Microfilm and Microfiche Scanning
If you've recently looked up information on microfilm or microfiche, do you recall how long it took? Did it take less than an hour to find the proper roll or slide, place it into the machine, and then find the correct piece of data? Now what if we told that you after microfilm conversion, you could find that information in less than a minute via a simple search?
Converting your microfilm and/or microfiche to digital files can seem like a huge, complex, and very overwhelming process. The good news, though, is that we can help you tackle this project without wasting any time or money. Digitizing your microfilm and microfiche can completely change the way it is accessed and stored.
Thanks to today’s advanced technology and our team of skilled specialists, we can scan your microfilm and microfiche and transform each roll into a powerful digital document with instant accessibility. Whether you have rolls of documents, images, notes, or minutes, they can be scanned and put through the digitization process.
The Datamation Microfilm & Microfiche Conversion Process
- We’ll collect your microfiche jackets, microfilm rolls, COM fiche, and aperture cards.
- Then we’ll scan, OCR (optical character recognition), and index them at our secure facility.
- We will accurately convert your document images to PDF, TIFF, or any other file format.
- Finally, we’ll upload or distribute the corresponding digital files in any format of your choosing—making those old personnel records, payroll records, medical records, and drawings instantly accessible.
Why Should I Convert My Microfiche and Microfilm to Digital Files?
Despite claims that microfiche and microfilm have a shelf life of up to 500 years, that hasn't been the case. These media types start to decay even in the best of climate-controlled environments.
So check in on your film and fiche. Do you notice any:
- Measles/blemishes
- Vinegar smell
- Brittleness
- Stickiness
- Fungus
If so, then you really need to consider digitizing these records before the decay makes it impossible to do so.
Benefits of Scanning Your Microfiche and Microfilm
Once you decide to convert your microfilm and microfiche to digital files, the benefits quickly begin appearing. Organizations become so happy with the results of the microfiche conversion services that they often ask themselves, why didn’t we do this sooner? An example of some of the benefits that come along with microfiche and microfilm scanning include:
- Preserves Information Accurately
- Improved Document Control
- Searchability
- Instant Accessibility
- More Physical Space
- Increased Efficiency
- Save Money
- Peace of Mind (and Digital Backups)
Check out our blog post to get more in-depth about the benefits of digitizing your microfiche and microfilm.
If you want an estimate of how much your microfilm and microfiche scanning will cost, use our document scanning calculator to get an idea of the cost.
If you're ready to digitize your microfilm or microfiche, contact us!
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Microfilm?
Microfilm, also known as roll film, is either in an open reel or in a cassette. Roll film typically comes in lengths of 100′ for 35mm film, 130′ for 16mm film, and 215′ for 16mm film. Roll film may also be single stream with images side by side (simplex), or dual stream with images stacked two up on the film (duplex). Sometimes film will have rectangular marks running along the edge of the film, which is called blipped microfilm.
Microfilm / Roll Film
Blipped Microfilm (also Simplex)
Duplex Microfilm
What is Microfiche?
Microfiche is a sheet of film containing rows of images. The most common we see is roll film cut into strips and placed in a jacket or sleeve. The size and number of images per jacket vary. Additionally, the film may be positive, negative, or mixed within a jacket. All of these factors affect the cost of conversion.
Microfiche / COM Fiche / Step and Repeat or Updateable Media
Jacketed Microfiche
What is COM Fiche?
COM (Computer Output Microfilm) fiche is microfilm that is generated from a mainframe data stream or print file. Typically, COM fiche is a series of images produced at a 24X or a 48X reduction ratio.
Computer Output Microfilm (COM) Fiche
What is an Aperture Card?
Think of an Aperture card as a type of punch card that has a cutout with a piece of 35mm microfilm in it. The Aperture card has a row at the top that identifies the content and is often punched with Hollerith or machine-readable data.
Aperture Card
The Datamation Guide To Digitizing Your Microfiche & Microfilm
Want to learn more? Check out this comprehensive guide.