5 Steps To Efficiently Relocate Your Company
Relocating your corporation or commercial business from one location to another may seem like a daunting task but early planning, an airtight schedule, and solving problems before they happen can make all the difference in your moving experience. We’ll give you all the steps you need to take when relocating and cover some topics you may not have thought of yet.
We know moving your company or store will affect your everyday business activities so we offer weekend moving services so as not to interrupt your weekday operations. Time is money and we don’t want you to lose either one during the move. Move Logistics is experienced in moving companies, retail stores, government offices, museum galleries, and universities. We can help you whether you’re moving a couple offices to a different floor or the entire contents of a building to another building.
Step 1 – Preplan The Move
Contact the moving company once you’ve decided when to move and where you are moving to. You’ll want to do this a few months before you’re actually ready to move to give yourself and the movers time to prepare. We will assign a project manager that will be your contact for the entire process.
The project manager will meet with you at your location and walk through the area and discuss what needs to be moved. They will create a floorplan and take note of any special equipment an area might need such as dollies, carts or a forklift if necessary. They’ll take note of stairs, docking bays, elevators, and access to cargo elevators if any. They will also like to visit the new location you’ll be moving to and take the same kind of notes. All of this information helps the project manager determine; how much needs to be moved, how long it’ll take to move it, how far away the new location is, and how many trucks and movers are needed. The manager will be able to give you an estimate for the job, how long it will take and schedule the move.
Step 2 – Employees Begin Packing Non-Essentials
List of Moving Supplies
Ask your employees to begin sorting through their office contents two weeks before the move. This will give them time to decide what to keep and what to throw away or shred. The moving company will drop off packing supplies such as moving boxes and labels so the employees can pack things that they don’t need at the moment. Files, desk items, closet items, and personal objects can be packed away at this time. Label the boxes with the employees name, office name, and where it will be moved to in the new office. Now is the time to also pack up any communal areas like employee lounge, conference room and storage closets; just make sure to keep out any supplies you may need for the next two weeks.
Your office operator, general manager, or secretary can use this time to set up a change of address. Notify the post office, subscriptions, clients, and business accounts. Order new business cards and ads with the new address. Update your business’s social media accounts and post that you’ll be moving soon. Let your IT provider know that you will be moving and have them at the new location the day of the move so they can immediately begin reconnecting all of the electronic devices and making sure they work. This way your employees can get straight to work the next business day without skipping a beat.
Step 3 – The Day Before the Move
The employees should have everything packed by the end of day and labeled. Unplug all electronic devices such as the computer, printer, copiers, A/V equipment, mini-refrigerator, phones, and anything else they may have in their office. Wrap up all of the loose ends of the device cables. Do the same for all communal areas and ensure the kitchen has been cleaned out and ready to move.
The day of the move will be hectic so we recommend that not all of the employees need to be present. Assign one person for each area and they will be in charge of making sure that everything that needs to be moved is moved and set up in the right area at the new location. Inform them that this could take a couple of days depending on how big the move is. Give them a checklist and a floorplan to help keep them organized.
Step 4 – Moving Day
Moving day is here and it’s going to be a fast moving and crazy day but that’s fine because it’s a well organized chaos if you follow the steps correctly. The movers will start by first protecting the floor by laying a layer of cardboard padding. There will be several work boots, dollies, and carts going back and forth so protecting the floor is a priority. The movers will then carry out the pre-packed boxes and load them onto the assigned trucks. They are informed which trucks will hold certain offices so the contents stay together. This will make it easier on them when it comes time to unload. The movers will also move the furniture out such as desks, chairs, couches, bookcases, filing cabinets, cubicles, appliances, and other large items. They have plenty of furniture blankets and wrapping material to protect all office furniture. Electronic devices will be moved and packed by professional and licensed movers so no need to worry about it.
Let us know if there is anything special you want us to be extra careful with. We have a White Glove Service that can take care of any artwork or antiques that need to be carefully packed and handled. We also have the right equipment to move heavy objects like safes and other excessively large items.
Step 5 – Unloading Day
Depending on how big the move is, there may be one day for packing and loading and a second day for unloading and unpacking. Once everything is loaded we will head over to the new location. The movers will once again lay down a protective covering on the floor before any unloading has begun. The employees you assigned to help move should be at the new location with a floorplan for their area. The movers will begin by bringing in the furniture and your employees can direct them as to where they want the furniture placed. Our movers will unpack and reassemble any furniture that was disassembled like cubicles and install wall mounted monitors and such. They’ll then bring in all of the boxes that the employees packed themselves and make sure they end up in the correct offices. Our goal is to have all furniture and boxes in place so your employees can walk into their new office, unpack their boxes and get to work. Your IT group can begin connecting everything once we’re done setting up any area.
We’ll go over our checklists and your checklists once we’ve unloaded and placed everything in its new location. We will pick up our floor covering and clean up any trash left behind. Our project manager will do a final walkthrough with you to check for placement and damages. The entire move will be considered finished once you give us a final approval.
We hope these moving steps and advice will make your relocation easier and less stressful. Call Move Logistics whenever you’re ready to move and schedule a meeting with a project manager to go over your relocation needs. We are a licensed, family owned and operated moving company that’s been in the industry for over 35 years. Hire us to move your offices from one floor to another or to a different building or a different city. No job is too big or too small for us.
READY TO SCHEDULE YOUR MOVE?
Only takes a few seconds to get a FREE quote from our move professionals call or fill out a form
