What to Look for in a Commercial Records Center

You’ve reached the last straw! Your office has officially been taken over by boxes-boxes containing business documents of all shapes and sizes. Fantasies of bonfires are seeping into your consciousness on a regular basis. You’d never go that far-after all, you know the importance of retaining your records-but lately it seems like every square foot of space is occupied with these cartons: cubicles, hallways, even the employee break room.

Just last week, you went downstairs to the basement to locate a file requested by an auditor and ended up finding a bunch of soggy, musty and moldy boxes full of documents. A slow drip from a pipe had leaked water all over a handful of cartons, and no one realized it was happening. The whole experience was more than annoying. You used to scoff at outsourcing your records storage, but now you realize that it may be the best option. Things simply can’t continue as they are.

Even if you’re ready to explore an offsite solution, how do you know which professional records storage service is the best for your business? Price isn’t always the best indicator, since the cheapest option might result in a less-than-adequate storage option that puts your information at risk. Instead, choosing a commercial records center comes down to three key areas:

• security
• accessibility
• trust and reliability

Security

Perceived security is one of the reasons so many companies choose to store records on-site. After all, records stored on-premises are less likely to be compromised, right? Not necessarily. Inside theft of confidential documents is a common occurrence. What’s more, a file may be discreetly accessed and you would never know.

The right off-site facility provides a more safe and secure storage repository for your sensitive documents. A commercial records center equipped with the following features reduces the risk of a data breach:

• alarm systems and motion sensors
• keycard access
• digital surveillance equipment
• fire suppression and detection technology

Accessibility

Many businesses are reluctant to move business records off-site for fear of losing accessibility to critical documents. This is also a common misperception. Utilizing a commercial records center can actually facilitate faster location and access to information. A document storage facility that provides barcode tracking of cartons and files enables swift retrieval of business records with minimal administrative intervention of in-house resources. Documents can be requested at any hour and either delivered directly or converted and sent electronically to an authorized requestor within your organization following strict chain of custody protocol.

Trust and Reliability

Both security for-and accessibility to-your off-site records inventory is highly dependent on the type of company managing your commercial records center. It’s important to look for a local records and information management company with experience and expertise managing records for companies within your business sector or industry. Additionally, look for a vendor who can prove trust and reliability through the following:

• screened employees
• procedures compliant with privacy protection regulations
• documented standard operating procedures (SOPs)

Lastly, don’t hesitate to ask for client references and testimonials from your potential records storage vendor.

Records Management Center provides businesses throughout Augusta, Evans, Thomson, and also Martinez, GA, and Aiken, SC and the Central Savannah River Area with professional records storage and management solutions. To find out more, please contact us by phone or fill in the form on this page.