Using Office Equipment and Systems - Day 1

• Business Admin
• Higher Education (non-degree)

Using Office Equipment and Systems

Tracey Patterson & Ryan Manning

Aims

• Know the functions of office equipment and systems.
• Be able to use office equipment.
• Be able to process, retrieve and archive information.

How will our class operate?

Your OCN Certificate in Vocational Skills is accessed through a series of workbooks. These are themed for each week of the course.

At some points you may revisit workbooks from previous weeks to add additional evidence for assessment.

As part of this weeks evidence, you will be building, retrieving and archiving evidence.

Experience?

Have you had experience in the past working in a office setting?

How confident are you currently feeling about using office equipment and systems?

😒🙁😐🙂😃

What do you think are the biggest advances in office equipment and systems?

Important

Incorrect

Unimportant

Correct

What is included?

Equipment

Photocopiers

Printers

Scanners

Systems

Email

MS Teams

MS Outlook

AppsNI Template

Equipment

Uses of Equipment

Electronic devices used to process and store information, and the external devices that provide input and output for computers.

Equipment used in an office to facilitate communication, such as telephones, smartphones, and video conferencing systems.

Machines used for managing paper documents, including printers, copiers, scanners, and shredders.

Items used to keep an office organised, such as filing cabinets, bookshelves, and storage boxes.

Photocopiers

Photocopiers are machines designed to create duplicates of physical documents. 

They are commonly used in offices to make quick copies of printed material. Key functions include:

• Duplication: Making one or multiple copies of a document.
• Enlargement/Reduction: Adjusting the size of the copied document.
• Collating and Stapling: Arranging multiple copies in order and stapling them if needed.
• Duplex Printing: Copying on both sides of a sheet.

Printer

Printers are devices used to produce physical copies of digital documents. Their main functions include:

• Printing Documents: Creating hard copies of text, images, or other content from a digital source.
  
• Colour and Black-and-White Printing: Offering options for both monochrome and colour printing.
  
• Duplex Printing: Printing on both sides of the paper to save resources.
  
• High-Quality Printing: Providing various print qualities, from draft to high-resolution.

Scanners

Scanners convert physical documents into digital format. They are often used in conjunction with other office equipment. Their primary functions include:

• Digitization: Scanning documents and converting them into digital files (e.g., PDF, JPEG).
  
• Optical Character Recognition (OCR): Converting scanned text into editable digital text.
  
• Multi-Page Scanning: Scanning several pages into a single file or sequence.
  
• Image Enhancement: Adjusting the quality of scanned images.
  

Let's go and have a look at some of the office equipment around this workplace.

Workbook Activity

Q1. Describe the purpose and function of key office equipment.

AppsNI Template

Systems

Email

Email is a digital communication system used to send and receive messages electronically. Core functions include:

• Message Sending: Sending text-based or multimedia messages to one or multiple recipients.
• Attachments: Adding files, images, or other documents to an email.
• Forwarding and Replying: Sending a received message to someone else or responding to the sender.
• Organising and Archiving: Categorizing and storing emails for easy retrieval.

MS Teams

Microsoft Teams is a collaborative platform designed for teamwork and communication. It offers a wide range of functions, including:

• Team Communication: Facilitating chat-based communication among team members.
  
• Video Conferencing: Hosting virtual meetings and video calls.
  
• File Sharing: Sharing documents and collaborating on them in real-time.
  
• Integration with Other Apps: Integrating with other Microsoft and third-party applications to enhance productivity.

MS Outlook

Microsoft Outlook is an email client and personal information manager. It has several key functions, including:

• Email Management: Sending, receiving, and organising emails.
  
• Calendar Integration: Scheduling meetings, appointments, and events.
  
• Task Management: Creating tasks and setting reminders.
  
• Contact Management: Managing contact lists and distribution groups.
  
• Collaboration: Integrating with other Microsoft tools, such as Teams and OneDrive, for enhanced productivity.

As part of your Belfast MET Student account, you have access to these systems.

Let's have a look.

What would you say are the benefits of having IT systems like email, outlook and Teams in the office?

Important

Incorrect

Unimportant

Correct

Enhanced Communication: These systems improve communication both within the office and with external stakeholders.

Increased Collaboration: Features like file sharing, co-authoring, and team-based structures promote collaboration and teamwork.

Greater Flexibility: Asynchronous communication and remote access capabilities offer flexibility, allowing employees to work from different locations and at different times.

Improved Productivity: With efficient communication and collaboration tools, employees can work more efficiently and accomplish tasks more quickly.

Scalability and Adaptability: These systems can scale with organizational growth and adapt to changing work environments, including remote and hybrid work models.

Workbook Activity

Q2. Describe key IT systems and their benefits.

Rank office equipment and systems?

Photocopier

MS Teams

Outlook

Scanner

Email

Printer

Send the screenshot of your rankings.

Processing, retrieving and archiving information.

Last week you completed a workbook on career preparation and planning.

I would like you to find this workbook, print a copy and archive it for use by your assessors throughout the duration of the course.

Today

• We explored the functions of office equipment and systems.
• Started to use office equipment and systems.

Do you have any questions?

Next Week

• We will continue to use office systems in more detail.
• Establish a paper-based system to process, retrieve and archive information.

Has your confidence about using office equipment and systems improved today?

😒🙁😐🙂😃