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Zeutschel is greatly expanding its software business division and in doing so is setting its course for future corporate growth.
The specialist archiving and digitization company announced this at a press conference at its base in Tübingen. Under the umbrella brand ´OSCAR (OMNI Software for Connected Applications and Resources)´ a comprehensive range of software applications and support services for the construction and operation of digital libraries is being created. “With OSCAR Zeutschel is presenting itself as a solution provider for requirements covering all aspects of mass digitization,” explains Jörg Vogler, managing director of Zeutschel GmbH. http://www.zeutschel.de
The trend towards mass digitization
Libraries, archives and museums are facing a big challenge over the coming decades: they are going to have to make their extensive stock of books, periodicals and historic documents available to their users in digital form.
The goal is to set up digital libraries which offer easy access to digital knowledge. Examples of this are the German Digital Library (http://www.deutsche-digitale-bibliothek.de), which is intended to be available on the internet as from 2011, and on a European level, the Europeana (http://www.europeana.eu), which will have links to 6 million digital objects from the cultural collections of Europe.
For providers the trend towards mass digitization is both an opportunity and a challenge at the same time. On the one hand there is a greater demand from users for powerful digitization solutions. On the other hand the demands set by customers are rising, as Jörg Vogler says: “Providers nowadays must cover the entire digitization workflow with their products and services and support customers in all phases of the project starting with planning through implementation to maintenance.”
OSCAR – the “complete no-worries package”
Jörg Vogler sees a great business potential for his company in these changed market conditions: “OSCAR is the final logical step in our development from component to solution provider.”
In this regard Zeutschel can build on its many years of software expertise. Thus with its ´Omniscan 12´ the company already has a state-of-the-art software package, which not only controls the scanner but also provides an optimised image with added value. In addition to numerous image editing functions, the software also enables the acquisition of metadata and index output.
Further evidence of the company´s software expertise is the campus supply service package, introduced three years ago, known as ´Hermes Digital´. In addition to document supply this application can also be used for catalogue enrichment.
Zeutschel is now adding to its software portfolio with a central component for the efficient implementation of digitization projects. GOOBI ZED enables users to control and manage the complete workflow of mass digitization projects under a single unified software platform – starting with the integration of hardware and including the acquisition of bibliographic metadata and final presentation of the digital material to make it accessible on the web.
“GOOBI ZED is the result of a strategic partnership with the open source community,” explains Jörg Vogler. The new Zeutschel workflow software is thus a version of the public domain GOOBI (Göttingen online-objects binaries) digitization solution extended with additional modules and services.
OSCAR is complemented by the OS QM Tool for quality management in production presented at the CeBIT 2010 trade show. By processing a single scan all the relevant quality characteristics are analysed and assessed in accordance with selectable standards. For this the software uses a recently developed calibration guide, the Universal Test Target (UTT).
The OSCAR software applications can be employed separately or together, the latter option having some clear advantages for the user. For example, by directly integrating the OS QM tool with Omniscan 12 it would be possible to carry out quality management processes right at the scanning stage.
A further step can be taken by employing GOOBI ZED as the central OSCAR integration platform, to which the other applications can be linked via interfaces. Hermes Digital can thus also function as powerful organisation software for ´Book Tracking´.
Jörg Vogler: “The OSCAR software portfolio makes it possible to master even complex digitization workflows with confidence. With this we are offering users a ´complete no-worries package´ for the widest possible range of digitization tasks.”
Effective company and distribution structures
The strategic expansion of the software business division also requires changes in company and distribution structures.
Personnel resources are already being expanded. Zeutschel currently employs five staff for software development and advice. In addition to direct sales, Zeutschel will also be relying on an international network of partners for the marketing of OSCAR.
A two-level partnership scheme distinguishes between purely sales partners on the one hand and implementation partners on the other. The latter can not only undertake sales but also installation tasks and the provision of hotline support. “We can expect that some libraries and archives will completely outsource their digitization projects. This will mean additional attractive sales potential for OSCAR partners,” explains Jörg Vogler.
In selecting partners, Zeutschel will apply very stringent quality criteria. The regular certification process will include participation in training together with the professional development of staff for operating and maintaining the software applications.
Ambitious sales targets
With the presentation of OSCAR Jörg Vogler sees Zeutschel entering a new growth phase: “We intend to double software sales within two years from one million to over two million euros.” Accordingly the share of software sales is intended to grow from the current 10% of total sales to 20%.
All in all Jörg Vogler is setting himself some ambitious targets for the next two years. For the business year 2011/2012 (to the 30 June) he is aiming at a turnover of 12 million euros, an increase of 20%. For the business year 2009/2010 ending in June he is anticipating profits and turnover at around 10.5 million euros being similar to the previous year.
Jörg Vogler: ”Without the economic and financial crises, which had a particular effect on our foreign business, we would have already reached the 12 million mark this year.”
About Zeutschel:
Zeutschel GmbH, headquartered in Hirschau near Tübingen, is a well-known special supplier in the field of protection of cultural assets and has been providing equipment, solutions and systems for document and archive management for nearly 50 years. Zeutschel develops, produces and markets scanners, capturing software, workflow software, document delivery software, microfilm cameras, hybrid systems and reading devices. Zeutschel´s solutions and systems are used by libraries, archives, universities, land registries and business undertakings throughout the world.
Contact:
Zeutschel GmbH, Heerweg 2, 72070 Tübingen, Tel.: +49 (0) 7071 / 9706-0,
Fax: +49 (0) 7071 / 9706-44, E-Mail: info@zeutschel.de; Internet: www.zeutschel.com
Press Contact:
Zeutschel GmbH, Margot Rauscher, Tel.: +49 (0) 7071 / 9706-11,
Fax: +49 (0) 7071 / 9706-71, E-Mail: margot.rauscher@zeutschel.de
PR Agency:
neitzel communications, Jürgen Neitzel, Löwenstr. 46a, 70597 Stuttgart, Tel.: +49 (0) 711/ 440 800-63,
Fax: +49 (0) 711 / 440 800-70, Email: jneitzel@neitzel-services.de
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