Office Practice · Lesson 3

Manual and electronic office equipment, choice, care and maintenance

WAECNECO

What the syllabus asks

WAEC: meaning; types: manual (typewriter, perforator, stapling machine, duplicating machine, etc.) and electronic (typewriter, photocopier, shredding machine, computer, scanning machine, facsimile machine, etc.); uses; care. Extends cm9.4.

NECO: meaning; types: manual (typewriter, perforator, stapling machine, duplicating machine, etc.) and electronic (typewriter, photocopier, shredding machine, computer, scanning machine, facsimile machine, etc.); uses; care. Extends cm9.4.

What you will learn

Define office equipment and state reasons for its use.
Classify office equipment as manual or electronic.
Describe the typewriter, perforator, stapler and duplicators.
Explain the uses, advantages and care of the photocopier, shredder, computer, scanner and fax.
State factors in choosing equipment and compare buying with leasing.
Calculate cost per copy and depreciation.
State general and specific rules for the care of equipment.

Key points

Equipment brings speed, accuracy, neatness and security.
Manual: typewriter, perforator, stapler, duplicators, guillotine.
Electronic: photocopier, shredder, computer, scanner, fax.
Typewriter parts: platen, carriage, margin stops, line space regulator, tabulator.
Duplicators need a master; photocopiers copy directly.
Shredders protect confidential data; follow retention rules.
Computers integrate typing, calculation, storage and communication.
Scanners digitise; fax sends exact copies over telephone lines.
Choose by need, cost, ease, power, after-sales, durability, safety.
Care: follow manual, clean, cover, unplug, protect, service, log faults.

Start here: Meaning and classification of office equipment

Office equipment means the machines and devices used in an office to make clerical work faster, easier, more accurate and neater. Furniture such as desks and filing cabinets is sometimes grouped with equipment, but in the WAEC syllabus “office equipment” means machines and appliances such as typewriters, perforators, staplers, duplicators, photocopiers, shredders, computers, scanners and facsimile machines.

Why offices use equipment

Speed: a photocopier produces in minutes what a typist would take days to retype.
Accuracy: calculators and computers reduce arithmetic errors.
Neatness and quality: printed documents look professional and are easy to read.
Reduced fatigue: machines do repetitive work, so staff are less tired.
Saving labour cost: one machine may do the work of several clerks.
Security: shredders, safes and password-protected computers protect information.
Large volumes: duplicators and printers produce many copies of circulars or examination papers.
Prestige and image: modern equipment gives customers confidence.

Classification

The WAEC syllabus groups equipment into two classes:

Manual equipment works by hand or simple mechanical action, without electricity: the manual typewriter, perforator (hole punch), stapling machine, manual duplicating machine, guillotine and pencil sharpener.
Electronic (and electrical) equipment needs electricity and often contains microchips: the electronic typewriter, photocopier, shredding machine, computer, scanner and facsimile (fax) machine.

Some machines exist in both forms. There are manual and electric typewriters, manual and electric shredders, manual and electric staplers. In an examination, classify each by how the model in the question works.

Equipment is also grouped by purpose: writing and typing, copying, calculating, communication, mail handling, filing and security. This grouping helps when a question asks “state equipment used for …”.

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Practice questions

1. Which is a manual office machine?

perforator
scanner
photocopier
computer

Show answer

A: perforator
Hand-operated.

2. A machine that cuts documents into strips to destroy them is

a franking machine
a perforator
a guillotine for books only
a shredder

Show answer

D: a shredder
Shredder.

3. A machine that makes copies from an original by xerography is

a stapler
a typewriter
a photocopier
a fax machine

Show answer

C: a photocopier
Photocopier.

4. A scanner is used to

frank mail
convert paper documents into digital images
print letters
shred files

Show answer

B: convert paper documents into digital images
Scanner digitises.

5. Reducing A3 to A4 on a photocopier uses about

71%
50%
141%
100%

Show answer

A: 71%
1 ÷ √2 ≈ 0.707.

Key words

Office equipment: Machines and devices used for office work.
Perforator: Hand punch making filing holes in paper.
Duplicator: Machine making many copies from a master.
Stencil: Waxed master used in an ink duplicator.
Photocopier: Machine copying documents by xerography.
Toner: Powder ink used in photocopiers and laser printers.
Shredder: Machine cutting documents into unreadable pieces.
Scanner: Device converting paper into a digital image.
Facsimile (fax): Exact copy sent over a telephone line.
OCR: Optical character recognition of scanned text.
Mail merge: Combining a letter with a list to personalise copies.
Depreciation: Fall in value of equipment over its life.

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