Moving an enterprise may be considerably more stressful than moving your own home and family. During the move of your business you may not have full control over many of the factors involved.

You need to leave at least 3 months preparation time and will probably need to follow guidelines that are set by the company. As the moving of an enterprise is not an everyday event most people are completely unfamiliar and unprepared for a corporate move. Being unsure of what is required in an office move can result in huge headaches and high stress levels. Therefore following a guide can give organisers control which will help to alleviate the pressure of the situation.

Preparation is vital in organising an office move as the longer a business is out of action actually moving the longer the business is unable to function and most importantly make money. The major aim to be considered within the move of an enterprise is for the move to be cost efficient. The best way to achieve this aim is to minimise the time spent moving.

Time will be saved if you are familiar with the new premises location and layout. Make sure that you are acquainted with room sizes and shapes; also ensure all new and existing furniture will fit where it is intended inside the new space.

Make sure that everyone is aware of the new dimensions of their office space; a floor plan will need to be created prior to the move. The plan should show by floor, the location of plants, equipment, employees as well as furniture. Making sure that there are copies of the plan for all employees and putting them up around the building on moving day will ensure everyone knows what they are doing and will reduce the time needed to organise the movers.

Communicate thoroughly with all concerned, employees, landlords, renters and the removal company. Try to minimise questions on moving day by ensuring all parties are informed of all aspects of the move. The movers will need to know where each item being moved should be placed, considerable time will be saved by having plans pinned up at both ends (new and old buildings), and labelling everything, remembering of course to state which floor the item should be on. This is time consuming but if each employee is allocated a room to label up the process will be simple. The labels will help the movers on the move date, this will speed up the process and in turn save money for the company.

Employees should be asked to move any personal items themselves this prevents unnecessary complications as the removals firm cannot be responsible for such items, should they be lost or damaged. The contents of bookshelves, filling cabinets, desks, cupboards and wall units will all need packing into storage boxes and labelling.

If any items such as furniture or equipment are going to be discarded after the move, label them with Do Not Move. It is a waste to spend time moving items to a different location only to have to arrange disposal of them, it is much more efficient to arrange disposal of any unwanted items so that it coincides closely with the move date.

Establish that the movers will have all necessary access on the day of the move that all lifts are fully working and the stairways and walkways are clear. Inform your removal company of access routes so they can plan the workforce required accordingly.