Buying a Paper Shredder : 6 Things to Consider

With all of the attention being paid to security, more and more people are buying a shredder for added protection. Sales of paper shredders have risen sharply of late for many reasons including identity theft, government regulations and the rise of costly law suits for companies that do not destroy patient or client information. The question is what kind of shredder is right for your organization. Here are 6 simple questions to take into consideration when purchasing a shredder for your personal or office use.

1. How frequently will the shredder be used? Determine if your need is only periodically throughout the month, weekly or multiple trips per day. If you shred only a sheet or two at a time, once or twice a day then a desk side wastebasket or personal shredder is more than adequate. However, should you be shredding consistently throughout the day, you may require a higher capacity and faster shredder.

2. Is capacity or speed important for your application? Shredders come in all sizes, capacities and speeds. Some shredders will take only a couple of sheets at a time while others may take 20, 50 or even 80 sheets at a time. Finally, smaller machines run at under 10 feet per minute, while the larger office duty machines will shred 30 to 60 feet per minute and departmental systems can exceed 60 feet per minute.        

3. How many people will be using the shredder? It is important to get an idea of the number of people that require shredding. Are they shredding only a few sheets every few days or do they shred several documents daily. For several users spread out over a large area, you may desire multiple departmental or office grade machines. You may find that your organizations shredding needs are far different than you anticipated.

4. What material and what size material will you be shredding? While most people simply shred letter sized sheets of paper, you may need to dispose of plans or prints that are larger than 8 ½" and require a systems with a much larger opening. Many companies also wish to shred staples, paper clips, old credit cards, CD/DVDs and floppy disks. Not all machines are rated to accept all forms of media.

5. What security level is required? Most manufacturers have a variety of security levels available; including strip cut, cross cut and even micro cut. There are several sizes of ribbons or chips within each category as well. While strip cut machines tend to be faster, have a higher capacity and cost less, they do not offer near the level of security of a cross cut machine. A strip cut is also not as space efficient in the waste bin and will fill up a waste bag at a faster rate. Most users are safe with a cross cut shredder that destroys documents into small chips that are usually about ¼" x 1" and smaller; however some users may require a micro cut shredder that has a much smaller chip.

6. If shredding a large volume, will a large waste bin be needed? Most have an incorporated wastebasket to contain the shredded material and will need to be emptied periodically. If you are a high volume user, you should look at models with a larger capacity waste bin. For extremely high volume users, an industrial machine with a bailing system may be advantageous.

There are many factors that go into determining which shredder is best suited for your needs. You should also consider your manufacturers and warranties when evaluating shredders. There are numerous high quality machines to choose from including; Martin Yale, Intimus, Olympia, MBM Destroyit, GBC Shreddmaster, HSM and Fellowes. Be sure to look for a name brand system and be careful of selecting unbranded imported items that may not carry a warranty and lack the testing that is required to ensure that you are getting a high quality machine.