Throughout its operations in the United States, Canada, and Europe, CIT was using various records management practices, including disparate imaging systems and remote hardcopy storage, which required labor-intensive, manual retrieval. In many cases, the process of accessing documentation was not up to CIT's standards of efficiency. CIT needed one system, from one source, that could pull it all together and simplify the process.

Among the many systems CIT was using, only one provided faster, more efficient access and the ability to resolve customer-related issues in real time: ASPEN 360 Only one company offered a Source-to-Shred solution-from Web-based image hosting to document conversion and hardcopy storage: Archive Systems. The answer was obvious: Convert ASPEN 360 enterprise-wide.

To ensure a total solution that not only meets CIT's overall business needs, but also addresses the specific concerns of multiple business units, Archive Systems' experts consulted with CIT staff to understand how each department needs to view and search for data. To date, Archive Systems is serving varied CIT business units in multiple U.S. locations; Toronto, Canada; and several locations in Europe. Customized implementations include dedicated T-1 access to ASPEN 360 and conversion from existing imaging systems to the Archive Systems hosted solution.

CIT is taking full advantage of the flexibility that only ASPEN 360 offers. Some units are using ASPEN 360’s Remote Scanning Gateways to scan and upload files on a daily basis; others are benefiting from high-volume conversion services at Archive Systems. Either way, files are accessible and searchable by specific criteria within 24 hours—a process that was taking as long as one week in some cases. Using Archive Systems' full service, off-site, hard copy records storage and Scan-on-Demand services, any hard copy record can be located and converted in as little as fifteen minutes.

By image-enabling third-party systems, ASPEN 360 facilitates real-time customer service. Now, representatives can provide customers with attachments via e-mail and fax without leaving their desktops—and without ever placing callers on hold. For select customers, CIT can provide links to thousands of pages residing within the Web-based document imaging system. As a result, no time is wasted in printing, packing, shipping, and searching through hard copies.

Converting to ASPEN 360 has resulted in tremendous cost savings for CIT. The hosted imaging solution requires no additional investment in hardware or software. Using a single platform solution, CIT now has fewer people to train and IT staff has been reallocated to focus on core business concerns. By taking advantage of Archive Systems’ Scan-on-Demand services, CIT significantly reduced costs on storing and selectively accessing high volumes of less critical documentation. Of equal importance, ASPEN 360’s highly secure, fully redundant infrastructure has enabled CIT to achieve an unprecedented level of assured business continuity that would not have been logistically and financially possible in-house.

Implementations are currently slated for Dallas, Detroit, and Atlanta. When all conversions are complete, CIT will have instant, secure access to an estimated 75 million documents within ASPEN 360.

"Other systems are more expensive up front and much less effective," said CIT VP of Systems Development, Heath Blount, regarding the company's decision to implement ASPEN 360 enterprise wide. "Archive Systems offers higher value and greater quality. They provide a full spectrum of onsite consulting before, during, and after implementation," he continued. "After realizing the financial and functional benefits of ASPEN 360 our CIO has mandated that we must use it whenever and wherever feasible."