High-tech doc management.

• Author: Ling, Ben
• Position: Tech Knowledge

DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT sounds more like a chore than a hot technology, but tracking information is crucial for maintaining efficient businesses.

Several Utah companies are jockeying for the lead in their respective document management markets. The major trend among these companies is using the Internet for their products' delivery. Also, old standards, such as the Open Document Management API (ODMA), are fading because they are limited to local networks or single computers.

NetDocuments

One company keenly aware of ODMA's rise and fall is NetDocuments. The core team behind NetDocuments developed the ODMA standard when they worked for SoftSolutions Technology Corp. in the '90s. SoftSolutions was bought by WordPerfect and then Novell. When Internet access burst into businesses, the old SoftSolutions team saw the advantages of a web-based service. They starred NetDocuments in 1997 and hit the Web in 1999. The company now has about 40,000 subscribers, says CEO Ken Duncan.

NetDocuments' centralized setup frees customers from system administration, says Alvin Tedjamulia, NetDocuments CTO. The Web also provides global access and off-site storage for disaster recovery. Subscribers use a web browser and existing applications to share, retrieve and edit files on NetDocuments' servers. Information transfers are encrypted and files are automatically copied on local computers. Document changes are synchronized and logged into a history.

To handle paper documents, the company negotiated agreements to offer the service through software bundled with most retail scanners.

MediConnect

Another company using the Web for DMS is MediConnect. The company's core business entails retrieving medical records and delivering them over the Internet to insurance and law firms. That expertise is driving MediConnect's move into records management.

By using the Internet, insurance agencies or law firms can place orders at any time, from almost anywhere. They also get real-time progress reports on their orders. For security customers use a MediConnect viewer to retrieve the documents online. The wait for documents is cut from one or two months to just 10 to 15 days.

"We don't just provide a document management service. What we really provide is a business relationship," says Michael Colemere, CEO of MediConnect. The company maintains a database of contacts at about 650,000 hospitals and clinics.

MediConnect's new product, RapiDisclose, connects to healthcare facilities'...