Facility operations
Originally presented by: Chris Pearson, Vanguard Archives
 Organizing the facility
o Location of staging area
o Location of computer stations
 Shipping & receiving
 Admin
o Shelving configuration
 How many cartons high?
 How many cartons deep?
 Aisle widths
o Organization of media types
 Large cartons
 Small cartons
 Irregularly-sized cartons
 Setting up new customers
o Signed contracts (Exhibit A)
o Assignment of customer numbers
o Authorizations
 Authorized users (Exhibit B)
 Authorized destroyers (Exhibit C)
o Welcome package
 Barcodes
 Transmittal sheets (Exhibit D)
 Instructions on how to pack/label cartons (Exhibit E)
 Instructions on how to use online inventory system (Exhibit F)
 Workflow – controlling carton/file inventory and service activities (Exhibit G)
o Dispatch
 Time of day to pull cartons and files
 Barcoding and wrapping of files (ideally, double check)
 Scanning cartons and files
 Checking “picklists”
 Organizing routes
 Consolidating orders on certain days
 Routing & trip tickets (Exhibit H)
o Driver-designed routes
o Software routing system
o Poor-man’s routing system (Exhibit I)
 GPS
 Item delivery
 Scanning cartons and files at client site (optional)
 Driver and customer signature (Exhibit J)
o Intake of cartons and files
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Pickup at client site
 Physical access
o Dock access important for large pickups
o Insurance certificates
o Hand trucks / Trolleys / Pallet Jacks
 What type of vehicle to use?
o Cars
o Vans
o Box trucks
o Semi-trailers
 Securing vehicles during delivery
o Locks
 Reinforcing locks for vans
 Padlocks for box trucks
o Leaving scanners & printers in vehicles
 Driver scanning (optional, Exhibit K)
 Manual Carton count (Exhibit L)
 Driver and customer signature (Exhibit L)
Receiving
 Unloading trucks (AM or PM?)
 Scanning to skid locations for cartons to show all cartons
received at dock (Exhibit M)
 Scanning to “staging” for files
 Physical count by receiving clerk (Exhibit N)
Data entry (for new cartons and files)
 Online orders
 Phone, fax or email orders
o Ask caller if cartons are barcoded and if there are
transfer sheets
o What if cartons arrive with no barcodes or transfer
sheets?
o Data entry double check
o Email data entry to client (Exibit O)
Putting cartons and files to shelves
 Scanning to shelf locations or cartons (Exhibit P)
 Rational placement of cartons on shelves
o By client
o Active v. inactive
 What happens if refile causes carton to overflow?
 What happens if refile goes into a carton that is not in
warehouse? (Exhibit Q)
Problems to watch out for
 Bad reads of barcodes
 Boxes not scanned at appropriate times in receiving process
 Client holds box back at last minute
 Double-barcoded boxes
 Same barcode submitted twice (don’t do barcode reprints)
 Reconciliation of incoming cartons to catch errors (Exhibit R)
o Cartons requested for destruction (Exhibit S)
 Initial client request received
 By letter, email or fax
 Requested by barcode or by client box number
 Destruction letter and list generated for client confirmation
(Exhibit T)
 Box listing
 Reconciliation of number of cartons on initial request v.
number of cartons on confirmation list
 Put double check responsibility back on client
 Client confirmation received
 Boxes pulled from shelf
 How soon after client signs off?
 When does billing stop?
 Double check / reconciliation to ensure accuracy of boxes being
destroyed
 Ship out for shredding – keep track of bill of lading
 Match destruction certificate for bill of lading