To bring Rick’s tale of woe at BYU up to date I thought I’d quickly outline out we did our move this past year. I wasn’t around for previous moves, but had heard Rick’s tales and could see for myself gray cases with silver drawers, stacks that had one set of 5-drawers with different handles, etc.
* Organize, weed, shift before you move. We went from stacks of 3 5-drawer cases to 4 5-drawer cases in the new (basement) location. We also had 3 different sizes of cases. So we shifted and moved until all the cases of the same size & color would end up together in the new location (with matching drawers).
* As others have said, label everything. I found that using a fat-tipped whiteboard marker, it was easy to label each case segment with a letter, then each drawer in the segment with a letter-number combo so the drawers would be put into the same case in the same order. Once the move was complete, a rag and a few minutes was all it took to clean the markings off.
* Make a map! Once everything is labeled, it is easy to make a map of the current location and the new location for everything. In our case we had many different groups of student employees actually moving things, so these maps were crucial to keep everyone on the same page.
* Buy some new rubber bumpers for the backs of the various drawers. You will lose some (3M’s selection<http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3M/en_US/Electronics_NA/Electronics/Products/Electronics_Product_Catalog/~/Bumpon-Products?N=8704948&rt=r3> or Bumper Specialties<https://www.bumperspecialties.com/>)
* Have some shims & a level on hand – some stacks looked fine when the 4 cases were stacked on top of each other only to develop a significant lean with the weight of the drawers.
* Check the action of every single drawer once the cases are all in place. Make sure they don’t go too far in (as Rick mentioned) and that they don’t come too far out. One of our staff closed a drawer in a stack and started away to get the next drawer. As he did, a different drawer slowly started to roll open. Sadly, it didn’t stop and fell to the floor from 40” – fortunately only the drawer was hurt, but a cautionary tale about leveling and checking the stops.
* Remember that the bases and even some brands of case rely on the weight of the drawers to provide rigidity. Some of the spot welds on cases and bases were broken as students allowed them to flex while moving them.
Good luck.
--
Dr. Mark Jackson
Subject Specialist Librarian
Geography ∙ Geology ∙ Geospatial Data & Analysis
Civil Engineering ∙ Construction & Facilities Management
Brigham Young University
2420 HBLL ∙ Provo UT 84602
801.422.9753 ∙ [log in to unmask]
From: "Maps-L: Map Librarians, etc." <[log in to unmask]> on behalf of "Ratliff, Louise" <[log in to unmask]>
Reply-To: "Maps-L: Map Librarians, etc." <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Monday, June 19, 2017 at 12:21 PM
To: "[log in to unmask]" <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Re: Moving map collections
Dear Michael,
We just moved, and “my” map case arrived in good order. I do not know whether or not they removed the drawers, because they were not full. The project manager assured me that they routinely move map cases by removing the drawers first, and they have had no problems. It is a matter of weight. If the drawers are full, they cannot manage the unit.
We labeled each drawer from A-H (there are 2 sets of 5 drawers) so that they could be re-installed in the correct order. So I suggest that you lable each of the map cases with a “case number,” a “unit number” for each of the separate sets of drawers, and label all the drawers in that case alphabetically. Consult with your project manager to find out what works best for them.
Best,
Louise Ratliff
UCLA
From: Maps-L: Map Librarians, etc. [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Fry, Michael
Sent: Monday, June 19, 2017 9:54 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Moving map collections
I'm curious if there's a consensus on whether standard 5-drawer map cases can/should be emptied of both maps and drawers before being moved. It seems to me--and I think I've read--that trying to move filled cases is a recipe for disaster. but I've had facilities folks here insist that they have done it that way. Which makes me cringe even though it would, in theory, save a lot of time and prevent the kind of mismatches Rick at BYU described.
Anybody have light-shedding experience to share?
Michael
On Mon, Jun 19, 2017 at 12:13 PM, March, Greg <[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>> wrote:
Hi Dennis,
We’ve moved our entire maps collection back in 2007, then again in two stages about five years later. We had too many map cases and too little resources to do the move ourselves, so the first time, we used a professional local moving company. The last two times, we used in-house facilities. Both did a good job, but the professional moving company did a better job since this is what they do for a living. I’d be happy to help answer any moving related question that you have. Just email or give me a call.
Regards,
-Greg
Gregory H. March
Map & Government Information Librarian
Associate Professor
University of Tennessee
152 Hodges Library
Knoxville, TN 37996
865-974-3878<tel:(865)%20974-3878>
Research Guides – Anthropology<http://libguides.utk.edu/anthropology>, Earth & Planetary Sciences<http://libguides.utk.edu/subject/eps>, Geography<http://libguides.utk.edu/geography>, Maps<http://libguides.utk.edu/map>, Government<http://libguides.utk.edu/sb.php?subject_id=39793>
Tennessee Committee on Geographic Names<http://libguides.utk.edu/TNCOGN>
From: Maps-L: Map Librarians, etc. [mailto:[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>] On Behalf Of Rick Grapes
Sent: Monday, June 19, 2017 11:49 AM
To: [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Re: Moving map collections
Dennis G. Matthews, et. al.
We here at BYU moved our whole collection between floors about 18 years ago, and again partially last year. We did it ourselves, in house, both times. No matter if you do the move yourselves, or have professionals do the lifting for you, there’s one issue you’ll have to keep in mind.
You cannot mix up the various drawers from their accompanying map cases.
In our “case”, because of elevator size, we had to disassemble everything, transporting the contents, drawers, and outer shells separately. We had room to move the contents of 2 cases per trip, followed by 10 drawers, and then the 2 boxes. Resulting in 9 trips to assemble 2 stacks, 3 cases high. The problem arose when we lost track of which drawers went into which of the boxes. The map cases and their drawers are set in the factory to work specifically together. If we mixed them up, the drawers would slid into the case too far, drop in the back, and lock shut. Another issue is, during manhandling and transport, sometimes the little rubber bumpers on the back of the drawers would drop off. Before we realized what had happened, custodial vacuumed them up. Which again, resulted in the drawers locking shut. So once in your new location, test the drawers before you fill them. If the drawers do lock shut, have someone thin and young enough, Not Me, crawl under the drawer, and in back push up and out. You can also lean thru from above, and grab the back of the drawer, up and out. But leverage can be an issue. If the drawers continue to lock shut, take a vice grip and at both back corners of the drawer, gently bend the metal tabs outward. Just a centimeter or so. This may result in the front 5 drawers looking uneven, but the alternative is…
Sorry for rambling. Hope this helps.
Rick Grapes
BYU Map Cataloger
From: Maps-L: Map Librarians, etc. [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Dennis Matthews
Sent: Friday, June 16, 2017 1:54 PM
To: [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Moving map collections
Hi all,
We are moving our map collection to a different floor in our library and we’re considering hiring a professional moving firm to relocate the collection. If anyone has done this I’d like to know the name of the firm, what was the experience like, would they recommend, etc.
Thanks,
Dennis
Dennis G. Matthews
Library & Archives Paraprofessional 6
Western Washington University
Western Libraries
516 High Street
Bellingham, WA 98225
Email: [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>
Telephone: 360.650.3098<tel:(360)%20650-3098> (Collection Services--Cataloging Dept.)
360.650.3272<tel:(360)%20650-3272> (Map Collection)
Fax: 360.650.3044<tel:(360)%20650-3044>
--
Michael Fry
Collections Manager | Map Library Manager
National Geographic Society Library
202.807.3139
[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>
[at Geo Logo Yellow_Black.png]<http://www.nationalgeographic.org>
1145 17th St., NW, Washington, DC 20036
[mail-Signature8.gif]<https://donate.nationalgeographic.org/em-sig>