data fields is converted into electronic form:
 entered data are "captured" form their respective fields
 forms themselves are digitised and saved as images.
In most cases forms processing is considered complete when
the data from all the forms have been captured, verified and saved
into a database. It is also essential that the integrity of the captured
data be preserved.
As has been mentioned earlier, forms can be processed manu
ally or using forms processing software. In the sections that follow
we consider the advantages and disadvantages of each method.
Many people still prefer to process forms manually, even
though this is not the most efficient and reliable method. Here is a
list of typical actions that need to be performed in the case of man
ual data entry:
 Each
human operator (keyer) must be provided with a work
ing place. This entails the most expenses, since each operator
must be provided with a computer connected to the local area
network, and the average productivity of a qualified operator is
no more than 200 forms per day.
 Forms preprocessing requires
sorting operators and input
controllers . Controllers make sure that no pages are lost if a
form has more than one page and oversee the sorting process.
The number of sorting operators and input controllers depends
on the expected work load. On average, one sorting operator
will sort up to 1,000 forms per day, and one input controller
will handle up to 300 forms per day
 Once the data from forms have been entered into a computer,
they must be checked by
verifiers . Verifiers check the data
entered by keyers and correct any errors that may have
occurred.
 Finally, a manager is required to supervise the entire data entry
team.
Now suppose you need to enter data from 1,000 forms per day.
You will need five keyers, one input controller and one manager.
This means seven desks, seven chairs, seven PCs and additional
equipment  network adapters and UPS.
Costs,USD Qty Total, USD
PC 1,000 7 7000
Office furniture 1,000 7 7000
Network and other equipment 1,000
15000
Table 1. Lumpsum costs for manual processing at 1,000 pages per day.
The lumpsum costs stand at around USD 15,000. Now let's count
your monthly costs for the same productivity. You will need an
office of at least 50 sq. m. which may cost you around 1,000 per
month. Labour costs will amount to USD 1200 for the operator
and controller and another USD 2000 for the manager.
Costs, USD Qty Total, USD
Operators' salary 1,200 5 6,000
Controller's salary 1,200 1 1,200
Manager's salary 2,000 1 2,000
Office space 20 50 sq. m. 1,000
10,200
Table 2. Monthly costs for manual processing at 1,000 pages per day.
Note that these calculations do not include the cost of electricity,
telephone, cleaning, fillin staff, etc. But even this austere budget
stands at around USD
10,200 per month