As companies have streamlined operations and the number of small businesses has grown over the last 20 years, the folder inserter market has evolved to keep pace with the needs of business. The introduction of the first tabletop folder inserters in the 70s initiated a trend toward compact design and ease of use that is still continuing today. The most recent examples of this trend are small, quiet desktop folder inserters that are affordable to most small businesses. For the first time, they can support casual users just like copiers and fax machines but can also be programmed to handle multiple, complex applications involving inserts and business reply envelopes. For larger organizations, they can de-centralize administrative tasks by being placed in every department or on every floor of an office building.
It has taken over 20 years to reach this point, where folder inserters combine the ease of use and sophistication that modern offices require. In this article, I'll trace the development of tabletop and desktop folder inserters and provide some ideas about what we may see in the future.
The first folder inserters were the large, horizontal console machines that are still in use in high production environments today. They were noisy, required trained operators to program and run, and their price and space requirements were justifiable only by high-volume mailers, processing more than 100,000 pieces per month, such as the government, financial institutions and insurance companies. All small-volume and daily mail-folding and inserting was done by hand. While hand folding and inserting is slow, tedious, inaccurate and even harmful due to repetitive motion, there were no machines designed to accommodate mid- and low-volume environments or casual users.
In the 70s, the first tabletop folder inserters were introduced. These systems extended the benefits of folding and inserting to mid-volume mailers, which processed fewer than 40,000 pieces per month. These were also horizontal machines, but they were much more compact than the console machines, at prices mid-volume mailers could begin to justify. While mid-volume mailers were able to save time and money over hand folding and inserting, this first generation of tabletop folder inserters still required a skilled, dedicated operator to set up and to switch between common office applications. For this reason, most mailers used them for only one specific mailing job and did the rest of their folding and inserting by hand. Applications were usually limited to one or two sheets per envelope and occasionally a business reply envelope. Document destruction and inaccurate insertions were very common, due to primitive insertion techniques and double document detection systems.
Significant improvements were made to tabletop folder inserters in the 80s. This included a roller insertion processes that virtually eliminated document destruction · and the ability to insert flyers, business reply envelopes along with up to four separate documents into each envelope. Double document detection systems were more accurate and easier to adjust, resulting in fewer missed or inaccurate insertions.
In the early 90s, a major development occurred in the trend toward compact, quiet and easy-to-use folder inserters, with the introduction of desktop systems. These were the size of a fax machine or laser printer and were the first folder inserters that did not require highly trained, dedicated operators. This first generation of desktop folder inserters was designed for use in offices rather than mail centers and for daily mailings under 100 pieces per day. Its main limitation was the inability to consistently feed and run low-volume weekly or monthly mailings with any efficiency. Such applications were still the domain of tabletop folder inserters. Switching between applications was still difficult because the machine required manual adjustments to run each application. While these machines were limited primarily to daily mail and small jobs, they brought an initial level of automation to the office market.
At the same time, tabletop folder inserters included new features such as an automatic double document detection setting for improved security and limited job programming. This made switching between multiple applications feasible for the first time, although it was not entirely automatic. Operators were able to program and store some limited settings, such as which feeder to turn on or off and which document to put into the window of the envelope. However, this still left most settings such as size and thickness of the envelope, fold settings and paper thickness, to be manually adjusted when switching between applications. Improved control panels attempted to guide operators through these adjustments, but the operator had to remember or refer to these settings each time he or she changed applications.
The most significant developments in horizontal tabletop folder inserters in the late 90s were: the ability to insert into flats, an increase in processing speed, less document destruction and the ability to switch more easily between applications due to an increase in the number of settings that can be stored in each programmed job. Optical mark recognition systems that support automatic processing of variable length documents such as checks, statements and invoices were also improved by advances in software as well as built-in microprocessors.
Since 2000, vast improvements were made to both tabletop and desktop folder inserters. The most significant development in the tabletop market was the introduction of a new breed of vertical folder inserters that bridges the gap between horizontal mid-volume production machines and the desktop market. They feature the modularity of horizontal systems, combined with automatic job setup and programming that make them easy to use. All settings are stored for each application, so almost no manual adjustments are necessary when switching between applications. Vertical tabletop systems are capable of entry-level production volumes of 60,000 pieces per month. They handle a wide variety of applications, including flyers and business reply envelopes and can double or tri-fold up to eight sheets into an envelope.
There were equally significant advancements in desktop folder inserters as well. Like vertical tabletop models, they can now easily handle multiple applications, and switching between jobs occurs at the touch of a button. All adjustments are stored for each application, and programming is simplified by prompts from the control panel. They are modular, so that users can start small and add feed trays or other peripherals to the machine when necessary.
Desktop folder inserters can now process a wide range of applications. It supports up to four feeders and can process sheets, inserts and it can add business reply envelopes, which is an application that formerly required a tabletop system. They process up to 30,000 pieces per month, operate quietly and support casual users. Feed trays handle more paper than the previous generation and many can be dynamically refilled. Today's desktop folder inserters allow companies to automate a greater percentage of mail than was formerly possible from a desktop system and to eliminate hand folding and inserting of small or random applications.
The introduction of vertical tabletop and sophisticated desktop folder inserters revolutionized the low-end of the market, as they can handle complex jobs formerly only manageable by much larger, more expensive horizontal tabletop machines. However, horizontal tabletops remain the machines of choice for volumes of 60,000 to 120,000 pieces per month.
The trends toward miniaturization, technical sophistication and simple user interfaces will continue throughout the life cycle of the folder inserter market. Additional streamlining of the entire mailing and document handling process will occur as folder inserters are integrated with printers and mail machines. As companies continue their efforts to personalize communications with their customers through one-to-one marketing, folder inserter applications will increasingly employ optical mark recognition, barcode reading and other advanced electronic technologies to process each mailpiece as a custom job. The first 20 years of tabletop and desktop folder inserters were characterized by product definitions and development of their essential features. The focus is now on refining their ease of use and expanding their capabilities.
Robert J. Ruby is Document Handling product manager, Neopost, Inc. He joined Neopost as a sales representative and has since held positions as folder inserter specialist, sales manager, branch manager, regional manager and national product manager. For additional information, please contact 1-888-Neopost, www.neopostinc.com or neomkt@neopostinc.com.
