Business Office Supplies: The Paper Shredder

Next to the copier, the paper shredder is one of the most essential business office supplies. After you make dozen and dozens of copies, it's time to shred them. Shredders will help safeguard you and your company against identity theft and will keep valuable information safe. But you can't just walk into an office supply store and choose the first one you see. You need to make sure the shredder is right for your office and can handle the number of documents you need to shred.

First you need to consider how many people will be using this office supply. If you need a shredder for personal use or at home, you can find personal shredders that can handle up to 100 uses per day. But if your entire office is going to be using these machines, you will need one that can handle way more. A general office machine can handle up to 36,000 uses a day. That's quite a difference! There is also a huge difference in the price too. These machines will be much larger and more expensive, but well worth the extra money.

Next you have to decide what type of paper shredder you want. This depends on how thoroughly you need these documents destroyed. There are three ways to cut up the documents. The standard paper shredder cuts them into 40-50 very thin strips, but this offers the minimum amount of security. It also happens to be the cheapest of the three. The second is diced into confetti. It is also known as the cross-cut and is the most popular style. These are a bit more expensive but they offer much more security. The paper is cut into about 300-400 small square pieces. It is nearly impossible to piece these documents back together. Lastly, you have the micro-cut shredders. This is for when you need serious protection. They will shred documents into 1,600-3,000 tiny pieces! These tend to be used only by government agencies and occasionally large corporations.

Now you'll want to think about how many sheets the paper shredder can handle at once. Small businesses won't need to have a high volume one, but the larger your office, the higher the volume you want. Then think about any additional features you will need. Do you need to shred CDs and credit cards? If so, find a shredder that can handle these other materials. The paper shredder is probably the most dangerous of all office supplies, so you definitely need safety features. Some will have sensors to stop the machine if a hand or other item comes into contact with it. Lastly, don't forget to see if the shredder can handle staples and paperclips, otherwise, you will have to remove said items from all documents.

Never toss away documents with sensitive information on them. Visit your office supply store to find this essential office supply.


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