BT Installing Document Software From Saros

Bankers Trust Co. is installing document management software expected to improve the flow of information bankwide.

The software, Mezzanine, comes from Bellevue, Wash.-based Saros Corp. It is used to store and retrieve documents created internally using word processing software and other programs.

Kevin Vaughn, vice president at Bankers Trust, the principal subsidiary of $107 billion-asset Bankers Trust New York Corp., said the system "will put accurate information at our fingertips," giving the bank a "competitive edge."

The Windows NT-based software will be rolled out to most of the bank over the next two years, giving employees quick access to information from any of the bank's 50 offices worldwide.

"Our goal is to provide every authorized employee reliable access to the company's information assets," said Mr. Vaughn.

Currently, in order to retrieve documents, Bankers Trust employees must use passwords that make it difficult to locate information, he said.

With Mezzanine, a library application enables employees to search for documents using key words, attribute data, browsing, or content-based searches. Once a file is found, it is automatically retrieved from whatever application where it was stored.

Mr. Vaughn said the quick searches will give the bank cost benefits in terms of human resources.

"We used to have supervisors spend entire eight-hour shifts looking for a document, then pass it on to other supervisors because it hadn't been found," he said. "With Saros, that search takes 10 seconds. This will convert the real estate liability of vast stores of tape archives into an accessible intellectual asset."

Mezzanine also lets administrators control how a document is filed - a feature Bankers Trust will use in its global investment bank.

The bank's global traders use Excel spreadsheets to model complex financial transactions. Regulatory requirements mandate that audit trails, or records of those handling the documents, must be kept. By tracking the life cycle of each document and related information, Mezzanine can supply approved audit trails for reporting to the Securities and Exchange Commission and other government agencies.

In addition, the global investment documents are automatically stored in a special, secure place within the system.

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