How to Use Scan2PDF to Create High-Quality PDF Scans

Automate Document Workflow with Scan2PDF: A Step-by-Step GuideAutomating document workflows saves time, reduces errors, and makes information easier to find and act on. Scan2PDF is a versatile tool for turning physical documents into searchable, well-organized PDFs — and when combined with clear processes and automation, it becomes a powerful engine for document efficiency. This guide walks you through planning, setting up, and optimizing an automated document workflow using Scan2PDF.

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Why automate document workflows?

Automation addresses common pain points:

• Manual scanning is slow and inconsistent.
• Naming and filing documents by hand leads to errors.
• Important documents can be hard to find without searchable text and metadata.
• Repetitive tasks (OCR, compressing, emailing) waste staff time.

By converting documents to searchable PDFs and automating routine steps, you reduce human error and free staff for higher-value work.

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Overview of the workflow

A typical automated Scan2PDF workflow includes these stages:

1. Capture — scan physical documents using a scanner or mobile device.
2. OCR — convert images to searchable text.
3. Clean & process — crop, rotate, deskew, remove blank pages, enhance contrast.
4. Name & tag — apply standardized filenames and metadata.
5. Convert & compress — produce optimized PDF/A or searchable PDF files.
6. Store — upload to cloud storage or a document management system (DMS).
7. Route & notify — send documents to appropriate people or systems (email, task manager, or workflow engine).
8. Archive & backup — ensure long-term retention and redundancy.

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Step 1 — Plan your workflow

Decide goals and constraints:

• What document types will you process? (invoices, contracts, forms)
• Who will handle exceptions (poor scans, unreadable OCR)?
• Where will documents be stored? (SharePoint, Google Drive, local DMS)
• What retention and security policies apply?

Define success metrics: throughput (docs/hour), OCR accuracy, time-to-file.

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Step 2 — Configure Scan2PDF capture settings

Use consistent capture settings to improve downstream automation:

• Resolution: 300 DPI for text; 200 DPI can be acceptable for many documents to save space.
• Color mode: Grayscale for text documents; color for forms/photos.
• File format: Choose PDF or image formats if intermediary files are needed.
• Auto-deskew and auto-rotate: enable to reduce manual fixes.

If using a mobile app, train users on steady scanning and good lighting.

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Step 3 — OCR and document processing

OCR converts images to searchable text. For best results:

• Use language packs matching document language.
• Apply preprocessing: despeckle, contrast adjustment, and binarization can improve OCR.
• Use zonal OCR for structured forms to extract specific fields.

Automate common processing steps with Scan2PDF’s batch options or integrate with scripting tools or RPA (robotic process automation).

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Step 4 — Naming, metadata, and classification

Standardized filenames and metadata make retrieval reliable:

• Filename pattern example: YYYYMMDD_Client_DocType_Seq.pdf
• Embed metadata fields: Author, Title, Department, DocumentType, Tags.
• Use AI or rule-based classification to assign document types automatically based on keywords or layout.

Create a lookup table for client names, codes, and department mappings to ensure consistency.

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Step 5 — Convert, compress, and ensure compliance

Produce final PDFs optimized for storage and compliance:

• PDF/A-1b for archiving; PDF/A-2 if you need newer features.
• Apply text layer embedding (searchable PDF).
• Compress images and use object-level compression to reduce size while keeping readability.

Ensure redaction tools are used for sensitive data and that audit logs capture who processed a file.

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Step 6 — Storage and integration

Decide where automated files go:

• Cloud storage: SharePoint, Google Drive, Dropbox — use APIs or connectors.
• Document Management Systems: Alfresco, M-Files, or proprietary DMS — use their ingestion APIs.
• Local NAS: Use SMB/FTP drop folders with monitored ingestion scripts.

Set up role-based access controls and encryption at rest. Configure retention policies and regular backups.

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Step 7 — Routing, approvals, and notifications

Automate business actions after scanning:

• Use workflow engines (Power Automate, Zapier, Make, or enterprise BPM tools) to route documents.
• Build approval steps: notify reviewers, collect signatures, and record timestamps.
• Trigger downstream tasks: create invoices in accounting systems, start legal review, or create CRM activities.

Send concise notifications with file links and required actions.

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Step 8 — Exception handling

No automation is perfect. Plan for exceptions:

• Flag low OCR-confidence documents for manual review.
• Route unreadable scans to a quality-assurance queue.
• Keep an audit trail of manual corrections and who made them.

Provide users with simple tools to correct metadata, re-run OCR, or replace pages.

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Step 9 — Monitoring and continuous improvement

Track metrics and iterate:

• Monitor throughput, storage growth, OCR accuracy, and exception rates.
• Use sample reviews to measure OCR quality and classifier performance.
• Adjust capture settings, OCR dictionaries, and classification rules based on feedback.

Schedule periodic audits to ensure compliance and performance.

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Tools and integrations to consider

• OCR engines: Tesseract (open source), ABBYY FineReader, Google Cloud Vision, Microsoft Azure OCR.
• Workflow automation: Power Automate, Make (Integromat), Zapier.
• Storage/DMS: SharePoint, Google Drive, Dropbox, Alfresco, M-Files.
• RPA: UiPath, Automation Anywhere for integrating legacy apps.

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Example automation using Power Automate (high-level)

1. Watch a Scan2PDF output folder (OneDrive/SharePoint).
2. When a new file appears, call an OCR service if text layer missing.
3. Extract metadata using AI Builder or keyword rules.
4. Rename and move file to department folder.
5. Send approval request to assigned reviewer.
6. On approval, move file to archive and notify requester.

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Best practices checklist

• Standardize capture settings across users.
• Use searchable PDF/A for archiving.
• Embed consistent metadata and filenames.
• Automate classification + manual QA for exceptions.
• Secure storage with role-based access and encryption.
• Monitor key metrics and iterate.

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Automating document workflows with Scan2PDF reduces manual effort, improves consistency, and speeds access to information. Start small with one document type, measure results, then scale the automation to more document classes and integrations.