In-reply-to: Your message of Tue, 27 Oct 1992 08:32:18 -0500
Message-id: <"bjyyv2.0.pK3.zOBCn"@sul2>
Sender: Rare Books and Special Collections Forum <EXLIBRIS@RUTVM1.BITNET>
We also have an OCE copier, although ours is an older model bought nearly
five years ago when they first came on the U.S. market. It does not have,
for example, a foot pedal.
We have been quite pleased with the performance of this copier and are
convinced that it reduces damage to books. Because the book needs to be
opened only about 100 degrees to be copied, the sound of a spine cracking
is a sound of the past. Also, new books do not seem to deteriorate as fast
as they did previously.
There are some features of the OCE and its service contract that might also
be of interest. One thing that we like about the machine is that it is
bolted shut. We couldn't service if it we had to. We don't add toner,
don't clear paper jams, etc. This is all done by the company as part of
the agreement. Another thing we like is that the machine has gone years
without any paper jams whatsoever. The machine has also gone years without
any sort of emergency service call. It's a real Sherman tank.
Our machine, by the way, is right in the reading room and is the one used by
patrons to make their own copies out of books. Many of the books in our
reading room collection may be xerxoed, and it was the damage that this
patron photocopying was doing that motivated us to buy this machine. The
income more than offsets the costs. We also use this machine for all
photocopying done by library staff. In fact, all library materials must be
photocopied on this machine, one page at a time.
Finally, one consideration we addressed was cost per copy. Any vendor should
be able to give your comparative cost per copy figures. There is a book that
lists these costs. At the time we purchased our machine, the OCE was by
far cheaper than any other machine in this comparison. This was particularly
true for our operation--and probably yours--which is a so-called "low
volume." WE have never even come close to exceeding the copy allowance in
one month.
Based on our experience here, I highly recommend OCE.
Everett Wilkie
Connecticut Historical Society