Office Furniture Moving Tips

Office Furniture Moving Tips

The hardest decision any employer must make is whether or not to move the office furniture. True, it’s possible to replace your furniture after the move. But why do that? It’s so much easier to take the rest of the office with you. Here are several helpful tips to make your business move profitable for you.

Mobile Equipment

By this, we mean anything that has wheels on it. Chairs, stools, and anything else all fit into this category. Surprisingly, this is the most difficult stuff to move. If you have a battered, old office chair, feel free to toss it on the curb and let someone else take it off your hands. However, if only a few office chairs look like they’re ready for the dump, how are you going to transport the rest?

Though some moving companies have a specific way they deal with wheeled items, oftentimes they allow the client to decide on the best method. This allows the client to have full control over the move. How do you keep office chairs (or other wheeled items) from sliding all over the back of a moving van?

One way is to slide packing peanuts into the wheels of the chairs. Do this after placing them in the truck and they’ll stay where you put them. The other option is to corral the chairs in a corner, preferably with their owners’ names written on painting tape somewhere on the seat. Push the chairs together in the corner, wrap the outer group with a ratcheting strap, and request it be tightened to secure.

Desks

Desks made of pressed wood make for a wonderful, usually tax-deductible business donation to local schools or charities. These may be worth putting back together, but it is very common for screws and fittings to strip when you attempt to take them apart.

However, faced wood furniture is a much higher quality product. These desks can be easily taken apart, pieces labeled, and all of it packed away in boxes for easier moving. If you do decide to move your desk or any high-quality office furniture, we recommend that you allow the movers to take apart the items. Not only are they very experienced at the art of pulling these apart, but any damages will be covered by the moving company’s insurance.

The Heavy Stuff

Perhaps you’re a veterinarian moving medical equipment or a lawyer with hundreds of thousands of documents. This is where the movers really make your life easier. For all things paper, request oil paper wrapping if possible. Not all areas in the world carry this specific product, but the premise has kept documents safe for hundreds of years. It will keep yours safe, too.

If you are moving specialty equipment of any nature, please advise your movers of necessary precautions, for both their safety and that of the machinery. Though it is possible that they are aware of the needs, it is unlikely that a mover will see, for instance, an X-ray machine more than a few times in their career.

A final word on office moving: the most important thing when moving your office is to prepare for the movers to come. Do a deep clean of the office prior to the moving company’s arrival. That means all-hands-on-deck. Go through your paperwork and throw out what you no longer need. By doing this, you can avoid “arrival clutter” at your new office and be ready to start fresh.