The device that’s become a staple

EVIM has been provides digitization services at various locations throughout Germany for over 20 years. "We started out at a time when the very first pure document scanners were appearing on the market and it was clear that existing paper archives were going to be digitized in the medium to long term," recalls Jochen Rasel, Division Head of Production at the Reha-Werkstatt EVIM in Wiesbaden. A separate department operating on the market under the Pixelwerk brand began specializing in scanning all kinds of documents and specifically attracted large companies and public authorities among its client base. "Just because our organizations employ people with disabilities, it doesn't mean the work they do is any less demanding in terms of mechanics or productivity — that mentality is a thing of the past. Pixelwerk primarily hires people with mental disorders to do jobs that require specialist skills," emphasizes Jochen Rasel. This kind of job opportunity is very attractive to many of the individuals who work there. Since their foundation, Reha-Werkstatt's scanning sites have been using Canon document scanners with the help and supervision of Sonis GmbH, one of Canon's long-standing partners in this line of business. "We've continually invested in and constantly upgraded our system architecture. The only thing that kept proving highly problematic for us and our employees was removing the staples from documents and mail," says Jochen Rasel.

"Thanks to having had regular contact with our partner Sonis GmbH for many years now, we're always up to date with Canon's latest innovations. For example, we recently invested in a multitude of new Canon document scanners when we saw a rapid increase in the amount of digitization requests we were getting," says Jochen Rasel. Consequently, the news that an all-new Instant Staple Remover A1 had just been launched on the market reached decision-makers at Pixelwerk at just the right time: "Following a short trial run, we opted to use the Instant Staple Remover A1 as it allows our employees to forgo this mechanical work if they don't want to do it, especially for larger orders," says Jochen Rasel about his decision, which led to the scanning department of the EVIM Reha-Werkstatt in Wiesbaden piloting the innovative new system in Germany. The device is compact and easy to use — two key selling points that made decision-makers at EVIM confident they had made the right choice. The charity's scanning departments cater to well-known companies, and these two factors give them a competitive advantage.

"Our employees often used to have difficulty preparing classic stacks of stapled papers for digitization. But the Instant Staple Remover A1 allows us to hire anyone we want, including those struggling with mental disorders or physical disabilities who find de-stapling more difficult than able-bodied people," says Jochen Rasel describing the day-to-day scanning work at Pixelwerk. He continues: "Canon's partner Sonis specializes in non-profit organizations like ours. By suggesting the Instant Staple Remover A1, it provided us a product that works perfectly alongside our Canon scanners." The benefits are clear to see: Firstly, it specifically allows certain employees not to have to remove staples manually. Secondly, it helps avoid physical injury and prevent damage to sensitive documents or to the scanners themselves from staples or staple remnants. Furthermore, the Instant Staple Remover A1—which is available exclusively from Canon—has a very compact design, meaning it can fit in any PC workstation. Once staples are removed, they are collected in a box that can easily be emptied. What's more, the system can handle staples that comply with different standards and are of different sizes. "All in all, since we started using the Instant Staple Remover, our scanning workstations have never been cleaner or safer. This innovation is speeding up our workflows exactly where they need streamlining," emphasizes Jochen Rasel.