Paper Wastage Statistics
According to a few studies, the average employee uses 10,000 sheets of paper a year! Nearly, half of all printed documents are thrown away within 24 hours and 30% are not even picked up from the printer. Of course, not every employee is the average employee mentioned above and there are some industries which require less paper usage but this also means that some industries use an insurmountable amount of paper each year. A more concerning fact is that approximately 80% of filed paper is never looked at again. Even though this paper might be important to retain confidential information for a period of time. This is worse when we consider the fact that most of these forms outdate themselves within 3 months.
Existing Technology Used
Rocketbook is a smart notebook which can connect to all the devices to share the scanned version of the notes you have written. The most interesting part about the book is that if you write using a specific pen (Pilot Frixion Line), you can erase whatever you wrote using the microfibre cloth they provide and a little water. Additionally, the paper is not made using paper! They are with with BPA poly-free plastic which is recyclable.
Maple Concept Explained
Now, imagine the paper which is being used to print is the same paper from Rocketbook. The ink cartridge is filled with the ink used in the Pilot Frixion pen. There is a feature in the printer which allows used paper to be inserted into it. The printer will then scan the page using the QR code present on the page which then digitizes the page. After this process, a strip of moist microfibre cloth can then move up and down to erase the contents of the page.
Maple Concept Illustrated
Currently working on this. (Not a great artist but I'll try my best)
Business Viewpoint
Firsly, the cost of the paper itself is a lot higher than the standard A4 Sheet. A single sheet of an A4 Sheet from JK Copier costs approximately $0.06. As per my calculations, a single A4 Size sheet of Rocketbook Paper can cost between $0.60 to $0.88. This is at least 10 times more expensive than a regular A4 Sheet.
Although, there a few things to consider which makes this alternative a viable option, pricewise. Firstly, the company would not need to buy as many sheets of Rocketbook paper compared to the number of A4 Sheets they buy. This is because a lot of A4 Sheets used in offices are discarded while the RocketBook paper can be reused instead.
Another thing to note is that regular A4 Sheet is counted as a consumable product that needs to be replenished every year. RocketBook paper can be considered an investment. They will last infinitely long if maintained properly. Even if we take into account the fact that some pages will be destroyed by coffee spills or similar accidents (which may only be 3-5% of the initial number bought), it can still be a saving in the long-term.
Additionally, the company would not have to spend more money to digitize the printed documents by scanning it separately as in my concept, the QR code is scanned and the page is digitized before it is erased.
Social Viewpoint
Going paperless is the dream but we are increasing the paper consumption each year. This is just an alternative to going paperless where the paper used does not actually come from trees and can be made from recycled plastic.
When one company does this, it can encourage other companies to follow this alternative as well. Of course, not all companies will be willing to spend a large amount of money on "Nothing more than paper" but they should also consider the fact that they will not need to buy a large amount each year. Government Subsidaries can also be received when buying this paper in bulk as it is an initiative to save the planet.
Final Verdict
If this idea can be implemented correctly, it can be a game-changer in my opinion. The exact amount of reusable paper a company would need cannot be guessed and it would require the trial-and-error method to get an estimate. If there is a cheaper way to produce the reusable paper, it would be the best case scenario as it may encourage more companies to try out this alternative without having to spend huge amounts of money upfront.
For certain industries where filing and retaining information is not as important, this can already be a huge advantage because once the paper is used for their short-term plan, it can be reused immediately.
I hope you liked my project! Thanks for reading it and if you have any feedback, please don't hesitate to contact me. Share this link so more people can view this idea, it would be really helpful :) !