General Land Office Preserves Maps, Surveys and Sketches with Contex Scanner

Contex, the world leader in large format scanning, today announces that the Texas General Land Office (GLO), the state’s oldest agency and a longtime Contex customer, is boosting productivity by 25% with the Contex HD Ultra X 60-inch large format scanning solution. The GLO uses the scanner to preserve more than 45,000 maps, surveys, and sketches, which are available online to the public. Researchers, genealogists, surveyors, title companies, and historians frequently access the repository and can purchase copies of any item. Proceeds from the sale of prints benefit the agency’s Save Texas History Program, which allows those original maps in poor condition to be professionally conserved.

The GLO began its large-scale file-conversion project in 2000 with a Contex 50-inch large format scanner. Upon learning of the Contex HD Ultra X 60-inch scanner, the team decided to upgrade its scanning solution.

“We needed a scanner that could rapidly generate accurate images of more than 45,000 maps — complete with stains, creases, and faded colors — without an operator spending an inordinate amount of time adjusting each one,“ comments Susan Smith Dorsey, Director and Records, Management Officer, Texas General Land Office. “The Contex HD Ultra X 60-inch scanner helped us to achieve this goal, while significantly reducing our scanning workflow.”

“The Contex HD Ultra X 60-inch scanner is an ideal fit for the General Land Office, considering the types and sizes of documents that it preserves. These include many delicate and oversized materials, and the results are amazing,” comments Doyle Cryer, scanning expert and National Account Executive, National Azon. “Cartographers from back in the day would regularly draw characters in the maps, such as a farmer and his family, and the scans are so accurate that you can even see the threads on a farmer’s buttons. The fidelity is excellent.”

A Texas DIR (Department of Information Resources) cooperative contract streamlined the purchasing process of the Contex scanning solution for the state agency, and Cryer helped to facilitate the installation of the scanning solution. The solution includes a Contex HD Ultra X 60-inch CCD scanner with a ScanStation, Nextimage scanning software, and 21.5” tablet.

The HD Ultra X is Contex’s fastest scanner, with a top speed of 17.8 ips. Scanning speed alone has significantly boosted GLO’s workflow, giving staffers more flexibility than they ever thought possible. Thanks to true size detection, the Contex scanner wastes no time initiating the scanning process, and the floating transport design of the glass plate minimizes friction and reduces upkeep. The scans are so precise that they rarely require editing.

The HD Ultra X’s advanced technology also helps the GLO save valuable time in the scanning workflow. Before, GLO’s scanning process could take up to 6 people to maneuver the extra-large documents through the scanner. With the HD Ultra X scanning solution, they reduced it to two. Instant start-up and the LED light source eliminates the need for the equipment to “warm up.”

The GLO also values the proximity of the touchscreen monitor. Dorsey comments, “When scanning fragile items, it is helpful not to have to step away to a computer to operate the scanner. Also, having a CANCEL/STOP hardware button is very beneficial when scanning fragile items, as we so often do at the Land Office.”

Source: Contex

The preceding press release was provided by a company unaffiliated with Wide-Format Impressions. The views expressed within do not directly reflect the thoughts or opinions of the staff of Wide-Format Impressions.