I think Brett had the best response. Lots of companies use really crappy
boxes for records storage. Back in the paper age, when I ran an in-house
records center, I came across lots of crap boxes that had been used over
the years before we had a records program. Worst of all were the boxes we
called "size BB" (for, er. "back breaker", yeah, that's it). Those would be
the cardboard "mover's totes" that most companies use from time to time.
Copy paper boxes were next worst -- can't carry them and they always tear
open. Of the commercially purchased boxes, the drawer size Banker's Boxes
(sorry to anyone from Fellowes) are always prone to crushing and handle
dissection -- they are hard to fill well and when filled, always tear at
the handles. Give me a standard records center carton with a nice deep lid
and with double wall construction and I'll toss it around all day. Might
even stand on it. In my basement, I still have some slightly used Paige
Miracle Boxes (not a plug) that date from the late 1980's. They've moved a
number of times and are handled fairly regularly. So a good box will last.

All that said, I do have concerns about reboxing without oversight. On the
one hand, I appreciate the effort by a commercial records center to protect
the contents of boxes. On the other hand, there is room for abuse and
revenue enhancement. I suspect that "wrapping" a damaged box and shipping
it to the customer for inspection becomes an expensive proposition and
likely a wash in terms of cost to the customer if they didn't need that
damaged box retrieved.

Boxes that I have seen reboxed (to speak to Larry's point) generally retain
the parts of the box that have identifying marks. In the case of a prior
employer, we had our own bar codes on our boxes and it was critical to have
those bar codes since we didn't track contents in the commercial records
center's computer system.

At the end of the day, you have to know your service provider. Make regular
visits to their facilities. Do some "drive by" visits in the morning and
evening. Get to know the regular drivers. If you don't trust the provider,
you're going to distrust anything that you can't see and that's not a
healthy place to be.

Patrick Cunningham, FAI

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