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The Ultimate Office Moving Checklist

If you read this, then you are in charge of relocating your business office. This is one of the most complex tasks for any business owner or manager, especially if you have to move across the state of California from one city to another. There are many aspects you need to consider:

  • How to complete the move within the allotted time
  • How to ensure the safety of the valuable equipment and proprietary data
  • How to ensure that the entire process is handled within a reasonable budget.

The solution that meets all these requirements is hiring a professional local moving company that specializes in office moving. In this article, we will help you get a clear idea of what you can expect once you decide to hire professional movers to help you relocate a business in California.

How Do You Find a Reliable Office Moving Company?

The first step in the process is finding a team of movers who can handle the job and whom you can trust with the office equipment, furniture and even sensitive documents of the business. This step should take place at least one month prior to the date for actually moving the office to a new location

An online search will return hundreds of results for the San Francisco area alone. When you start browsing various websites, you should look for the following information on the moving company:

  • Whether they are fully licensed, bonded and insured
  • Whether they work with W-3 employees, not independent contractors
  • Whether they have relevant experience in corporate moving.

In parallel, conduct a search on the office moving company, focusing especially on:

  • Review directories, such as Yelp
  • The Better Business Bureau
  • Customer ratings and reviews on Google My Business
  • Comments posted by customers on the company’s social media profiles.

Follow This Checklist for Office Moving

Once you have identified and shortlisted reliable office moving companies, ask for estimates from each of them and select the best offer. Set a moving date in the agreement you sign with the movers and start preparing for the countdown. Here are the main steps you must go through:

1. Look over the Office Inventory

Each company keeps an inventory of its fixed assets: furniture, office equipment, artworks and decorations, etc. Decide which of the items will be moved, and which should be sold or put in storage (this is a must if you are downsizing the office space).

2. Note the Producer’s Recommendation for Moving Office Equipment

Servers, printers and various specialized office devices and instruments have special instructions regarding packing, storing and shipping. You should look over all the user manuals and send the list of specific requirements to the office moving company.

Professional movers will bring their own packaging materials and help you with packing everything, from desks to computers and large office equipment.

3. Notify the Employees of the Office Mover

You should communicate the move to all employees within a reasonable period of time, especially if you are moving to a new city. Most of them will also have to consider their own family relocation.

With respect to the office move, they need to know:

  • Whether they have to pack their own desks
  • When to remove personal items, in case the office moving company will pack everything in the office
  • How to handle the sensitive documents/ electronic data they are working with.

4. Create a Policy for Handling Valuable Documents and Data

Data has become one of the most valuable assets for businesses. In the context of moving offices, you should decide how to pack, store and transport sensitive data. In most cases, this involves:

  • Backing up electronic data stored on computers and servers
  • Designating a person to be in charge with collecting all papers and hard copy documents
  • Finding a safe storage area to keep these documents until they are finally moved to the new location.

A professional office moving company will offer you secure storage space for rent, including special climate controlled units for office equipment. This may be necessary if you have to vacate the old headquarters before the move can be reasonably completed.

5. Communicate with the Office Moving Company

As the moving date approaches, the professional movers will contact you to go through the final details. You do not have to worry that any changes will occur from their point of view. Unless there is a case of force majeure, the team of movers will arrive at your office on the agreed date and hour.

They will handle all the tasks you have agreed to, including packing the furniture and office equipment and labeling the boxes. Office moving companies use high quality packaging materials and, relying on past experience, know exactly how many boxes are needed for your office move.

6. Give Access to the Movers at the New Location

Finally, make sure that the office moving company can enter the new location to bring in your office furniture and equipment. Depending on your instructions and the agreed level of service, they will leave the boxes in their designated place or help with reassembly/installation.

Hiring an Office Moving Company Is the Smart Choice for Your Business

As you can see, there are so many aspects to consider when moving to an office. There is simply no way of covering all these steps relying only on yourself and your employees. Plus, accidents can happen during an office move and if someone gets hurt you may be liable.

Hiring an office moving company leaves you free to properly communicate the move to your employees, clients and business partners. You know that every item in your office will be treated with care and brought to the new location in good condition and without unjustified delays.

Let professionals handle your office move in California, while you focus on continuing to serve your clients and interact with your vendors and business partners. Contact us now to get an estimate!

Christopher Stern

Christopher Stern is a Washington-based reporter. Chris spent many years covering tech policy as a business reporter for renowned publications. He has extensive experience covering Congress, the Federal Communications Commission, and the Federal Trade Commissions. He is a graduate of Middlebury College. Email:[email protected]

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