Microfiche Scanning
An Introduction to Microfiche Storage, Archiving, Scanning and Conversion
The demand for microfiche scanning - The process of turning documents into images that can be manipulated on a computer and conversion to digital format - These can be TIFF or JPEG, which are computer files used to store pictures or graphics. We also use PDF (Portable Document Format) which are designed for easy printing and sharing. has become increasingly popular over the years, as more and more organisations feel the need to speed up their operations in order to concentrate on the more important tasks. Obtaining information from a microfiche requires a special microfiche reader printer which can become a bit of a liability in terms of cost, maintenance, unreliability and retrieval time factors.
In the past, organsations had their documents, drawings, books, maps, newspapers, manufactured parts list, computer output data from main frame systems, company house records and contracts etc, preserved onto microfiche with the intention of retaining their vital business information for years to come. At the time, microfiche offered the best possible storage and archive solution before the computer and digital media was born.
Microfiche Scanning Formats
Prior to scanning and converting the microfiche to digital files, as there are various types of microfiche available, the first step would be to ascertain the microfiche type to enable us to find the best possible solution with regards to beginning the scanning and conversion project.
The following are some of the most commonly used microfiche formats:
16mm Microfiche - this microfiche is used to archive A3/A4 size documents with a frame of 6 x 4 inches. It can contain approx 60 pages per microfiche.
35mm Microfiche - this microfiche is used to archive large engineering drawings, building/construction plans and newspapers. The frame size is 6 x 4 inches and depending on the size of the documents it can contain 12 - 15 frames per microfiche.
COMBI Microfiche - COMBI is an abbreviation of combination and contains both 16mm and 35mm size documents and drawings. This microfiche is used in the building industry and local authorities. The size of the microfiche is 6 x 4 inches and contains a mixture of A3/A4 drawings and plans.
COM Microfiche - COM is an abbreviation of "Computer Output to Microfiche" .This type of microfiche is used in a corporate environment to store and archive mainframe or computer generated reports and data. This microfiche is also widely used in the automobile manufacturing industry to archive automobile parts lists, drawings and other data, the size of the microfiche is 6 x 4 inches and can contain up to 270 pages per microfiche
JUMBO Microfiche - JUMBO microfiche is in fact a COM microfiche but is double the size, this type is normally used in the US automobile manufacturing industry, however still see some around in the UK
Our highly skilled microfiche scanning advisors can advise on which solution is best suited to whichever type of microfiche requires for scanning and converting, even if it is not listed above. Below is an illustration of all the types of microfiche which have been mentioned.
The Microfiche Scanning Process
Our microfiche scanning and conversion bureau can convert your microfiche into an organised computer files and store them onto either CDs or DVDs, so they can be viewed, printed, emailed and shared amongst other users on a PC or laptop. Scanned microfiche files are similar to any other image files and can be converted to Adobe Acrobat PDF - PDF is a very popular multipage file format that is used ny many companies because it can be opened by almost anybody using free software most people already have on their computers. files, full text PDF Searchable - PDF Seachable is a type of PDF that has been processed using OCR so that its content can be searched. files, TIFF - A type of computer file used for storing pictures, these can be full color, grayscale or black and white. A multipage TIFF file can contain many pages in a single file., JPG - JPEG's is a single page per file image format that is popular among graphic designers and web designers it is advised to use this format if you're scanning colour images for presentation purposes. or any other format required. For all our projects, we utilise the latest microfiche scanners which produce impeccable quality and accurate images at impressive speeds.
Microfiche Scanning and Conversion to Editable Format (OCR)
In addition to our microfiche scanning services to image format such as PDF - PDF is a very popular multipage file format that is used ny many companies because it can be opened by almost anybody using free software most people already have on their computers., TIFF - A type of computer file used for storing pictures, these can be full color, grayscale or black and white. A multipage TIFF file can contain many pages in a single file. or JPG - JPEG's is a single page per file image format that is popular among graphic designers and web designers it is advised to use this format if you're scanning colour images for presentation purposes., we also convert microfiche data into an editable format which is also known as OCR - Involves the use of computer software to translate images of type written text into machine-editable text. (Optical Character Recognition). Depending on the document layout and formatting, we can scan and convert any microfiche into Microsoft Word - Microsoft Word is a popular piece of word processing software sometimes abbreviated to MS Word., Microsoft Excel - Microsoft Excel is a popular spread sheet program., CSV - (Comma Separated Value) File is a file containing information separated by commas or ASCII text files - American Standard Code for Information Exchange. A text document containing no formatting information., Microsoft Access - A popular database application by Microsoft that uses Microsoft Database (MDB) files., XML - (eXtensible Markup Language) A decendent of HMTL for web publishing. Considered to be more general and uniform than its parent. , HTML, Fully PDF Searchable - PDF Seachable is a type of PDF that has been processed using OCR so that its content can be searched. files or any other formats.
Microsoft Access A popular database application by Microsoft that uses Microsoft Database (MDB) files.Microfiche Scanning Advisors
Our microfiche scanning advisors are specially trained for all types of microfilm and microfiche, if you wish to discuss your microfiche scanning project, please contact our microfiche scanning bureau on 0161 832 7991.
