Collection Processing: Getting Ready for Moving Day

Moving is terrible.

Everyone knows this. Owners of pickup trucks especially know this, because people are always asking them to help them move. No matter how much stuff you have or what the stuff actually is, packing up your current living space and taking it to a different living space is awful. It’s physically laborious, fraught with chaos, and difficult to coordinate. Something will always end up lost, or worse, broken. Yes, creating your new living space is exciting and fulfilling. But the work that goes into packing up your old place and dragging it to the new one seems like too much of a chore. Why bother with moving at all?

I think many people feel the same way about rehousing their archival collections. It’s in a box now, so why put it in a different box? If the current storage situation is getting the job done, why disrupt your materials’ habitat by rehousing them? The simple answer is that “getting the job done” isn’t what we want to strive for when working with archival materials. We want to give our collections the best home we can, even if we make more work for ourselves.

Fortunately, there are organizations that can help us with the heavy lifting. Below is a list of organizations that specialize in archival storage and preservation materials. There’s some similarity in the products that these retails provide, and the glut of options may seem overwhelming. But regardless of your collection’s needs and your budget, you’ll be able to find great resources here. Click on each organization’s name down below to check out their websites.

For photographic collections, there’s LIGHT IMPRESSIONS.

Photo collectors rejoice! Light Impressions specializes in storage, preservation, and display materials for photographic materials. Their expertise also extends to negatives, compact discs, transparencies, matting and framing, and digital storage. If the artifacts in question are visual in nature – whether physical or digital – Light Impressions is a good resource to look into.

For library lovers, there’s UNIVERSITY PRODUCTS.

University Products began as the go-to resource for library and bookbinding supplies. It has since expanded to include a wide, wide variety of conservation equipment and tools. The company offers everything from disaster preparedness materials, to book pillows for propping items on display, to modern vertical display cases, to something called an Orbit Blower. Browse their website for a mind-blowingly impressive array of options for all of your preservation needs (and be sure to find the Orbit Blower).

For a personal touch, there’s ARCHIVAL METHODS.

What I really like about Archival Methods is its commitment to the user experience. Their website is user-friendly and accessible, and their products are more standard and recognizable. Admittedly, they do have tons of options for storage and display, just as these other companies do. But Archival Methods may be a gentler way to ease into the archival storage conversation.

Speaking of conversation, Archival Storage has a blog! An entire portion of their website is devoted to topic-specific posts that share archival tips and tricks. This makes Archival Methods stand out from some of the other organizations. That level of devotion to the user experience is kind of touching, I think.

For the gold standard of preservation, there’s GAYLORD ARCHIVAL.

I was first introduced to this company during my time working in a university archive. Even as a novice, I immediately recognized the quality of Gaylord’s products and their ability to stand firm (literally) against the elements and time. The quantity of materials you can find on their website is overwhelmingly astounding – they truly have everything, and the options are endless. Need long-term water-resistant storage containers? Gaylord has them. What about short-term document storage? No problem. Looking to monitor light and humidity levels in your storage space? Gaylord has you covered. In desperate need of options for pest control? Look no further than Gaylord Archival.

In short, I cannot possibly overstate my love for Gaylord Archival. It’s the first (and usually last) resource I consult when looking for storage options.

Do you have original Packard documents, photographs, publications, or memorabilia that might be of value to the Packard Proving Grounds Library and Archives? Contact the site for information about our collection focus and donation policies.