I first got into commercial moving service 11 years ago and after working for 18 months, I got busy with school. Aside from school, I also got busy with frisbee and digital media. However, about a year ago, I came back in a part-time role and it’s actually a really fun, active job. Other than driving from job to job, there’s no sitting – it’s a very physical job – and since every day is a different job, it’s a very dynamic job.
Since our job requires pushing, lifting, stacking and maneuvering furniture, electronics, bins and boxes, when something doesn’t work or is difficult, we notice it immediately. There are 3 main things that I’ve noticed as an office mover that would be helpful to other movers, manufacturers and any office worker who is affected by the lessons.
Photocopiers have really cheap wheels – although we often move photocopiers that cost upwards of $40,000, the wheels are incredibly cheap and will very frequently break, simply from being pushed over a doorjam or getting caught on an uneven surface. To all photocopier manufacturers – invest in higher quality wheels! It’s so easy to do and will make it much easier and safer when moving big expensive photocopiers.
Not all doorways are the same height or width – I’m sure this has to do with architecture, building codes, door manufacturers, yadda yadda yadda…but honestly it would be nice if doorways were wide enough and tall enough to fit furniture. Same goes for elevators. I get that furniture is typically built in place but moving is such a common occurrence that it would be really nice to make the openings big enough to fit furniture that has been built.
Make sure there is always a ramp or a flat entrance – so many times when we do a move, a building will have a couple of stairs at the entrance without a ramp. I’m not sure of the accessibility building codes, but for moving and delivery, it’s really rough when you have stairs. It’s a great workout doing stair carries but it increases the risk for damages and injuries. The worst I’ve seen is a back door that was offset from the hallway it entered into and also has a step rather than being flat. That was a brutal move!