Essential Guide to Business Storage — From Tool Storage to Record Management

Business storage options can be the difference between a company that maximizes opportunity and one where production is hindered. You operate in a dynamic environment. Employees depend on free movement in an uncluttered setting for effectiveness and morale, and so do you.

Don’t let avoidable obstacles get in your way. Most of them can be dealt with through off-site storage. Here’s your essential guide to declutter a workspace.

Equipment Storage: Getting Unneeded Gear Somewhere Safe

Companies need their tools to be safe year-round. However, some equipment is only used seasonally. Many kinds of businesses are in this situation. Let’s use one trade to represent a broader business problem:

A Landscaper’s Dilemma

Your Canadian landscaping business is not cutting lawns year-round. For three to five months of the year, your mowers aren’t in use.

As winter approaches, your snow blowers are activated. Mowers need to be moved to accommodate new on-site traffic demands. Without a well-organized alternate place to store your gear, this situation can cause confusion and delays.

Non-employees watch equipment being moved around your lot. This activity attracts unwanted attention. Security systems that meet your requirements are prohibitively expensive.

Plus, you must rely on staff members to be fully reliable about locking and unlocking access to your storage areas. Maintaining security is probably not what they’re trained to do.

Furthermore, these workers are forced to maneuver around dormant gear to get to the equipment that’s in season. This scenario is a commercial nightmare, as is losing your tools to thieves.

A Landscaper’s Solution

Move your inactive assets off-site. They should be somewhere secure, monitored and temperature controlled, so your gear remains in good shape when it’s needed. Crooks may grumble but your staff will thank you.

Move Excess Documentation

Whether documents are a primary or secondary aspect of your business, they may pile up at the office and become an unwelcome hazard.

Canada’s government is very particular about what records your company must keep. Mandatory corporate financial statements alone include:

• Bank deposit slips
• Credit card bills
• Travel expense records
• Vehicle expense records
• Invoices
• Daily income and expense statements
• Pay stubs
• Tax records

These records must be kept for six or seven years, but they don’t have to be stored at the office. The security of your business archives can be maintained elsewhere.

Of course, there are many additional types of sensitive documents that must be preserved for as long as the law or other reasons dictate. Letting them clutter your workspace is unnecessary. The solution is a professional off-site storage facility.

Let Maple Leaf Self Storage Store Your Business Assets and Records!

We have multiple locations in Vancouver and Calgary, with professional staff waiting to help fulfill all your business storage needs. You’ll have access to your assets every day of the year. Our sites include video surveillance and climate control. You can even pay your bill online for convenience. Contact us for a free quote today!