How to move things from the office? Tips for a quick and convenient office move.

Planning an Office Move? Here’s What You Need to Do

Moving an office is a troublesome task, you need to pack all office equipment, furniture in advance, find a car, loaders with experience and develop a plan according to which important documents can be moved in several stages or in one day. It is difficult to organise a process without involving specialists. You need to independently disassemble cabinets, fold chairs and purchase a special container to protect valuable things from damage.

Content:

1. Preparing the office for the move. Main steps
2. Correct packaging
3. Self-organisation of the move
4. Moving with the help of a carrier company
5. Collaboration without risks

1. Preparing the office for the move. Main steps

Organisation of office relocation requires experience in order not to miss important points and not to delay the process.

It’s easier to divide the task into stages:

• Draw up a detailed plan of the commercial premises – count all workplaces, furniture, equipment. Then determine where the transported items will be located in the new office. Analyse the capacity of the place for moving objects. A nuance – you need to move the office to the appropriate footage of the building, otherwise there will be a problem with the placement of work areas. Check in advance the number of door holes and sockets. This will allow you to correctly complete things even during loading.

• Transportation volume – you need to know in order to choose the appropriate type of transport, its carrying capacity and dimensions. Moving to another office for a short distance within one district, can be organised by a small-tonnage car, with make only a couple of trips. If the volume of things is large, more than 4 trips, it is better to hire 2 cars. On the other hand, for long distances, it is more profitable to travel by high-capacity vehicles in order to simultaneously deliver all the items.

• Moving office furniture with large dimensions or weight – a team of movers is required. The number of people depends on the expected amount of work. The team will take over the removal of equipment and furniture, proper loading, fastening inside the car, and unloading. They can disassemble large items, offer their own packaging.

• Disassembly of furniture – moving the company to a new office should not harm the owner. In order not to damage objects, it is worth dismantling the shelves, cabinet doors, side elements in advance. This is a guarantee that on the way they will not break. Moving furniture unassembled is more difficult, the risk of property damage is higher. Remove fittings, glass components, shelves in advance. The doors can be attached to the its body with tape.

• The choice of packaging material – it must protect office equipment, valuables, paper from moisture, dirt, dust, exposure to high temperatures, if the move is long-distance. For smooth surfaces, use stretch film or corrugated cardboard sheets. Office chairs can be folded in stacks (one to another) or in pairs, then tightly wrapped with film.

• Labeling boxes and packages – put labels that correspond to the cabinet where you want to place the items. It will be easier for movers to navigate if they know the plan of office relocation. The time will be reduced, during the assembly when it will not be necessary to look for the components of the item.

If you follow a pre-developed plan, there will be no difficulties with the question of how to organise the office move. The whole event will take 1 day. If you involve a carrier company that coordinates the actions of loaders, a driver, a company administrator – then only a few hours.

2. Correct packaging

To reduce the risk of damage to your belongings during the move, follow a simple algorithm:

• Purchase boxes in advance – employees will be able to put personal belongings, fragile items on their own.

• Folders, papers, stationery are packed separately, additionally protected with tape, placed in a large common container. Be sure to label the boxes to quickly find the item in the new office.

• Office equipment – disconnect from the power supply, detachable parts and cords. Monitors, sensitive electronics, computers, fragile items should be wrapped in bubble wrap. Place in boxes, ensure immobility, label. You can also put inscriptions for movers, for example “fragile”.

• Live plants – transported in an open container, fixed inside the car.

Before leaving, check the packaging, make sure that it can withstand the load.

3. Self-organisation of the move

Commercial property owners are confident that it is expensive to hire a carrier to transport your belongings. It’s a delusion. You will have to:

• purchase all the packaging material yourself – employees do not always know what exactly is needed to protect the monitors, smooth surfaces and laptops.
• Rent a car – in order to save money, rent small trucks. This increases the number of trips, and does not allow transporting bulky items, furniture in an unassembled state.
• Appoint a person responsible for moving the office – the employee will not agree to do labor-intensive work for free, a bonus must be provided.
• Hire a person who can carefully disassemble and then assemble the furniture.

When you move on your own, responsibility for damage or loss of papers and things falls on the organiser, the owner of the business. You will not receive compensation for losses

If you decide not to use a carrier, strictly follow the move plan. Analyse the selected dates, otherwise there is a risk of not being able to complete the entire event over the weekend, and this is a disruption to the office’s work. It will not be possible to receive visitors, serve clients, hold a business meeting.

Purchase packing material in advance by evaluating the amount of items:

Boxes of different sizes.

Wrapping paper.

Bags.

Tape.

The film is stretch, air-bubble.

Stickers.

At least 3 days in advance, order a team of loaders, suitable transport. When choosing them, you should not be guided by too low prices. Complex, work cannot be rated low. Perhaps the brigade has no experience, the driver does not know the city well, does not follow the rules for the carriage of goods.

4. Moving with the help of a carrier company

This option is more reliable, affordable and faster. The specialized company applies an integrated approach to the movement of any cargo over long or short distances. The client can discuss working conditions in advance, order additional options, study the characteristics of the vehicle. How such companies operate:

• They visit the office in advance and estimates the amount of work.
• Prepare estimate – it remains fixed, so it is easy to plan the budget for the event.
• Offer different packaging options – high-quality materials, reliable fastening, protection from moisture, mechanical damage.
• Furniture disassembly and assembly service – there is no risk that items will be damaged on the way, lose their original appearance.
• They strictly adhere to the agreed deadlines.
• The movers’ team are experienced employees who do not make mistakes.
• Loading equipment – guarantees the safety of items when moving into the car.
• Development of a short route – logisticians choose less congested routes, which reduces the risk of trip delays.
• Arrangement of office items according to the plan. If you mark boxes, furniture and apply the same signs in a new office, the movers will move it to the right place.
• Long distances – it is possible to track the cargo along the way.

The contract with the carrier company is legally protected. The parties sign a document, it contains the price of the service, important conditions. This is a guarantee that in case of non-performance, the customer will defend his rights in court.

If the service of cargo insurance is offered by carriers, it is not worth saving, this is a guarantee of a responsible attitude to the task, compensation for losses.

5. Collaboration without risks