European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - December 12, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Magazine a a flite they re everywhere they re everywhere in some offices secretaries turn to shredder instead of wastebasket a to Gat rid of paper. The paper shredder a popular government office machine by Richard l. Berke new York times in this capital City of paper and secrets one thing that Ollon comes Between the most classified of  and the eyes of a curious Public is the paper shredder. Name a National crisis and almost inevitably one of these trusty office machines that transform paper into confetti is lurking behind the scenes. Shredders figured prominently for example in the Iran hostage crisis under president Carter. And perhaps the most legendary of the machines is the shred master Model 400, the Clunky 880-Pound shredder that was used by g. Gordon Lyddy and others to destroy papers at the Headquarters of president Nixon s re Alec Ion committee according to testimony in the watergate hearings. Shredders Are Back in the news in the unfolding drama involving arms sales to Iran and diversion of Grofils to the Tea Raglan rebels. Administration officials have Sake they believe that iwo men poked to the operation u col. Oliver l. North a former National Security Council staff member and vice adm. John m. Pol Dexler who reined recently As National Security adviser destroy ans live documents before their Flat were secured by r toil investigators. Whether it was a routine destruction is not known the officials said. Reau crafts accomplish the with the Federal Mountain of paperwork. A Ehre Dino machines Are Mora popular and have Ereno Bec my indispensable As staplers Tiniou Ghoul the in some offices secretaries urn they re everywhere said a Whit House official. Everything goes into a shredder. You could t possibly handle the paper of govern Mon  Federal agencies purchased $4 3 million Worth of shredders in 1985. Ranging from $159 lo$25.000 apiece according to Stephen Guiheen a spokesman lot the general services administration. Those figures do nol Lake into account agencies that hire private concerns to do their shredding or thai Purchase shredders without Gong item ugh the Gas. Shredders Are a controllable Way to destroy something beyond the Point of recognition said Joseph Mitchell co owner of who Laker Brothers & co. Of suburban Washington which Sells thousands of shredders each year to the government. You can t build a Little Bonfire in the Middle of an office and go at  alter the Weter Gale scandals Mitchell s company bought Back the famed watergate shredder which resembles an oversized office duplicator Wilh a conveyor Belt and now displays the free standing Gray machine in its showroom. A version of the heavy duly watergate Model is still produced but shredders come in All shapes and sizes almost Allol which use steel Blades to do their Job. The shredder division of Michael business machines corporation in Manhattan produces 35 models under its destroy line ranging from a 22-Pound desk top version to the 1 43-Pound shred n Baler with enough horsepower to turn typewriter cartridges to dust. The Atrip variety in which paper is Cut into strips of a Inch Lovi Inch wide has been the most widely used. Since. 1980. However the Cross Cut variety has gained popularity in government because it was that year that the iranians who seized the american embassy in Teheran pasted together documents hat had not been sufficiently destroyed in a strip shredder. Cross Cut shredders can turn one Sheet of paper Inlo 10,000 pieces. Ii you re really worried that the soviets Are going to Sil Down and paste pages Back together then you gel the Cross Cut said Stanley Greenwald marketing manager of Michael business machines Vinco Del Vecchio Mitchell s partner at Whitaker Brothers said the National Security Council requires that machines it buys be Able to shred classified documents to a maximum length of seven sixteenths of an Inch and a Width of one thirty second of an Inch standards that Only Cross Cut shredders meet other Federal agencies devise their own regulations Tor destroying documents from Tosh to top secret papers under guidelines set by the National archives and records administration. Justice department regulations state for example that top secret secret and confidential classified informal Ion end material shall be destroyed in the presence of an appropriately cleared official by burning melting chemical decomposition pulping pulverizing shredding or other mul Lalion sufficient to preclude recognition or reconstruction of the classified  National archives rules also stipulate when to dispose of paper. The transportation department for example must retain for 15 years the test reports on steel Cylinder inspections while the agriculture department must keep Lor two years records Mohe harvesting storage shipment Sale or other disposition of  Mitchell said the shredder his company Sells with the highest government Security rating is the in Imus 0073." a $7.500 Model that he said is extremely popular at the Central intelligence Agency the Justice department and in congressional offices it can Swallow 12 to 15 sheets of paper at a Lime demolishing them into particles Smaw than the most rigorous government standards. It can take a tremendous amount of abuse and still do the Job and maintain the proper particle size which is the name of the game he said. Friday december 12, 1988 the stars and stripes Page 13