According to worldmetrics.org, office paper consumption has been declining by about 4% annually from 2020 to 2025. Compounded over that same period, this amounts to a reduction of more than 18%. And, given the efficiencies of electronic recordkeeping and the growing emphasis on sustainability, it’s safe to assume this trend will continue into the foreseeable future.

Despite this trend, it is important to note that paper remains essential to many office tasks, that reduced paper usage arguably increases its overall sensitivity, and that secure destruction of discarded paper continues to be a vital security imperative.

This blog explain how Shred Vault can lower the costs of secure document destruction given these changing dynamics of paper consumption.

How Reduced Paper Use Increases the Costs of Traditional Shredding Services 

Many—if not most—offices meet their document destruction obligations by hiring a commercial shredding service. In this model, the service provider supplies collection containers then services them at weekly or monthly intervals. The fees charged are usually based on the number of collection containers emptied, regardless of how much paper they contain.

If less paper is being consumed, less ends up in the containers. Since the number of containers and the service frequency were established years ago, they exceed what is needed today and offices end up paying significantly more than is necessary. In terms of the price to shred a specific volume of paper, some offices may now be paying two or three times what they were paying when they first contracted the service.

Reducing Document Destruction Costs in a “Less Paper” Environment 

One of the first options for larger offices is to reduce the number of collection containers deployed. Another is to decrease how often the shredding contractor services them. Many large offices likely could do both. If half as many containers are emptied at half the frequency, it could mean up to a 75% savings.

Smaller offices, on the other hand, don’t have the same options. Most shredding contractors have a minimum fee, which means reducing from three to two or even one container will not lower the cost.

Lowering the service frequency might help, but offices with fewer than 10 employees are often already serviced just once per month.* Reducing service to once every two months may mean the shredding contractor can no longer justify placing a free collection console. It also means sensitive documents would sit in the office longer than is prudent, introducing a host of security and compliance risks.

(*According to the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council summary of Census Bureau data, 78.5% of U.S. businesses have 10 or fewer employees.)

Shred Vault: A Better Shredding Solution for Small Offices 

Shred Vault provides smaller offices with a flexible, convenient alternative for secure paper shredding.

1. Order Bags: Two-packs of Shred Vault Bags are ordered online, typically with next day delivery. In addition to reasonable pricing, the Shred Vault app offers opportunities to order bags that have been prepaid or discounted by local sponsors.
2. Deposit Filled Bags: Once filled, the sealed Shred Vault Bag is deposited into one of the many convenient Shred Vault kiosks located at retailers throughout the community.
3. Receive Certificates: An electronic and printed certificate of deposit is issued immediately, followed by a certificate of destruction once the paper has been shredded.

Small businesses adopting the Shred Vault model can also arrange to have a collection container placed in their office to handle periodic or unexpected large shredding projects.

In any case, Shred Vault gives smaller offices the ability to take charge of their shredding requirements at a fraction of what they currently spend.

There’s no need to speculate. Contact Shred Vault today to learn more about the flexible options available to help align your shredding costs with the ongoing reduction in paper use.

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