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TEXAS
TAKES TOKOPEN DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
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Using TokOpen to improve
case file management and information sharing
With
a wide ranging brief - from supervising traffic on rural highways
to preserving the peace and investigating crime - the Texas
Department of Public Safety - www.txdps.state.tx.us - has
a challenging role. Like any large organization, it relies
heavily on technology to perform effectively and make the
best use of resources. But unlike most, many of its tasks
are literally a matter of life or death. Even those that are
not - such as driver licensing and motor vehicle inspection
- are just as vital.
TokOpen
is now playing a key role in a wide range of document management
applications, including fingerprint processing and archiving,
crime records, vehicle inspection records, driver licensing
and the state's driver information bureau and concealed handgun
licensing.
Replacing a former DM system that was unable to cope with
the department's ever more demanding and complicated operations,
TokOpen is already proving itself in nine of TDPS areas of
activity. A key factor affecting the department's replacement
of the former system was continually increasing software maintenance
overheads. Since TokOpen was installed, these costs have been
reduced by around 30 per cent - representing a saving of $50,000
a year.
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A
user of document management technology since 1990, the
department's Crime Records Service had adopted Automated
Fingerprint Identification Systems (AFIS) for the digital
capture, processing and retrieval of fingerprint images.
In 1995, the department embarked upon the installation
of an open architecture standard format fingerprint
and document archive.
The
system expanded rapidly from a single server and ten
viewing stations to one five times that size, and as
other document imaging applications were developed,
the then current document management system was struggling
to cope. As the number of users, database size and complexity
increased, the limitations of the system meant it could
not meet the constant changes to the processes of the
state's primary criminal records repository.
Frequent
and comprehensive workflow changes were needed as state
statutes and law enforcement practices changed. This
in turn demanded a very high degree of system stability,
uptime and data integrity. The final straw was ever
increasing software maintenance.
The
solution adopted by the department was Tokairo's TokOpen
system - implemented by Tokairo reseller CBM Archives
- www.cbmarchives.com. The new system provides a powerful,
stable and secure platform which has enabled the department
to dramatically expand its operations and have the flexibility
to modify work processes quickly. It is now used in
nine separate areas of the department, and there are
plans to extend it to others.
Currently,
TokOpen is used by Automated License Revocation, Vehicle
Inspection Records which cover the state's 20 million
licensed vehicles, the Driver Information Bureau, and
Safety and Responsibility.
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Another
vital application handled by TokOpen is the Computerised Criminal
History in the Crime Record Service. This deals with the collection
of arrest, prosecution, and correspondence and disposition
information submitted by the 254 Texas counties as well as
every local police department in the state. The department
processes approximately 725,000 arrests and accompanying paperwork
every year. This also includes all fingerprint data collected
from fingerprint scanning devices around the state. The CRS
imaging system also directly interfaces with the Departments
Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS System)
and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Others
include the Triplicate Prescription Drug Program which issues
prescription drug forms, collects license fees, and receives
volumes of correspondence from all medical offices and pharmacies
across the state of Texas. This department replaced a former
imaging system with TokOpen, and TokOpen Sorting Office and
implemented a timesaving TokOpen workflow process to streamline
their business processes.
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Also:
Concealed Handgun Licensing, and the Latent Fingerprinting
Section which uses TokOpen to access some of the more
than six million imaged fingerprint cards and Livescan
images in the Departments image archive.
The
Crime Records Service has now completely ended microfilming
and is digitizing all archival microfilm. In addition,
the department continues to enhance its workflow processes
with other TokOpen products such as TokOpen Sorting
Office, TokOpen Web, TokOpen WorkFlow, and TokOpen ERM.
The
sheer scale and size of these applications is illustrated
by a glance at some facts and figures. With over 700
users, the department archives now contain over 18 million
images, with peak scanning rates of more than 50,000
scanned images a day and peak microfilm conversion also
running at 50,000 a day. Peak NIST fingerprints are
being scanned at the rate of 6,000 images a day. Total
image storage is 11.0 TB RAID and 8.0 TB optical. Backup
capability is 10.0 TB in just 10 hours. Altogether the
system has over eight and a half million folders.
The
bottom line is a robust, stable and reliable system
that supports the department's increasingly complex
and demanding applications - with significant savings
in ongoing maintenance costs. These are estimated at
around 30 per cent lower than those incurred with the
previous system - representing a reduction of $50,000
a year.
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Tokairo Ltd
20 Linford Forum, Rockingham Drive, Linford Wood,
Milton Keynes, MK14 6LY, UK
Tel: +44 (0) 1908 695 569 | Fax:
+44 (0) 1908 696 961 | E-mail:
info@tokairo.com
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© Copyright 2004 Tokairo
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