Simple Order Form with Copy for Shipping Department. The second short cut which was instituted in connection with order forms was the addition of a sheet on which was manifolded a copy of the order for the shipping department.
The idea is to give the shipper information in advance, in order that he may prepare his bills of lading and plan his work for his teams, order cars in advance from the railroad, call up express companies, and such other work as might be necessary to the proper shipment and delivery of the goods manufactured and sold, and to file the copy as his permanent record, in some cases.
Some firms desire to prevent the shipper from knowing the prices at which their goods are sold. This is accomplished by using for the shipping department a short sheet of paper which reaches from the left edge of the order-blank to the price column only. Another method is to use a narrow sheet of carbon paper with a full-size sheet of paper. This plan is not as satisfactory as the former one, as the carbon paper sometimes slips to the right and allows the prices to manifold.
Acknowledgment of Order to Salesman. In some lines of business, it is desirable to add an additional sheet which is termed acknowledgment of order to salesman. This plan enables the salesman to know that the order has been received and properly entered for execution (in manufacturing lines it is necessary to transcribe orders on order forms which contain too many copies for a salesman to manifold by pencil), and gives him the opportunity of checking the order as entered. It should be remembered that in some lines of business there is such an enormous amount of detailed information in connection with an order that neither the customer nor a salesman would check over an exact copy of the order as entered. This should always be taken into consideration when considering the addition of this sheet.
STATIONERY
The various styles of loose-leaf sheets and binders should be fully understood in order to appreciate their importance in order and billing work.
Loose-Leaf Sheets. The first loose-leaf sheets were punched with closed holes, as shown in the illustration of Kilby Mfg. Company forms in Fig. 18. The trouble with the closed-hole punching is that, when placed over the metal posts of the binder, it is impossible to remove a sheet in the center of the binder without removing all of the sheets immediately above the one desired.
To obviate this difficulty, the slotted hole was devised. This is illustrated in the forms of the Commercial Sash & Door Company, in Fig. 19. The slot from the edge of the paper to the punched hole permits the paper to be placed over the posts of the binder between any two sheets. Holes are punched in both the closed and slotted styles in various sizes, ranging generally from a ¼ to 5/16 of an inch in diameter. In late years, manufacturers have introduced punched holes of different shapes from that of a circle.
For permanent records where the sheets are filed serially according to page number, order number, etc., the closed-hole loose-leaf sheet is perfectly satisfactory. For records which are to be removed from any given part of the binder and reinserted in another part, the slotted-hole loose-leaf sheet is the most satisfactory style to use.
Binders. Binders are generally made of two covers and a set of posts, which ordinarily are attached to one of the covers. The other cover is movable in order to accommodate the increased thickness of the binder as loose-leaf sheets are added. Great strides have been made in the manufacture of improved binders. There are so many styles of posts and other ingenious arrangements, where the two covers are held together and closed or opened by the use of a key, that only reference to catalogs of manufacturers will supply detailed information.