ALEXANDRIA, Va.--Nov. 14, 2001-- By accelerating access to critical documents and drawings, Digital Paper Corporation(TM), an innovative provider of secure technical content exchange and collaboration software, helps state and local governments shorten project cycles and save valuable time and money. The most significant benefits occur within the bidding and facilities management process--both requiring immediate access and exchange of voluminous plots, blueprints, maintenance manuals, etc. With the implementation of Digital Paper's docQuest(TM), the Ohio Department of Transportation (DOT) has achieved annual cost savings of more than $2 million by speeding its bidding process via online collaboration with contractors. The Chicago Department of Aviation (DOA) uses docQuest for new construction and facilities maintenance by efficiently distributing information to contractors, sub-contractors and suppliers. This has already saved the organization six months worth of labor-hours. "Time is an irreplaceable resource, especially for state and local governments that handle critical issues such as stopping a leak in a city's main gas line or repairing damages to a highly-traveled bridge. Delays in response can be dangerous and very costly,'' said Christopher E. Fountain, president and CEO of Digital Paper. "docQuest helps these organizations avoid delays by providing all individuals instant access to documents needed for the construction and maintenance of public works projects.'' At the Ohio DOT, the Office of Contracts is responsible for securing approval on technical drawings from one of the 12 district offices and for advertising projects to contractors. Before using docQuest, the office had to manually locate, print and distribute hard copies of drawings to the appropriate district office and the estimation office for review -- a process that could take several months. Once approved, reprographics shops created advertising booklets of bids and mailed them to 3,500 contractors. More printing and shipping was then required when approximately 30 to 40 contractors requested hard copies of the project drawings for pre-bid review, at a cost that ranged from $5 to $300 for each bid set. With docQuest, Ohio DOT speeds the bidding process by providing contractors with online access to the advertising booklets via any standard Web browser. Contractors can now view the booklet two weeks earlier and quickly provide critical feedback that will help the DOT avoid any potential problems or delays surrounding a project. Immediate online access to documents also allows DOT staff to operate three times faster by reducing excessive printing and shipping, whichenables the DOT to remain within budget by cutting associated overhead costs. The Chicago DOA also relies on docQuest to speed communication with contractors. The Chicago DOA depends on its 50 outside designers and contractors to complete upgrades and new construction to Chicago's O'Hare International and Midway Airports. DOA staff must find specific architectural blueprints from its library--which has more than one million drawings dating back to the 1930s--and distribute them to the workforce located throughout the United States and the world. Since most architectural documents are stored offsite, retrieving the documents can take two days to several weeks. Also, printing and shipping documents to contractors can be costly and time consuming, since a set of documentation for a typical project could be as much as 1,000 pages in length. With docQuest, the Chicago DOA provides access to drawings by either downloading information onto a CD or allowing a contractor to log into a secure server. Online access and collaboration improves communication within the Chicago DOA, enabling faster response times to maintenance requests and shorter project completion cycles. Digital Paper also helps state and local governments notify appropriate individuals of changes made to project drawings and documentation. Since these organizations are legally required to notify all individuals of changes made to drawings, change notification distribution can be costly when collaborating with thousands of contractors on multiple projects annually. With docQuest's patent-pending ViewMark(TM) technology, users can mark-up drawings without altering the document's original state. Appropriate individuals are then immediately notified of any revisions through email. A notification author can monitor which individuals have not viewed recent revisions and contact them directly. Efficient notification of changes can save millions of dollars by preventing scrap and rework. Pricing and Availability docQuest 5.0 is immediately available. Pricing for enterprise configurations begins at $150,000. For more information on docQuest, please call 1-888-215-6677.