Comparing Sierra Shred to In-House Shredding

Businesses have a legal responsibility to dispose of confidential information securely. Some businesses do their best to handle document destruction in-house, while others retain Sierra Shred. Which is better for a company’s bottom line?

Employee Expense

In-House: Businesses must pay staff for the time spent on in-house shredding. Because most small office shredders are not designed to process multiple papers at once, documents need to be manually fed a few at a time to avoid jamming or damaging the machine. Add to that the time-consuming process of individually removing staples and paper clips on each document. Staff will then need to clean up the area and bundle shredded materials for removal, usually to the trash bin (vs. recycling).

Sierra Shred: A Sierra Shred truck comes to your location for on-site service. Each truck is equipped with an industrial-sized shredder able to process nearly anything without the need to remove staples or paperclips. Your employees simply secure sensitive information in the provided shredding container until their scheduled visit.

Winner: Sierra Shred. Employees aren’t on the clock for the time-consuming and mind-numbing task of shredding documents one by one.

Equipment Expense

In-House: Standard store-bought paper shredders are generally intended for personal use. These models will often jam or break because they simply are not adequate to address the document destruction needs of an individual, much less a business. Buying a commercial shredder can range in cost from $500 – $5,000. The materials and maintenance required to consistently operate this type of machine will be additional costs and the machine’s life expectancy will vary based on usage. Bags or containers to hold shredded materials for removal will also be required.

Sierra Shred: No equipment costs. All your company will need is a secured container provided free of charge.

Winner: Sierra Shred. No equipment costs.

Storage or Office Space Costs

In-House: Valuable office space will be needed for the shredding machine. Adequate space for an employee to shred materials and package up shredded materials for disposal will also be required, preferably out of sight from your clients due to the sensitive nature of these types of documents. Files to be destroyed will need to be securely stored until destruction or be at risk of a data breach.

Sierra Shred: No space needed other than for a Sierra Shred secured container.

Winner: Sierra Shred. Choose the secured container which best fits your space and needs.

Productivity Costs

In-House: Few positions list “document destruction” in their job description, which means employees are spending time on the clock doing something other than what they were hired to do. This has a negative effect on productivity. Shredding office files is not at all an efficient use of an employee’s time when they could be assisting clients, handling phone calls, processing work, closing sales, etc.

Sierra Shred: One of our state-of-the-art shredding trucks comes to your location with the capability to shred up to 300lbs of paper, the equivalent of 10 copy paper sized boxes full of paper, in less than 3 minutes. We simply remove the documents with very little office disruption and securely shred them. Employees are not taken away from their jobs, making it not just more convenient, but also more efficient.

Winner: Sierra Shred. Instead of using valuable time on shredding, your staff can focus on their real jobs.

Security

In-House: Most office-grade shredding machines shred paper into thin strips, which can be easily pieced back together. This is not simply a security risk but could be a compliance issue. Also, your organization may not be able to prove you have protected and destroyed information securely and within the confines of the law. Employees who handle shredding cannot certify documents were properly destroyed. FACTA, HIPAA, Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, Privacy Act of 1974, RCRA, and FERPA all require sensitive information be legally destroyed with proof of destruction, and the fines involved for failing to comply can be prohibitive. Add to this the potential liability for an employee mishandling a document, either intentionally or by accident.

Sierra Shred: Our on-site shredding services remove the risks. With our state-of-the-art shredding equipment and processes, information cannot be retrieved and reconstructed, and we will provide a signed Certificate of Destruction verifying your sensitive documents were properly destroyed. This serves as independent confirmation of your company’s legally compliant destruction of confidential documents.

Winner: Sierra Shred. Eliminate the risk by hiring our professional shredding company.

Sierra Shred can save your company nearly 50% of the cost of in-house shredding by your staff – and that’s not factoring in the cost savings for storage, the increase in staff productivity, and the invaluable benefits of a more secure and compliant process. It is clear Sierra Shred is better for a company’s bottom line. Make the right choice for your business and call Sierra Shred today! 1-855-SHREDPAPER | 1-855-747-3372 | GET A FREE QUOTE!