Businesses and other organisations might have a number of reasons to use rented self-storage units, including temporary storage while moving or redecorating offices, storage of files and records, storage of exhibition stands, storage of stock and office downsizing.
If you want access to items during the storance period you will not be able to use all the available space as you may need to create free spaces or passageways to remove and reinsert items.
This can be particularly important when archiving documents that an organisation is required by law to keep for a specified period of time and to which it may need access.
There are a number of things to consider when planning to use rented self-storage space. The first is the nature of the material. Materials within archive collections are largely organic and can be as varied as the collections themselves.
Materials can include paper, parchment, photograph supports, photographic emulsions, book structures and associated covers including leather, cloth and parchment.
Most damage is caused by a combination of factors. These may include: damp, mould, insects, unsuitable packaging and frequent or careless handling. All materials can be damaged by light, especially ultra-violet light.
If exposed to heat and light, low-grade papers, such as newspapers and posters, degrade quickly and become brittle. Photographs can be on a support of glass, plastic, paper or metal, which all require special care. Their emulsions are very absorbent and delicate and must be handled with extreme caution. In practical terms this means finding a cool dry storage place.
This is not likely to be an issue in rented self-store units, which are normally clean and dry, but if archives include old documents then it may be necessary to consider ways of protecting and preserving them.
Using the right kind of containers and storage materials will help preserve the life of documents. Obtain whatever boxes, folders, sleeves, and other supplies you think you will need.
Remember that these storage supplies should in general be alkaline or buffered rather than simply acid-free and that plastic is not suitable for long term storage because it can trap moisture, which can do immense damage to paper.
It may be sensible to make back-ups of all digital photographs and other important media. Audio cassettes, videotapes, floppy disks, hard drives, CDs, DVDs and other copyable media all have a limited life expectancy and are subject to both gradual deterioration. Scanning the more precious documents into an online archive as a back-up may also be a good idea.
The next step in your archival activities is processing is organizing the material following the principles of arrangement, then packing and labelling.
Archives can contain information on numerous and diverse subjects and cannot always be organised by subject.
Archive records can be arranged in several ways, one of which is to file int he order in which they were created and maintained, but how they are arranged will depend on what material is being stored and the practices of the organisation that needs access to them.
Whatever the method of organisation, clear, easily-readable labelling is crucial and a record or list of what is archived, if possible with a layout plan where appropriate should be kept. Some archiving and self-store companies advise archive users to leave a duplicate list with them as a fall-back.
The final point to consider in planning archive material is accessibility. If staff need access to documents they need to be easy to find and stored logically.
The most important thing to remember before you start packing your things into your storage unit, is whether there will be items what you will need access to regularly or what you might need in an emergency. These items should be put in last. Another option is to install shelving units.
Leave a gangway from the entrance to near the back of your unit so you can access everything that's piled up against the surrounding sides without having to move things.
Organising these arrangements in advance will help make archive storage in a rental self-store facility as pain-free an extension of your office as possible.
Author Resource:
Writer Ali Withers shares some tips gleaned from a self-store unit in Suffolk, England, on how to archive documents to be accessible and keep them well-preserved. Done properly using rented self-store units for archiving can be an affordable solution for businesses.
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