10+ Moving Tips from Office Movers for Moving Your Business

Congratulations, you’re moving to a new office!  Moving your business can be quite a major project… but it does not have to be a stressful one. With the right planning, organisation and advice, you can ensure that moving day is an exciting and fun experience.

Here are some tips from our experienced team of commercial and office movers to ensure that moving your business goes as smoothly as possible.

PS If you need some tips on moving home instead, visit our article “30+ Useful House Moving Tips to Ensure Stress-Free Move in Singapore“.

1) Appoint a Move Manager

office relocation manager

Someone needs to be in charge of the move and to be the main point of contact for the various parties involved. This mantle is usually taken up by the administrative assistant or office manager. Larger companies may want to assign someone from each department or section to coordinate the move from within that department.

2) Work with the IT Team Early

inform IT department early

Have a discussion about your relocation project with your IT team at least three months in advance. They will require more time to back up data, change subscription details and have discussions with their own vendors to ensure that all your IT services are properly taken care of.

You do not want to reach your new office and find that your phone lines are down and your Internet is not yet connected.

3) Properly Schedule Client Meetings & Deadlines

Let your clients know in advance when you will be moving your business and don’t schedule any meetings during the week. Your new office is most likely going to be messy and disorganised and you do not want your clients to see your brand in that state.

For the first few months, remind your colleagues to inform each person who is coming to your new office that your address has changed. Do not take it for granted that they already know. You do not want an important client showing up at your old office space instead.

Try to plan your move in a period where there are no major deadlines due. You do not want your sales team rushing for a tender submission while your moving company is carrying their computers and desks out the door.

4) Work with Professional Commercial Movers

professional office movers singapore

If you’re moving your house, it may be reasonable to handle the move yourself by roping in friends and family to help out, especially if you do not have much furniture to begin with.

For business relocation projects, it would be best to work with a professional moving company in Singapore. Most company employees have little training, desire or interest in moving corporate furniture and valuables. Things can easily get damaged and/or missing, and sometimes you don’t notice it until months after the move.

Most company employees do not enjoy the office moving process, and the experience may breed resentment. It also takes your colleagues’ time away from critical day-to-day business operations.

If you need some tips on how to hire a professional office mover, head over to our article, “8 Tips on Choosing an Office Moving Company in Singapore“.

5) Understand the Quote From Your Office Movers

office moving quote

It is critical that you have a proper discussion with your potential office movers before confirming the engagement.

You need to ensure that your office moving company completely understands your moving requirements and that the quote you receive sufficiently addresses each of those requirements.

Is packing included? How about the packing materials? Will they move that large filing cabinet? How many people will the moving company bring? How many trucks and lorries then?

While a more expensive quote does not necessarily mean that you will receive better service, be wary if you receive a moving quote that is too cheap. You do not want them to move your boxes to the ground floor, then start bringing out the hidden charges that you were not aware of.

6) Discuss Moving Your Bulky Items Such as Safes & Large Cabinets

Do not assume that your quote covers the moving of all the furniture in your office. Some bulky items such as safes, pianos or large cabinets require special training and equipment that not all moving companies possess. Explicitly discuss these with your commercial moving company. Ensure they know what is required of them both at your current office and at your new office space.

7) Inform Building Management About Your Move

Each office building will have its own rules with regards to moving in and out of the office space. Check with your building management to ensure that all your bases are covered. Some offices may require a deposit, while other restrict movement during certain days or time of the day. You will need to check with both your current office building and the new office space that you will be moving in to.

8) Inform Customers & Suppliers

Let your customers and suppliers know your new address at least a week in advance of the move. They may require some time to update your details in their database or management systems.

9) Changes Address on Your Website & Online Portals

In the modern day and age, your online assets are just as important as those in real life. Do not forget to change the address on your website and other online properties such as Facebook, Google My Business or local business directories. If you have hired a professional digital marketing agency, inform them of your impending move in advance so that they can properly update your new details.

10) Label & Number Your Boxes

Ensure that each box is clearly labelled and numbered. This will help you and your team get set up faster when you arrive at your new office. It also makes it very clear if a box goes missing during the move. You might also want to consider assigning a number to each person’s workstation to ensure that everything goes back to its original place in your new office. Some of our moving clients have created a map or floor plan of their new office, with details clearly labelled on each box to inform where exactly these boxes should be placed in the new office.

11) Arrange for Proper Furniture Disposal

If you’re not bringing your desks, chairs or workstations with you then you will need to arrange proper disposal for your unwanted office furniture.

Alternatively, you can have a discussion with your current landlord to see if the new tenant wants your old furniture. If they do, then you can simply leave it behind. If they do not, then you will need to arrange for furniture disposal services in Singapore to ensure your office furniture is removed responsibly and ethically.

But before that…

12) But Check with Accounting Before Throwing Things Away

office moving costs

Don’t anyhow throw away things hor!

Check with your accountant or finance team if you get rid of certain items first. Larger items such as computers or workstations need to be properly accounted for in their finance reports before they can be disposed of. You do not want IRAS chasing after your company for any discrepancies here.

13) Move Non-Essentials First

Moving offices is disruptive to day-to-day operations and you want to minimise downtime as much as possible. Move your non-essential furniture first so that your colleagues can continue with their work up until the big moving day. Leave the critical items such as computers or printers until moving day itself.

14) Ensure Your Data is Properly Secured at All Times

Data is the lifeblood of any business in the modern age. You need to ensure that your IT team has done all the necessary backups (both onsite and offsite) prior to the move. Do not place all your backups in one place. Your IT team may already have both physical backups and backups in the cloud. If they do not, now would be a good time to ensure that your data backup strategy adheres to current best practices.

You need to be particularly careful with regards to external hard drives. They have moving parts that can easily be damaged when moving from one place to another. Damaged drives will cause data corruption.

You need to file a police report in a timely manner in the event that you discover that data has been stolen or improperly accessed during the move. This is even more so if you deal with sensitive personal data, considering all the high profile data breaches in Singapore recently.

15) Emphasise Safety First

office movers singapore safety officers

Never take safety for granted. This message needs to be repeated over and over again during moving day. Depending on how much furniture needs to be moved, some companies may even assign a safety officer to ensure that everyone follows safety rules during the office move.

We know that some employees may just want to help, but they should leave the moving of heavy printers and desks to professional office movers. You also want to ensure that a first aid kit is on hand in case of minor accidents.

16) Celebrate Your New Office Space!

celebrate successful office relocation project

Have a party in your new office! For most companies, moving to a new office signals more exciting times for the company so it’s something that you want to celebrate with your colleagues. Have snacks and drinks, take photos and just enjoy yourself after a hard day’s work.

Enjoyed These Tips from Our Office Movers?

We hope you enjoyed these tips that our experienced office movers have for you!

If you need professional moving services that are not too costly, contact our team and we can arrange a site visit and quote for your office move.

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