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January 2008: In this issue

1. RM Resource: Paper Based File Retrieval Situation Assessment »
   
   
2. Case Study: Government Agency Gets Better Information Access »
   
   
3. Featured Product: File Storage - Save Space with High Density Mobile Shelving »
   
   
4. News: How Law Firms are Handling the Era of E-discovery »
   
   
5. News: Good RM - It's all in the Attitude »

Dear Records Manager,

If you've ever had the experience of not being able to find a file, you know how frustrating it can be. But beyond the frustration is the fact that if your people can't get the information they need when they need it, it can cost your business both time and money. To help you ensure your filing system is operating at maximum efficiency, we've developed a Paper Based File Retrieval Situation Assessment tool which you can download for free. This tool will highlight potential problems and their causes, and is a great starting point for anyone who feels their filing system could be better.

We've also got a great case study on how TAB helped Indian and Northern Affairs Canada's Litigation Management Resolutions Branch improve their filing system. Their old cabinets and shelving couldn't handle the thousands of records they associated with the litigation cases they were involved in. As a result, they were experiencing storage and retrieval problems that were costing them both time and money. TAB stepped in, and got them the storage equipment, layout and filing system they needed to be more effective.

Your feedback is important to us, so if you have any thoughts on this or any other issue, please let us know!

Regards,

TAB

1. RM Resource: Paper Based File Retrieval Situation Assessment

If you can't find the information you need right away, then you aren't managing your records, your records are managing you!

If your organization is struggling with lost files or long file retrieval times, then you can diagnose your issues with the help of TAB's file retrieval needs assessment. We've worked with hundreds of organizations over the past 50 years to help them solve their file retrieval problems, and we've used that experience to develop this useful tool.

Answering these questions will help you identify the root causes of any retrieval challenges you may be facing, and get you thinking about potential solutions and what those might look like for your organization.

You can walk through this diagnostic tool on your own - or call one of our records management experts to help.

Download this invaluable resource here »

2. Case Study: Government Agency Gets Better Information Access

The Organization

Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, the agency responsible for meeting the Canadian government's constitutional, treaty, political, and legal responsibilities to First Nations, Inuit and Northern communities.

The Challenge: An Overflowing Records Room

File storage and retrieval had become a difficult challenge for Indian and Northern Affairs Canada's Litigation Management Resolutions Branch, located in Vancouver, British Columbia. The old storage system - a combination of bookshelves and pull-out filing cabinets - could no longer adequately contain the thousands of file folders, binders and boxes of records that project managers and contract researchers needed to access as they worked on litigation cases pertaining to Indian and Northern affairs.

"We were overflowing," recalls Madeleine Reimer, the branch's manager of contracts and administration. "We would get so much material in that they would end up on the floor and blocking the aisles between the bookshelves."

A Waste of Time and Money

The lack of storage space at the Litigation Management Resolutions Branch resulted in delays locating and retrieving the litigation files and document collections project managers and researchers needed, says Reimer.

"Files and document collections weren't always where they were supposed to be," says Reimer, "because we simply didn't have enough room to put everything in the right place."

Apart from making it difficult for Litigation Management Resolutions Branch staff to file documents in their appropriate spots, the lack of space left little room in the records area for researchers to review documents.

For Indian and Northern Affairs, the time wasted looking for files translated directly into higher costs since most of the agency's researchers were contract workers who charged by the hour, says Reimer. "The old system was a great time and money waster," she says.

Security and Safety Risks

In addition to not having enough room for all the branch's records, the storage design also did not allow the branch to keep its sensitive litigation files in a secure, separate area. Consequently, the branch's commissionaire would have to accompany anyone who came into the room, including service people such as telephone or computer repair personnel.

The overflow of boxes and file folders onto floors and aisles also presented a potential danger in case of emergencies such as fires or earthquakes, says Reimer.

TAB Presents a Solution

Indian and Northern Affairs Canada's Litigation Management Resolutions Branch asked TAB to create a solution that would address its growing needs today and in the future. TAB regional sales manager Scott Larson proposed the following changes:

• Replace existing five-tier bookshelves with eight-tier TAB-TRAC high-density mobile shelving configured to hold a mix of boxes, binders and folders. These mobile shelves, which would move on tracks set into a sub-floor, would give Reimer's staff the ability to push the carriages holding the shelves together when not in use, thus reducing the need for aisle space between each bookshelf.
  
  
• Convert 3,500 records from pocket file folders - which always need to be viewed at eye level - to end-tab folders. This would allow the litigation management and resolutions branch to store its files higher and maximize use of vertical space.
  
  
• Use freed-up floor space to create work stations where researchers can sit down and review files.
  
  
• Secure litigation files by placing them in a section of the mobile system accessible only to the file clerk and a few other authorized personnel.
  
  
• Create a holding space for incoming files which need to photocopied or scanned, or closed and placed in archives.

Putting the Proposal into Action

TAB put its proposal into action quickly, managing the entire project from dismantling old cabinets to construction, shelving installation, and file folder conversion. Because a mobile sub-floor needed to be built, TAB staff had to move all files to another floor in the building.

"During this time, we had to make sure the litigation files were kept secure," says Larson. "We engaged the commissionaire to look after these critical files full-time."

Larson says the work was planned so as not to impede workflow and access to files. TAB completed the project, which cost $120,000, in five days.

"We project-managed everything from start to finish," says Larson. "That's what a lot of clients appreciate about TAB - our ability to deliver a wholesale change with minimal disruption to their workplace."

'The most beautiful system I've seen'

With its new TAB mobile system in place, the Litigation Management Resolutions Branch at Indian and Northern Affairs Canada now has ample shelving space to house all its files plus room to accommodate the steady influx of new documents.

"We also designed the system with extra aisle space to allow the branch to add more carriages in the future," says Larson. "In fact, they've already added one more carriage since the original installation."

Now that there's a space for everything, retrieving files is no longer the challenge it used to be, says Reimer. The records room now has space for one work station, a table for document review, a computer, plus a small library of books.

"We're now a one-stop shop and productivity has definitely improved," says Reimer. "Researchers can now go into the room, get the information they need, review it and put it back so it's there whenever they need it."

TAB's solution has also increased safety and file security at the branch, says Reimer.

"Those boxes on the floors and walkways are all gone - everything is on the shelves now," she says. "The litigation files are also in their own section, which is locked down in an area just outside the file clerk's enclave."

From a crowded, inefficient, and potentially hazardous storage system, the records room at Indian and Northern Affairs Canada's Litigation Management Resolutions Branch has now been transformed into what Reimer describes as "the most beautiful system I've seen in my life."

"It is definitely a massive improvement for us," she says. "To have something that works and looks beautiful just makes all the difference in the world, and everybody is so happy with the product."

If you would like to know more about how TAB can help you be more efficient by deploying better file storage solutions, please contact us.

3. Featured Product: File Storage - Save Space with High Density Mobile Shelving

As featured in this month's case study, TAB-TRAC, is the flexible high-density mobile storage solution that compacts so you can increase storage capacity while using less space. It is the ideal solution where space is at a premium. Double-faced shelving is arranged in a "T" intersection to the wall, allowing you to create aisles only when and where you need them, eliminating the need for fixed aisles.

Available in manual and mechanical-assist options, this sturdy system is designed for life. TAB-TRAC can be configured to your exact specifications, and comes in a complete range of design possibilities to match your environment. TAB-TRAC is an ideal solution for filing environments where high capacity, low access and secure storage are required.

To learn more about TAB-TRAC, please contact your TAB sales representative at 1-800-417-8010 or complete our response form.

4. News: How Law Firms are Handling the Era of E-discovery

With the amendments to the U.S. federal rules for e-discovery just over a year old, law firms are having to adjust to the reality that most business and personal communications-all potential evidence in litigation-originate and are transmitted by computer. To deal with this reality, many firms are going high tech, or hiring outside vendors, to gather potential discovery materials. From using the "Wayback Machine" to deep data mining, the discovery process is changing, and because of this the costs for those involved in litigation and e-discovery continues to climb.

5. News: Good RM - It's all in the Attitude

Is having the right attitude necessary for good RM? A recent article from IT-Management.com makes the point that it is often external factors that push organizations to define and implement a records management policy. Being pushed creates negative connotations-"we need to do this or else"- putting everyone involved in the wrong frame of mind for formulating and implementing policy. Instead, because the focus and emphasis should be on where the policy can and should deliver benefits, rather than what limitations or obstructions it will impose, any RM policy formulation should start with a good attitude.

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