A copier document feeder is one of the most convenient productivity tools you can buy. If you copy multiple-page documents with any frequency at all, you should seriously consider a copier document feeder.
A document feeder is an electromechanical device that holds a stack of documents in its bin or tray and feeds them to the copier one sheet at a time. The copier sends a signal to the copier document feeder when it is ready to be fed a new sheet. Human beings do not have to hover over the copier raising its lid, positioning a document on the glass scanning surface, closing the lid, pressing the "copy" button, and waiting until the copier does its thing before repeating this tedious process all over again.
A copier designed for occasional home use may not have a document feeder in order to minimize its manufacturing cost and retail price. But almost every copier designed for office use comes with a copier document feeder.
If your copier does not have a copier document feeder you may be able to purchase an optional add-on copier document feeder. Google "document feeder" with "optional" or "add-on" or "third-party" and your copier's brand name and model number to see what may be available. You can simply go to the dealer who sold you the copier or directly to the manufacturer, but this route often leads to a higher price. A new third-party add-on copier document feeder, a refurbished or a used copier document feeder will generally be less expensive and perfectly adequate for all but the most demanding high-volume applications.
When considering an add-on copier document feeder be sure to check its Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF). The MTBF is the average number of hours that a copier document feeder is powered on before it experiences a failure such as a paper jam. The MTBF is not a guarantee that your copier document feeder will run without failure for so many hours, but it is a good indicator of reliability. A typical MTBF of 10,000 power-on hours represents five years of 40-hour work weeks (with two weeks off for holidays and vacation each year).
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