Reams of paper produced from invoice purchasing orders could be a thing of the past if new technology is used properly.

So say the organisers of a seminar next week in Bermuda on using information technology to get supplies for shops, offices and businesses.

Traditionally, even the smallest offices have to fill out forms in triplicate to log their order, place it and then keep a copy for files.

But now the promise of a paper less office could be a step closer and Roy Barron will fly in next week lead a two-day seminar to show large and small businesses on the Island how to make it happen.

"Using the Internet to manage paperwork is a new topic,'' said Robert Morrison, president of the Purchasing Management Association of Bermuda.

"Purchasing is very labour intensive and their is a lot of paperwork involved. Now there is a move which allows us to move away from paperwork and use our time more efficiently, and that is what Mr. Barron will be speaking about.'' Mr. Barron has been invited by the newly formed Purchasing Management Association of Bermuda, an organisation set up for people who buy in supplies for their companies.

They currently have a membership of nearly 40, and hold monthly meetings as well as educational forums such as the one being held November 14 and 15.

They also run a series of evening courses at the Bermuda College which can be used towards a certificate of purchasing.

Mr. Barron, a Canadian, has excellent credentials in managing automation of and purchasing and inventories, a business he has been in since 1967.

He has lectured extensively on how to use information in negotiating deals and methods in communicating with suppliers over the Internet.

Next week he will give an introduction to electronic commerce and how it can be used in businesses.

He will also take the audience through an ABC of credit card purchasing over the Internet, as well as explaining the procedures that need to be put in place today in order to be in a position of strength five years from now.

Mr. Barron will also take the audience, which will be limited to 25, through electronic data interchange and purchasing automation, two hot topic areas which he claims will make life better for both the buyer and the seller.

For more information contact Sonia Pearman, director of membership at the association on 292-7387, or log on to www.pmab.bm.