How to Move Your Computer
Computers are indispensable tools at home. If you’re like many people, you probably value your PC so much and you’d want to move it with you to your new home. However, since they are fragile electronic equipment, they require special care when moving. Thus, no matter how cumbersome the task can be, you must not neglect preparing your computer for the move. Here are a few tips to guide you.
Obtain enough insurance. Ensure that your moving insurance will cover any possible damages to your PC. Generally, moving companies base their insurance on weight so if your computer weighs around 50 pounds and your things are insured at 30 cents/pound, then you will be getting 20 dollars. This may seem barely sufficient for fixing your machine or replacing valuable information and documents so you must have adequate insurance.
Make sure to copy all of your files. With the technology we have today, copying files has become very easy and convenient so it would be a relatively quick task for you. If you’re capable of burning a DVD, then you should resort to this option. Depending on the speed of burning, DVDs can usually hold 4.7GB. This would make adequate space for your files. However, if you can’t burn DVDs, then you can buy a flash drive or portable drive. Increase the storage space or buy a second flash drive, if you have plenty of graphic intensive files. Don’t forget to put your flash drives in a safe place since they are small and easy to lose. You may want to buy a small lock box where you can store your flash drive or DVD, along with any software disks and instruction manuals.
Find the original box of your computer set. This should provide the best protection for the machine. After all, that’s the purpose it serves for. However, if you’ve already lost or used those boxes, then your next option would be to contact a specialty box company and ask for electronic or computer boxes. Ask for Styrofoam inserts as well to ensure that the computer parts are kept safe. The essential thing here is to protect your computer, particularly the hard drive, from bumps and damages. Additionally, the monitor is fragile so you may also want to buy a monitor box.
Check your computer thoroughly and be sure to remove any disk from the drives.
Be sure to turn the power off of the box and the monitor first before taking the computer apart. Then, disconnect it from the power source.
If this is your first time to dismantle a computer, you can label the cords before you unplug them. Write the purpose of the plug and where you should plug it in the box, on a piece of masking tape. Most computers nowadays have tiny images and a color-coded system for easier assembly.
After labeling everything, you can now unplug the cords from both the monitor and the box. Wind the cords up, tie them and them put them in a plastic bag or storage container. Keep them with your PC.
After packing up your computer and sealing the boxes, don’t forget to mark the boxes correctly. Indicate that the item is fragile and write down the contents.
Repeat the process when packing your other computer equipment such as printer and scanner. Make sure that each item is secured and nothing shifts during transit.
If there is enough space in your car, it would be good to take the machine with you. Just be sure to park your vehicle in a safe area when staying overnight at a hotel. You can also take it with you in the suite, for safety purposes.
Now that you know how to pack that fragile computer, you can be assured that it will be moved safely to your new home.
If you are searching for the best Chicago office movers, look no further than New City Moving! We safely move thousands of computers for our clients each year!
Business and Office Move Checklist – 15 Important Tasks to Do When Moving
Moving preparations for office and business moves are sometimes much more complicated than household moves. The key to a successful move is preparing well and also, making sure that everything included in your list is complete and essential. Here’s a brief checklist to guide you in moving your office:
1. Decide a specific time frame for the preparation process and moving schedule
2. To let suppliers, customers and other related people know about the move, be sure to set up a communications plan.
3. Create a full list of tasks that need to be done and assign these to individuals
4. If you’re moving a bigger company, come up with a moving committee that will help in organizing the move and keeping the move on track
5. Make sure to inform all employees and let them get involved in the moving process. They should know their respective roles, such as packing their own office or cubicle.
6. Decide on the new look and set-up of your office. You should know early where offices will be situated and which places the equipment should be installed
7. Compare moving quotes from several companies. Don’t forget to check references and book your selected movers.
8. Call your present service providers to let them know about the move. Ensure that your new providers know about the exact installation dates including postal service, Internet access, hydro, fax, telephone lines, etc.
9. If you need special technical assistance for moving and installing equipment like computer network and photocopier, ensure that you book these ahead in time so that the required service is available on your moving day.
10. Establish a concrete packing schedule. Determine which things should be packed in advance and which ones should get packed last.
11. Buy all necessary moving-related things such as packing supplies and appropriate boxes.
12. Give clear packing instructions to your employees or to professional packers. Ensure that each and every box is packed properly and labeled with corresponding information like content, importance, and office location.
13. Prepare furniture for the moving process. Label every item to make sure they are moved to the right area of the new space. You can label or number areas of your new office space on a blueprint map. Provide the movers with a copy of this map so they know the right places for things, including packed boxes.
14. Double-check if all equipment have been prepared well for moving and removable parts are also packed and labeled. If necessary, remove any liquids. However, if you’re not familiar with the right procedure of packing equipment, you can opt to hire a technical specialist or contact the manufacturer of the equipment for some packing advice.
15. To avoid extra fees, ask beforehand where the moving truck can possibly park for loading at the old office location and similarly, where it can unload at the new place. Inform businesses nearby about your move, especially if you’ll have to block entrances or take more parking spaces.
If you are looking for professional Chicago Office Movers, give New City Moving a call at 800-733-6644!
Moving Tips for Employees – Packing Your Cubicle or Office
If your company is about to move, you’re probably required to pack up your own cubicle space or office, including the filing cabinet, desk and personal stuff. Here are some tips to help you prepare for the move so your things don’t get lost along the way.
Ask your boss if you’re not sure about anything. – You should know if there are any restrictions or guidelines about which things are allowed to be moved. You may also want to know about plans for new furnishings and what these are, including drawer space and desk size. Moreover, find out about how to dispose of unwanted furniture and unwanted documents. Knowing the rules before starting to pack is very important. Ask for the new office’s blueprint, if possible. This will help you decide if things could fit in the new office and whether you’ll need additional stuff.
Pack the filing cabinet. – You should sort your filing cabinet and clear out any clutter. This is the first place to begin and it’s an enormous task that may require a lot of time to accomplish. Ask your employer what documents are not needed in the space and also ask which ones can be recycled or shredded. Once you’ve determined what stuff you should take with you, go through the files, and then separate them into different piles.
Files and folders that need to be moved should be arranged in order. You may do so numerically or alphabetically in a file specific box. Select a box of appropriate size so the folders and its contents don’t get shuffled during transit.
Don’t forget to mark the box properly with its destination, your name, and any special instructions or warning. For easier unpacking, you may want to assign a number to indicate which ones should be unpacked first.
Pack your desk. – Empty all drawers and sort through supplies such as paperclips, notepads, etc. You can keep some of them and donate the rest to a charity or school. Take note, you should only bring what you need. You can make better decisions of which stuff should stay and which ones should be given away if your employer has a clear idea of what your new office will look like and its size. Ask your employer about what should be done with extra supplies or furnishings.
Pack equipment. – Contact the person who supervises the move and ask if you should be the one to back up your computer and prepare equipment for the move. Ensure that the equipment to be moved will be packed properly.
Pack personal items. – You should know how much space your new office will have and what it will look like so you can aptly decide which personal items should be taken with you. Personal items like framed posters, pictures, etc. might not be accommodated in the new space if there is limited wall space.
With these tips in mind, you can pack your office well and relocate effectively. Make sure to select the best Chicago Office Movers like New City Moving when making your next move!
Planning Your Business Move Properly
If you have been assigned the task of moving your company office, then you probably need to know how to plan the move well for a successful moving process. Considering that moving an office is a complex process, you may need extra help from colleagues (by creating a committee) or professional Chicago office movers. The key to a great move is building reliable alliances that can help in motivating and coordinating the rest of your office staff. To help you get started on your business move, here are a few basic steps:
Plan the Move
Determine a time frame for your move by creating a time-line which specifies all the important stages of the moving process. You may have to discuss this with your other moving team members or with the supervisors to make sure that it’s feasible. If you’re moving a small office, you may need at least three months for preparing while for a medium to large office, you may need at least six or eight months. The important point to remember here is to start as early as you can.
Next, gather all necessary information about the new space. Try to get some blue prints or floor layout to help you identify significant components like storage space and electrical outlets; most importantly, it will help you decide on the layout of the new office. Moreover, having a general layout plan for your present space helps in comparing the two and determining if there are areas in your current office that do not work well. You can resolve such layout issues in your new space.
Try to create a list of possible problems with the new space like less storage area or perhaps a smaller reception area. If walls have to be painted or constructed, you may have to hire carpenters/painters. This may have been resolved before the acquisition of the new space but just ensure that no additional cosmetic changes or construction need to be finished before the move.
Gather Your Team
If you’re moving a medium to large office, try to ask for volunteers or appoint someone from every division or department to handle and coordinate their respective areas. You may assign this to the manager or supervisor of the department who can make sure that every employee packs their desk and items responsibly. On the other hand, if you’re moving a smaller office, you may have to work on your own. Find a few key people who can help you to coordinate the move.
Your team can help identify some issues with the old space in order to come up with probable solutions for the new office. Through this, you can incorporate other people’s viewpoints and reach a consensus on the move.
Hold Regular Meetings
Schedule regular meetings and be sure to notify employees of the meeting details. Keeping everybody informed is very important to avoid too much worries or concerns, since moving is definitely a stressful process.
Assess Your Budget
It’s highly necessary to identify costs before hiring movers or even packing boxes, especially if you have a specific budget for the move. Get free quotes from us at New City Moving and we’ll give you the most accurate estimates possible to help you out.
Delegate Tasks
After creating a moving committee, have them make a list of tasks that need to be done and ensure that these tasks are incorporated to the time line you’ve made. Specialty service providers may be needed for the move. Ask department supervisors or managers of what is required from their places. All areas should be covered, including the lobby, reception area, and storage areas.
Hiring the right Chicago movers is one of the most critical tasks in a moving process. There are lots of moving companies available specializing in office or business moves. Just don’t forget to research properly and ask questions before allowing the company to visit your office to assess the move. Make sure that your selected moving company is completely reliable and reasonable in pricing. You can assign this task to a few people, each contacting specific Chicago moving companies and then comparing information. Contact us at New City Moving to get the best quotes from different companies.
Tips for Moving your Chicago Office
Moving an office can be challenging, which is why you need a professional Chicago moving company to help you. However, there are some tasks that you can complete on your end to help the move go as smooth as possible. Besides, time is money in your business, so any loss of manpower and of time can be rather expensive.
So first, you must prepare for the Chicago movers to come in and execute the move. You can do this by starting the process approximately 3 months before the move. You need this advanced planning because you have to ensure that business keeps going as the move is executed.
Make yourself familiar with the new location so that you know exactly how everything is going to be set up. That way you know where to tell our Chicago office movers to place everything.
Second, and one month prior to the move, you want to send your employees, landlords, renters, and us your moving details. Our movers should know where each piece of furniture that needs moved is located. A good way to tell where each piece should go in the new place is by labeling the furniture with the floor the piece should go to.
Third, and on moving day, have supervisors instruct employees as to how the move is going to be executed and how to continue conducting business. When each employee must leave their job, it is important that they are back on the job in no time.
Note that it is also the job of your Chicago Office Movers to make sure all instructions are followed, your office furniture and equipment arrives safely, and that business is not disrupted.
How Moving Your Office Affects Your Employees
Companies move for a number of reasons. Those reasons can include downsizing, expansion, cheaper rent, or acquiring a location that is closer to customers. During this process, it is important to keep employees informed and a part of the process. This is because the move can be very stressful for employees and they have a job to do without any added stress. Luckily, your Chicago movers will be able to take care of many of the tasks involved in the move that will make the move easier in many areas.
Here are ways you can make the move as stress-free as possible while keeping your employees in the know:
#1 Tell employees where the new office is located. This allows them to know what sort of changes will occur in their daily commute.
#2 If an issue affects a specific employee, then the issue needs to be brought to that employee’s attention as soon as possible. Sometimes a conflict can interfere with the employee’s employment, so they need time to evaluate the situation and create new options for themselves.
#3 If there are employees affected by a longer commute, it may help to give those employees a more flexible schedule if the business’s needs will allow for this.
#4 Parking tends to be an issue amongst employees, so they will need to know if their parking is free or if they must pay for their parking. Let them know if parking will be an issue on the day of the move because the Chicago moving company will need somewhere to park close to the business.
#5 Make sure the employees are involved in the move as much as possible by communicating to them and allowing them to provide ideas and feedback throughout the move. The opinions of your employees are very important, especially when you want to keep them happy.
So as soon as you call your Chicago moving services, let your employees know what is happening. That way the move can be as smooth as possible without causing any damage to your business.
Business and Office Moves? Use this checklist!
Business and office moves can seem rather complicated, but they don’t need to be when you have a qualified Chicago moving company helping in the move.
Here is a checklist that you can use to make the move easier for you and your Chicago movers, but it is more important that the move is as stress-free as possible for you:
#1 Determine your time frame and base your schedule off of that.
#2 Create a plan to let your employees, customers, vendors, and other important parties know of the move.
#3 Make a list of tasks and assign them to the employees.
#4 If you are a large company, set up a moving committee to keep the move on track.
#5 Arrange for employees to pack their own office or cubicle.
#6 Know ahead of time where everything will be placed in the new office.
#7 Book your Chicago moving services.
#8 Establish a packing schedule and buy packing supplies.
#9 Prepare office furniture for moving.
#10 Prepare office equipment for moving.
#11 Make arrangements for moving truck parking ahead of time to avoid any issues with parking. It is important that the movers are as close as possible to the business to cut down on moving time and to ensure that heavy items do not have to be moved extremely far.
New City Moving can complete business moves with the utmost care and make sure that everything is placed correctly. It is important in a move that the business be able to continue to conduct business with minimal interruption. As a matter of fact, it is ideal that interruption not take place at all. This is very possible when the right strategy is in place, which can include the time of day in which the move takes place and how the move is phased.
Moving Tips to Make Office Moving Easier
Moving an office can be quite the complicated task. The goal is to be able to move as quickly and efficiently as possible while ensuring that business is not disrupted. This involves a very comprehensive plan between you and your Chicago office movers.
Chicago office movers have the experience to move office equipment while working around your employees. As far as preparation for the move goes, you must:
#1 Gather important paperwork
#2 Talk to your Chicago office movers to construct a plan that involves phasing the move to where departments move in phases so that that department does not completely shut down during the move
#3 Share that plan with your employees in a meeting
Once you take the proper precautions, the process moves as smooth as possible. You can also set aside a day in which your employees are designated a certain time slot to pack their office supplies prior to the arrival of the Chicago office movers. This is so that everyone is ready to go once their offices are moved and results in a quicker transition.
You can also assign certain employees to packing other parts of the business so that all the Office Moving Company need to do once they arrive is pack the boxes, office furniture, and other items and then unload them at the new location.
No matter how organized you are, things may seem chaotic to you, but not as chaotic to your employees. The calmer that you are able to keep your employees, the better it is for your bottom line. You want to keep business running as usual so that your moving doesn’t cost you in the way of lost production. And when you use experienced New City Moving, you are dealing with individuals who are very organized and experienced in working quietly around your employees.
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