E-Faxing

Overview

E-faxing is the process of sending and receiving faxes digitally over the internet instead of using traditional fax machines and analog phone lines. Faxes are transmitted as electronic documents (PDF, TIFF, etc.) through email, web portals, or APIs.

How it works

  • With traditional faxing, the fax machine is plugged into an analog jack, the fax number rings to the machine, the fax machine answers the call and the fax is received. Due to the nature of analog lines, only one simultaneous call is allowed, either inbound OR outbound. There is some variability on the pricing of the fax board depending on the machine model. Most are $9.19/mo, but the total price can range from ~$6.50-~$11.75 per month, mostly dependent on the pages per minute rating of the machine.
  • The alternative to traditional faxing is XMedius eFaxing. Simply put, eFaxing is fax to email. You keep your existing published SOM fax number, all inbound faxes are converted to PDF and delivered by email (if more than one email destination is needed, you can set up a shared mailbox, it’s a simple assyst ticket and there is no cost). Nothing changes for people that send you faxes, they send to your SOM fax number as they always have. Because eFaxing isn’t tied to an analog line we can offer much higher throughput, at least 8x inbound simultaneous faxes, in addition to essentially unlimited simultaneous outbound faxes.
  • Outbound faxes from can be sent from the multi-function printer/scanner as before by utilizing the XMedius app, it functions almost identically to a traditional fax app on a copier. eFaxing also adds the ability to send outbound faxes by email, which has proven to be very handy for staff working in the field. Outbound eFaxing supports the following formats:
    • The entire Office Suite, all the major image files including Tiff, PDF, JPEG, PNG, BMP, plus TXT, RTF, & WPD.
    • The primary difference between the two solutions is with traditional faxing, faxes are automatically printed out at the machine. With eFaxing, conversion to PDF and delivery by email is the ONLY way to receive faxes. (Staff can print the PDFs to a paper copy at any time, but there’s no way to automatically have inbound faxes print).

Key components

  • E-fax service provider (cloud-based)
  • Internet connection
  • Email, web portal, or application integration
  • Optional APIs for system-to-system workflows

Benefits

  • Eliminate fax machines, phone lines, paper, and toner
  • Faster delivery and easier tracking
  • Supports remote and hybrid work
  • Easier archiving, search, and audit trails

Service Level Target

The standard production published service level agreement can be viewed at the following link: http://www.maine.gov/oit/services/FAQ-Help/Standard-SLA.html

Applicable Rates

  • Addition DID /Account number $2.23 per month
  • Per page in & out going $0.036

Options Available for Additional Charge

  • Application connector for Ricoh copier $3.34 per month

To get Help or Order this Service

  • Call the OIT Help Desk 207-624-7700

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