If you have a thriving business, the last thing you can afford to do is spend days packing up and moving your office. Nevertheless, changing locations is a monumental undertaking, particularly when you have a lot of office furniture to relocate. Use these tips from commercial moving companies to make sure your office furniture makes it to your new location safely and quickly, so you won’t lose valuable time to do the things that make your business really thrive.
Tips for Moving Office Furniture
1. Establish a timeline.
Creating a timeline for your big move is one of the first steps toward success. Outline when each phase of the move is going to happen – packing, loading, transporting, unpacking, etc. Then share the plan with any other office members and/or employees. Doing so will help you and your employees have deadlines to work toward so that you don’t rush to get everything done and end up packing your furniture haphazardly.
2. Enlist help packing.
While some office furniture can be packed and moved “as is,” others should be emptied out first. Start a day or two ahead of the move and ask employees to help pack up. Put sensitive personal items in individually labeled boxes, including any desk contents. Consider giving any employees specific instructions on how to properly wrap breakable items and package boxes to maximize space.
3. Pack necessary files.
Keeping your files organized and safe during a move is essential to make unpacking and getting back to work easier. Decide which files need to be packed and moved independently and which can be moved in their filing system. In most cases, upright filing cabinets can be moved as is while lateral filing cabinets need to be emptied. Be sure to carefully label in packed files to make it easier to sort and refile items after the move.
4. Eliminate unnecessary materials.
Getting rid of any unnecessary items will make cabinets and other furniture lighter and easier to move. Help employees shred or recycle any non-essential, non-sensitive files to make the moving process easier. Then only pack necessary files as explained above.
5. Use the original boxes.
For particularly sensitive items, use the original boxes for packing when possible. This is particularly important for technology components, like computers and printers. If you don’t have the original boxes, you can typically find boxes designed for this purpose at your local moving company or box store.
6. Remove or secure drawers.
To prevent damage during transit, remove loose drawers and shelves from desks, cabinets, and other furniture pieces. You may also want to consider wrapping furniture with protective plastic to keep drawers and shelves secure and reduce damages for bumping and jarring in transit.
7. Get professional help.
To ensure that the moving process goes as quickly and smoothly as possible, consider hiring a professional moving company to manage the heavy lifting. The company will be able to provide specific packing tips as well as do any final preparations to reduce damage to your furniture in transit.
An office move is a big task, but it can be done safely and effectively. Use these tips as a guide to help the process go smoother and reduce damage to your furniture and sensitive materials during the move.