During the year 1999, the Department of Records, Archives and Information Management Services finally achieved a stabilization of-the-day-to-day workload for the RAIMS staff. This was essential because various other projects had to be neglected during the previous years when the increase in service demands made new projects very difficult. During 1999, the RAIMS staff was able to concentrate on three grant-funded projects: 1) the reduction of Civil Court records; 2) the compression of non-permanent records through electronic conversion, and 3) the access improvement to the Proceedings of the Board of Supervisors. In addition, numerous cubic feet of records were reorganized and relocated for quicker and more efficient access.

The service trends of the Department of RAIMS are best demonstrated through the presentations below:

1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	YEAR
1355	3777	9358	11295	22823	32027	38861	47476	42506	A
170	223	439	365	315	498	657	745	399	B
325	342	496	694	769	830	768	734	826	C
406	442	579	631	852	911	869	946	952	D
351	502	574	718	657	1110	927	727	778	E
1343	1309	871	788	1066	1078	1325	1355	995	F

A=Retrievals; B=Letters to Researchers; C=Researchers on Site; D=FAX Transmissions; E=Cubic Feet of Records Destroyed; F=Cubic Feet of Records taken in

1991-1999: Cubic boxes received and destroyed

 

 

 

 

Note: As can be seen from the chart above, a balance of new boxes received and old records destroyed is still unbalanced. To a large degree this reflects an increase in permanent records. To achieve a balance, the Department of RAIMS utilizes both electronic compression and microfilming technology.

 

 



1991-1999: The above graph illustrates the workflow in research letters, number of researchers, and Fax transmissions of documents. While visitors increased, the production of research letters dropped significantly. Fax transmissions - mostly to the County Clerk and to Abstract companies increased slightly.

1991-1999: Because the number of documents retrieved dropped somewhat in 1999 when compared to 1998, the personnel time was utilized for electronic compression of records.

Other Projects:

Microfilming is still one of the major methods of compressing permanent records to a more manageable storage format. The Department of RAIMS continued the microfilm contract with the Department of Social Services. DSS is one of the major producers of records that need to be retained permanently. RAIMS also completed a multi-year contract with the Finger Lakes Community College to microfilm student records. As time permitted, archival records were microfilmed as a preservation method.

Hybrid Project: For the first time, the Department of RAIMS contracted for a hybrid electronic records/microfilm project involving the Treasurer's Office. Year-end permanent financial records are being made available in both CD ROM and microfiche format. The microfiche is stored as the permanent record at the Records and Archives Center.

Again, our thanks go to our colleagues for their cooperation and to the Board of Supervisors for their continuous support and encouragement.