In self storage we see no end of cars packed to the rafters making multiple trips back and forth to our storage facility in Cambridge.
We are powerless to help as by they time we think to ourselves, they could have done with a van by now, they have already made their 4th sweaty trip of the day.
We do recommend that people hire vans to move their possessions when they take our units but all too often our customers say "oh it's only a couple of trips in the car". We think to ourselves, yes but it would only be one trip in a van! In the whole history of mankind, it's never, ever been one trip in the car.
So you bite the bullet and hire the van but before you grab a copy on The Sun and practice your best wolf whistle, here are some tips which may make your life in a van that bit easier.
1. Pack the big heavy stuff near the doors - they will need to come out first
2. Negotiate with the rental company for half day or short hire period deals
3. Only fill up with the fuel you need to
4 Ask friends or family if they need a van for half a day and split the cost
5. Phone around for deals
6. We can offer 24/7 access so you don't need to restrict yourself to office hours
Hopefully the above will help you with making your transition into self storage smoother.
If you want free and impartial advice, speak to us at http://www.thesafebox.co.uk/
Need more space?
Have some of ours!
Thursday, 12 May 2011
Wednesday, 11 May 2011
Business Continuity is a quick fit fitter.
I'm sure we've all heard the term Business Continuity but what do we really understand or know about it, let alone have a plan of action relating to it.
So first and foremost, what is it? Simply, if one of the wheels of your business falls off, a business continuity plan will ensure that the business can still get to the garage to have the wheel fixed back on.
If you don't have a Business Continuity plan, here are some pointers to get you started.
Risk Assessment:
1. What threats face us?
2. What risks do these impose on us?
3. What can we do to minimise (or eliminate) these risks?
Once you have answers to the above you can start to put plans in place to counter the threats.
With regard to data management and archiving, you need to have a planning process in place.
1. People, who backs up?
2. Where can we back up if we loose our facility?
3. How do we operate if the primary process is lost?
4. How secure is our data?
5. Where is our data held?
6. How quickly can our data be returned?
At Safebox we can help guide you through the data and document element of Business Continuity.
We are here to ensure that if you did loose a wheel, we have the jacks and the team to get you back and running with the minimum of disruption.
http://www.thesafebox.co.uk/
Your information is our business.
So first and foremost, what is it? Simply, if one of the wheels of your business falls off, a business continuity plan will ensure that the business can still get to the garage to have the wheel fixed back on.
If you don't have a Business Continuity plan, here are some pointers to get you started.
Risk Assessment:
1. What threats face us?
2. What risks do these impose on us?
3. What can we do to minimise (or eliminate) these risks?
Once you have answers to the above you can start to put plans in place to counter the threats.
With regard to data management and archiving, you need to have a planning process in place.
1. People, who backs up?
2. Where can we back up if we loose our facility?
3. How do we operate if the primary process is lost?
4. How secure is our data?
5. Where is our data held?
6. How quickly can our data be returned?
At Safebox we can help guide you through the data and document element of Business Continuity.
We are here to ensure that if you did loose a wheel, we have the jacks and the team to get you back and running with the minimum of disruption.
http://www.thesafebox.co.uk/
Your information is our business.
Tuesday, 10 May 2011
Office bulldozers need not apply.
It's odd that we spend most of our waking hours at work and spen little time on our environment. We get home and spend a few hours talking, eating, watching TV, reading etc, then it's beddie byes and wow, before you know it you're back at work!
So if we spend so much time at work, why don't we spend time making the environment and space more user friendly and a nice place to spend 8+ hours in?
A cluttered office can not only feel that everything is closing in on you, you will maybe have restricted space to move and in the back of your mind you can picture a bulldozer just shoveling it all away.
There is a pain free option that doesn't involve heavy plant machinery rumbling through your office and contravening 1001 health and safety rules. The HSE are notoriously picky when it comes to office based JCB's. You can outsource all your archive files and boxes to a document storage facility and claim back some office space.
Not only will you have room to swing the hypothetical cat, you can rest assured that your files and paperwork are securely stored and still accessible when you need them.
You can then let all that pent up Feng Sushi flow effortlessly over your working space.
For help in how to and what to archive, speak to us for free advice and we promise, no JCB's!
http://www.thesafebox.co.uk/
Your information is our business.
So if we spend so much time at work, why don't we spend time making the environment and space more user friendly and a nice place to spend 8+ hours in?
A cluttered office can not only feel that everything is closing in on you, you will maybe have restricted space to move and in the back of your mind you can picture a bulldozer just shoveling it all away.
There is a pain free option that doesn't involve heavy plant machinery rumbling through your office and contravening 1001 health and safety rules. The HSE are notoriously picky when it comes to office based JCB's. You can outsource all your archive files and boxes to a document storage facility and claim back some office space.
Not only will you have room to swing the hypothetical cat, you can rest assured that your files and paperwork are securely stored and still accessible when you need them.
You can then let all that pent up Feng Sushi flow effortlessly over your working space.
For help in how to and what to archive, speak to us for free advice and we promise, no JCB's!
http://www.thesafebox.co.uk/
Your information is our business.
Friday, 6 May 2011
A sprint to the finish is a nice walk
We have been speaking to a government body for some time regarding an archiving project.
It seems that their existing supplier isn't quite hitting the mark with regard to the management of their archive. Specifically, they can't tell their client how many boxes they have, they can't deliver the right boxes back when requested, they can't find half the boxes that are requested and the invoicing is as wayward and accurate and a hedge fund managers forecast. All in all, pretty shambolic.
The client has been picking our brains regarding the correct methods for archive storage and how we can help them sort this mess out. It turns out that there are 5 other document management companies trying to talk to them but they only want to talk to us; why?
Well for one we kept in contact with them in a non pushy way, we offered help and advice without seeking anything in return, we took time to understand how they want the project to run and what impact this would have on their operation.
So now, 11 months down the line we are about to have our first initial meeting with them. We are still a long way off from the finishing post but we will get there step by step, holding the clients hand on the journey.
Why would we go to so much trouble? Well the answer is simple, customer service and understanding. Sometimes sales isn't about the quick sale and the fast buck, if a client thinks you will breeze in, do a half baked job, take the money and disappear, then your relationship isn't going to develop very far.
We can react very quickly and get an archive moving in a few hours if needs be but we would always go back to the client to gain an understanding of what they need and want.
We do exactly what it says on the tin but beware, not all tins have the right contents!
http://www.thesafebox.co.uk/
Your information is our business
It seems that their existing supplier isn't quite hitting the mark with regard to the management of their archive. Specifically, they can't tell their client how many boxes they have, they can't deliver the right boxes back when requested, they can't find half the boxes that are requested and the invoicing is as wayward and accurate and a hedge fund managers forecast. All in all, pretty shambolic.
The client has been picking our brains regarding the correct methods for archive storage and how we can help them sort this mess out. It turns out that there are 5 other document management companies trying to talk to them but they only want to talk to us; why?
Well for one we kept in contact with them in a non pushy way, we offered help and advice without seeking anything in return, we took time to understand how they want the project to run and what impact this would have on their operation.
So now, 11 months down the line we are about to have our first initial meeting with them. We are still a long way off from the finishing post but we will get there step by step, holding the clients hand on the journey.
Why would we go to so much trouble? Well the answer is simple, customer service and understanding. Sometimes sales isn't about the quick sale and the fast buck, if a client thinks you will breeze in, do a half baked job, take the money and disappear, then your relationship isn't going to develop very far.
We can react very quickly and get an archive moving in a few hours if needs be but we would always go back to the client to gain an understanding of what they need and want.
We do exactly what it says on the tin but beware, not all tins have the right contents!
http://www.thesafebox.co.uk/
Your information is our business
Thursday, 5 May 2011
Need to pack the nuptuals away
There is little doubt that we are in full wedding season now, Will's and Kate have done their thing and now brides everywhere are glad the focus is back on them!
I know of at least 5 couples getting hitched this year and I have a drawer full of gift lists awaiting my (generous but not too much choice.) These days most couples have lived together for a few years and have all the basics to furnish the home and exactly how many vases does one house need? This has resulted in couples requesting vouchers, good idea.
There is another reason for asking for vouchers, the traditional wedding list consists of cutlery, a toaster, another vase, bed linen, champagne flutes and the use once only sandwich toaster. You don't need all this stuff being duplicated by guests who really didn't want to be the ones who picked the sandwich toaster anyway.
If you did get mountains of gifts, they look great in your lounge all wrapped but where on earth is it all going to go?
Self storage is the ideal solution for the wanted and unwanted gifts as I'm fairly certain that you will not be awash with space, certainly not for another kettle, washing machine and BBQ set!
www.thesafebox.co.uk can take your storage needs away, with units from 10sq ft up to 150sq ft we will be able to accommodate you, regardless of how generous your guests are!
Need more space?
Have some of ours!
I know of at least 5 couples getting hitched this year and I have a drawer full of gift lists awaiting my (generous but not too much choice.) These days most couples have lived together for a few years and have all the basics to furnish the home and exactly how many vases does one house need? This has resulted in couples requesting vouchers, good idea.
There is another reason for asking for vouchers, the traditional wedding list consists of cutlery, a toaster, another vase, bed linen, champagne flutes and the use once only sandwich toaster. You don't need all this stuff being duplicated by guests who really didn't want to be the ones who picked the sandwich toaster anyway.
If you did get mountains of gifts, they look great in your lounge all wrapped but where on earth is it all going to go?
Self storage is the ideal solution for the wanted and unwanted gifts as I'm fairly certain that you will not be awash with space, certainly not for another kettle, washing machine and BBQ set!
www.thesafebox.co.uk can take your storage needs away, with units from 10sq ft up to 150sq ft we will be able to accommodate you, regardless of how generous your guests are!
Need more space?
Have some of ours!
Wednesday, 4 May 2011
What's in your archive? Oh, hold on I know this one!
We all like nice surprises, they're unexpected and generally bring a smile to the face.
So we managed to put a look of surprise and relief all over a clients face yesterday. How did we do this? We found things he didn't even know he had.
A meeting with our client a few weeks ago established that he was 99.99999% sure that his archive was up to scratch and that he knew excatly what he had.
So imagine his surprise when after collecting all his boxes and creating an ongoing management index, we had 4 boxes that didn't appear on his list, anywhere. Good job we found them as they were purchase invoices and HR documents; not the sort of things you want to loose. He was understandably delighted and relieved that we had found them.
Your archive, although it represents what has past, is essential to your operational future. It needs to be looked after and preferably be held off site at a secure location.
http://www.thesafebox.co.uk/ can help and guide you through best practice and the legal requirements of what needs to be kept and for how long.
So we managed to put a look of surprise and relief all over a clients face yesterday. How did we do this? We found things he didn't even know he had.
A meeting with our client a few weeks ago established that he was 99.99999% sure that his archive was up to scratch and that he knew excatly what he had.
So imagine his surprise when after collecting all his boxes and creating an ongoing management index, we had 4 boxes that didn't appear on his list, anywhere. Good job we found them as they were purchase invoices and HR documents; not the sort of things you want to loose. He was understandably delighted and relieved that we had found them.
Your archive, although it represents what has past, is essential to your operational future. It needs to be looked after and preferably be held off site at a secure location.
http://www.thesafebox.co.uk/ can help and guide you through best practice and the legal requirements of what needs to be kept and for how long.
Tuesday, 3 May 2011
Won't happen to me, I'd bet the business!
After 12 days out of the office I came back to a small mountain of post and back issues of the Cambridge News. The issue that particularly caught me was Monday 18th April, which reported that a factory on Dales Manor Business Park had sadly gone up in flames. There was a sense of ironry as the factory was a bottled water distribution centre.
However, the owner had been sitting at home watching Man U and received a call from one of his staff who had seen the smoke rising. They arrived on sight to find that the building was gutted.
I my mind this throws up not only the issue of lost stock, affect on staff, monetary loss and need to relocate to continue trading but a more immediate issue.
Where was all the company data, vehicle paperwork, customer details, supplier info and all data necessary to continue trading, stored. I sincerely hope it wasn't sitting in filing cabinets in the office, as they would now be soggy embers.
We all think it won't happen to us, I bet this local businessman thought the same thing, sadly it did and tomorrow it may be you.
Don't risk losing your business because you thought you would be ok, you never know what is going to happen or when.
http://www.thesafebox.co.uk/
Your document and data protector.
However, the owner had been sitting at home watching Man U and received a call from one of his staff who had seen the smoke rising. They arrived on sight to find that the building was gutted.
I my mind this throws up not only the issue of lost stock, affect on staff, monetary loss and need to relocate to continue trading but a more immediate issue.
Where was all the company data, vehicle paperwork, customer details, supplier info and all data necessary to continue trading, stored. I sincerely hope it wasn't sitting in filing cabinets in the office, as they would now be soggy embers.
We all think it won't happen to us, I bet this local businessman thought the same thing, sadly it did and tomorrow it may be you.
Don't risk losing your business because you thought you would be ok, you never know what is going to happen or when.
http://www.thesafebox.co.uk/
Your document and data protector.
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