FILESTREAM & DATASCAN DOCUMENT SERVICES
TELL US ABOUT DATASCAN DOCUMENT SERVICES.
Datascan Document Services was set up in 2009 soon after CEO Orla Cafferty and founder Padraic Cafferty (Orla’s father) moved into new business premises in Dublin, Ireland.
Between them, this family team already had more than 15 years’ of experience around safely managing the sale or return data of the Irish print media industry. The bureau was simply another arm of an existing business designed to maximise the existing skill set of the team.
WHAT DOES THE COMPANY DO?
We support organisations, particularly in the health and financial services sectors, to manage their paper documents and their mail into an electronic format which is encrypted, formatted and then organised digitally so that it can then be returned to them electronically for storage in their own secure environment. This saves them time and money.
Our clients range from GP practices, private medical clinics, private hospitals to credit unions. The latter are highly trusted in Ireland by the population and repeatedly tops the Reputation Index. With this type of client, it’s clear to see that safe management of documentation is absolutely vital and it’s something we take ve1y seriously.
Within our own business, we have a secure closed network to ensure absolute discretion and safety while those documents are with us. Following a suitable cooling-off period designed to allow our client to check data integrity, we also provide a secure and safe se1vice to shred documents which are no longer needed for reasons of compliance.
WHAT ISSUES WERE YOU EXPERIENCING BEFORE YOU STARTED WORKING WITH FILESTREAM?
At the time we were using software for the first few years which we found was far too restrictive and formulaic for our needs. When documents come to us, they arrive in all sorts of formats, styles and ways and are still on paper – so we were looking for a solution which was more agile, more flexible and that we could tailor to suit the eclectic nature of our business.
We found Filestream through their Irish dealer- Woodsoft- after some time and we were attracted to the company for several reasons – one was affordability, another was it was a smaller company so they were (and are) responsive when customisation is required and the fact that the entire environment is encrypted.
HOW DID THE TRANSITION UNFOLD?
It took some training and adjustment to a new way of working – as any change in any business does. However we soon found that the system was more effective for us, storage
through its encrypted ‘cabinet’ style system meant we could easily ensure that each client had their own ‘safe space’ and, most importantly we could adapt it for each client. Every client is different, even if their business is similar, and Filestream works well for us.
WHAT HAVE THE BENEFITS BEEN?
There have been the financial benefits as we know that other comparable systems are often supplied by larger organisations based in other countries. As a small business ourselves, this meant the costs are ve1y, ve1y high and can be prohibitive. There was a clear cost-saving for us there.
Another benefit for us is that if there is an issue we can get to talk to someone senior in a very timely manner. With other providers overseas, they might be in a different time zone so you have to log a request, wait several hours for a response and this back and fo1th can literally last days. This might be to solve something which is quite simple. This wastes time and energy and increases frush·ation. This can then have a knock on effect in delivering to our own clients within an acceptable timeframe.
It also means that we are suppmting another small business just like our business and that’s always appealed to us. We know that in our sector we are agile and flexible and that’s attractive to our clients – equally it’s a benefit for us to work with a supplier where that is also true.
DESCRIBE THE TYPE OF RELATIONSHIP YOU HAVE WITH FILESTREAM?
Over the years we’ve built up very strong trust. The team are easy to deal with and the MD Paul Day is a powerhouse of knowledge and efficiency. We also recognise how forward-thinking the team are – even though we’ve worked together for well over a decade, they have always been ahead of us in terms of technology.
We wish to grow our business and we will be working with Filestream to explore what the future looks like for us, around using the Cloud, AI and the cybersecurity around that. It’s an exciting prospect.