Scan-Optics Has Hand In Digitizing 1 Million Municipal Documents

MANCHESTER, CT – Manchester-based Scan-Optics, a global leader in "intelligent data management," and PHA-Web, an affordable web-based management solution designed specifically for housing authorities, have teamed up to digitize more than 1 million pages of records and files for the Waterbury Housing Authority.

The goal of the ongoing project is to convert more than 10,000 files — including Section 8 housing, affordable housing records and business applications like vendor contracts and finance.

“Waterbury Housing Authority’s digitization project showcases the speed and efficiency at which modernization of public services can take place,” Scan-Optics CEO Jeff Mitchell said. "Through our partnership with PHA-Web, we’ve been able to quickly integrate these critical files into their fully automated system. As a Connecticut-based company, helping government agencies leverage technology solutions allows us to provide the highest level of service to state residents.”

The Waterbury Housing Authority assists more than 3,035 families, and as a result, the agency accumulates volumes of paper files that are only accessible at its offices. After receiving a grant and allocating a modernization budget, the agency kicked off this digitization project with Scan-Optics and PHA-Web in February 2022. It aims to improve its operational workflows, reduce its real estate footprint, and enable remote file access and searchability of records, officials said.

"Implementing these digitization solutions has helped us create efficiencies that save our certification specialists approximately 1.5 to 2 hours per day. Also, by digitizing our tenant files with Scan-Optics and integrating them into PHA-Web, we have ensured compliance and streamlined our operations," said Jennifer Yager, the Waterbury Housing Authority comptroller. "We're proud to have made this change, as it enables us to better serve our community while also improving our operations."

Said PHA-Web President Scott Gleason, "The coronavirus pandemic shed light on operational inefficiencies across many industries, and as a result, digitization services, especially in the public services sector, have increased. The Waterbury Housing Authority project provided the perfect opportunity for us to leverage our strategic partnership with Scan-Optics. This project proved that we can now meet our client’s needs quickly and efficiently, and we look forward to future joint projects."

Scan-Optics and PHA-Web recently announced their strategic partnership. Together, the companies strive to provide Housing Authority customers, like Waterbury, with solutions to seamlessly convert physical records and store digital files in a cloud-based operating system, improving record retention, tenant communication and productivity.

Scan-Optics is a global leader in digital transformation, intelligent data management, document conversion and business process optimization. With more than 50 years of experience serving private, government and higher education institutions, Scan-Optics helps customers digitally transform their businesses by leveraging AI technology, machine learning and cloud-based solutions.