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]> 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 <(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]] *On > Behalf Of *Rick Grapes > *Sent:* Monday, June 19, 2017 11:49 AM > *To:* [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] > <[log in to unmask]>] *On Behalf Of *Dennis Matthews > *Sent:* Friday, June 16, 2017 1:54 PM > *To:* [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] > > Telephone: 360.650.3098 <(360)%20650-3098> (Collection > Services--Cataloging Dept.) > > 360.650.3272 <(360)%20650-3272> (Map Collection) > > Fax: 360.650.3044 <(360)%20650-3044> > > > -- Michael Fry Collections Manager | Map Library Manager National Geographic Society Library 202.807.3139 [log in to unmask] [image: Nat Geo Logo Yellow_Black.png] <http://www.nationalgeographic.org> 1145 17th St., NW, Washington, DC 20036 [image: Email-Signature8.gif] <https://donate.nationalgeographic.org/em-sig>