Your archive that sorts itself.
Paper in, searchable archive out. Ready to use, with hardware on-site.
OpitzWorks: Archive is digital document management for small businesses – built on a proven open-source foundation, enhanced with a proprietary AI layer. You put the stack in the scanner and the document pile sorts itself automatically.
One binder per year, an inbox full of PDFs, a drawer for the rest
Anyone looking for a specific document – the invoice from the heating engineer, the contract with the supplier, the letter from the tax office – flips through folders, searches their email program, and ends up asking their accountant anyway.
This wastes time, and it's risky: retention obligations are almost impossible to meet reliably with paper. There are ready-made systems – but they're either expensive and designed for corporations, run as US cloud subscriptions, or are good as pure open-source projects but no one in the business has time to set them up. Between "binder" and "enterprise DMS" there is nothing affordable, understandable, and self-sovereign for the small business.
What Archive does for you
Paper in, archive out
Stack it in the scanner, press a button. The system recognises the text (OCR), and from then on you can find any document via full-text search in seconds.
The AI sorts for you
New documents are automatically tagged: sender, document type, date, keywords. You never have to manually name or file anything again.
Your data stays in-house
The system runs on a small NAS at your premises, not in a foreign cloud. No US servers, no monthly dependency.
GoBD-compliant for your accountant
If desired, approved documents are automatically transferred to DATEV Unternehmen Online or Lexware Office – archived there in a revision-proof manner.
You choose how deep the AI goes
Your own AI key, our AI server in Germany (with DPA) or a local AI computer where no document ever leaves the premises.
Ask your archive
"When did the contract with supplier X expire?" – use the document chat to ask your archive instead of searching yourself.
The stack from the desk – done in two minutes
Andreas runs a plumbing business with eight employees. He puts the weekly stack – incoming invoices, delivery notes, a letter from an authority – into the network scanner and presses a button. Fed in double-sided, done in two minutes.
By the evening, all documents are recognised, tagged and filed. The approved incoming invoices have been automatically transferred to DATEV by the workflow – his accountant already has them. When he asks about a specific materials invoice, Andreas's wife types two keywords into the search.
Result in five seconds instead of half an hour in a binder.
Three paths for the AI – you decide
From affordable entry-level to uncompromising confidentiality
Your own key
You bring your own AI key and pay for usage directly – the most affordable entry point.
AI server in Germany
Processing on our server in Germany, with a data processing agreement. From €29.90/month up to 2,000 documents.
Local AI computer
A Mac Mini at your premises handles the AI – not a single document leaves the building. For law firms, medical practices and anything confidential.
Archive in comparison
Between DIY and enterprise overhead
| OpitzWorks: Archive | Physical binders | Paperless (self-managed) | ecoDMS | DocuWare | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ready to use incl. hardware | Yes | – | No (DIY) | No | Partially |
| Data stays on-site | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Cloud/On-Prem |
| AI automation included | Yes | No | Set up yourself | No | Extra cost |
| Suitable for 1–20 people | Yes | Yes | Technically | Yes | Oversized |
| Personal setup & support | Yes | – | No | No | Consulting-intensive |
| Entry cost | €4 | 999 one-time | €0 | Software free | ~€149/licence |
Archive Base System
- Hardware: NAS + network scanner with feeder
- Setup, configuration and filing concept
- OCR and full-text search
- GoBD workflow to DATEV / Lexware
- Video course for your team
- 1st year remote maintenance included
- (AI automation optional, see above)
Remote maintenance from year 2
- Ongoing updates and maintenance
- Remote maintenance without travel
- Personal support
- Alternatively: €49/h without contract
The base system is paid for once and belongs to you. Ongoing costs only arise from your chosen AI option, the optional remote maintenance from year 2, and the electricity for the NAS. For comparison: a cloud DMS in the mid-market easily runs to €30–50 per user per month – for five employees that's €1,800–3,000 per year, year after year, with your data held by the provider. If you ever stop, with Archive you keep the hardware, the archive and all your documents.
For the ready-to-use device, the setup, the scanner, the AI integration and the peace of mind that it just works and you don't have to administer anything. The software is the foundation – our product is the turnkey installation including hardware and ongoing support. You're not paying for code, you're paying so that you put the stack in and can find everything again.
ecoDMS is a good programme, we'll say that openly. But a licence is not a running system. The roughly €149 is worth it if you have someone who sets up the software, connects it to the scanner, integrates the AI and stays on top of every update. If you're comfortable with the technology yourself, ecoDMS is the right choice. If you'd rather put your time into your own business, we are.
Nothing. The system is based on open source and continues to run on your device. Your documents are standard PDFs and the database is exportable. You are never dependent on us to access your own archive.
No. The base system with scanning, OCR and full-text search works perfectly without AI. The AI takes manual tagging off your hands. You can start small and add it later.
The archive stores documents in a tamper-proof manner – the foundation for GoBD-compliant retention. For the legally secure archiving of tax-relevant documents, we set up a workflow that automatically transfers approved documents to DATEV Unternehmen Online or Lexware Office. There they are demonstrably archived in a GoBD-compliant manner – sovereignty in-house, legal certainty where it counts.
Find out if Archive is right for you.
In a short, free conversation we'll work out how large your document volume is and which AI path makes sense for you.