Township: Save a Money Tree, Use iPads

Save a tree, stop burning the bucks. That's the mindset of officials concerning their new stepped-up iPad use plan.

Officials recently announced that they have benefitted both ecologically and economically by using Apple iPads for communication, rather than hard copies of myriad official documents.

The new process not only saves trees, but thousands of dollars annually by using the iPads to review meeting documents prepared by the Office of the Township Clerk, a released statement said. The iPads retail for roughly $500. Other municipalities have implemented similar iPad systems, officials added.

Before the iPads, an average 250 pages generated many times over to provide packets of documents relating to the business to be conducted at .

Now these documents are imaged once and sent via iPads, saving the township over $5,000 per year in labor and paper costs for the copying alone, said Township Clerk Heidi Brunt.

"The switch to IPads for meeting documents is a win-win," Mayor Tony Fiore said. "We’re saving money and reducing the Middletown’s carbon footprint since we’re using less paper and energy. This is a great example of how township staff is thinking outside the box to find innovative ways to make everyday tasks and processes more efficient and effective."

Officials also claim easier, quicker access to documents that need to be reviewed at a moment's notice.

The township purchased iPads that use a free app that interfaces with the township’s Sharepoint Intranet Server. This provides Township Committee members with mobile access to thousands of documents at their fingertips on-site or via remote VPN access.

At meetings, in public, or at the office, officials can access a mass of information to review and refer back to on all kinds of township matters.

Since 2009, township staff has imaged over 300,000 documents, said Brunt. Brunt and her staff are responsible for township records management.

Document digitization is creating even more savings, thanks to a new technology called virtualization which allows for the creation of multiple virtual servers on one physical server and storage device. 

“This model has proven to be a green energy cost savings in terms of electricity and cooling and a cost savings since we don’t need to purchase and maintain new hardware for every new server,” MIS Director Todd Costello said

Middletown has utilized other internal SharePoint sites including an internal request system for computer support and building maintenance, and internal employee announcements. These sites are heavily utilized throughout the township for internal communications, Costello said.

Township IT staff develop and program the Sharepoint sites in-house which saves the township on costly consulting services.  We develop and build most of the servers and as many of them as possible. An added benefit of in-house programming and design, is that the township does not incur annual support costs and can make changes as needed, he added.

Reducing paper usage is the latest in a series of eco-friendly projects and programs undertaken since the Middletown Green Initiative was launched in 2007.

Other projects and programs include free energy efficiency upgrades at 13 township buildings; a project to generate solar power at several township locations, a study to determine if wind power could be used at township buildings; Buy Middletown, an awareness campaign that encourages residents to shop local; and the biofuel pilot program which utilizes used vegetable oil to fuel township vehicles.

Are you a techie or a traditionalist? Tell us what you think. Do you think that the savings and efficiency realized by using iPads for township business trumps the tech learning curve and/or device costs and maintenance?