Maintaining and managing storage facilities is a key part of records management and file storage. There are so many factors to consider including accessibility, weather conditions, size, and humidity.

At The Filing Room, we have a total of six warehouses: three on the Mombasa Road, and three in the Athi River area.

These warehouses are managed by our incredible team of archivists and records managers. As explained in this article, our archiving teams adhere to best practice guidelines outlined by the International Organisation for Standardisation.

The Best in East Africa

Kenya boasts some of the best document archiving practices in East Africa. In a 2003 text in the Records Management Journal, Nathan Mnjama, a researcher at the University of Botswana, explained how The Kenya National Archives and Documentation Services was already a leading force in Africa.

He suggests that the Kenyan National Archives are already adept at preserving archives, although there was scope for improvement when it comes to the entire life cycle of archived documents.

He evidences these claims by the opening of five regional centers by the National Archive and the partial automation of these services. Clearly, Kenya was ahead of its neighbours in archiving even back in 2003.

It is perhaps not surprising then that the private sector for the same practices operates at such a high level and follow global best practices. There are several different private organisations striving and innovating in the document archiving world and there are always new companies springing up and advancing the industry in new ways.

Indeed, the efficiency of the Kenyan archiving industry has attracted major, global players to the scene.

Managing Document Archiving Facilities

One of the key threats to an effective document archiving system is the damp. Dampness exists in the air around us and is extremely difficult to combat. If files and boxes are left unattended, they will end up becoming soggy and attracting mould. Soon, they will be unusable and unsavable.

The best protection you can give to your documents against the damp weather is digitisation. However, digitisation is time-consuming and is not always the best option. At The Filing Room, we strive to give all our documents the best protection against the damp.

Firstly, our boxes are stored right up to the ceiling in large warehouses on sturdy steel, filing cabinets. It is important to not store these boxes near the floor as this makes it easier for the damp to creep in.

Another issue brought about by damp weather is dudus, especially after the rainy season. At Dudus can get into a warehouse and degrade the integrity of the cardboard boxes. To combat this, a good document archivist will fumigate their warehouses at least twice a year.

If you want to find out more about our fumigation process, you can read this article from a few months ago.

 

Fortunately for the archiving companies in Nairobi, we are aided in our battle against damp by the geography of Nairobi. Nairobi is at a very high altitude, 1,795 metres above sea level, and this means that the air is drier. Whilst this does not eradicate the damp, especially during the rainy season, it is definitely a big help.

Locations on the Mombasa Road and Athi River

The three warehouses in Mombasa, and the three in Athi River, all follow the same guidelines and best practices in order to maintain the integrity of all our boxes and records. Both locations have good accessibility and are convenient for our clients should they need to access important files for any reason.

As an organisation, we are proud to be part of a strong and innovative industry in the East African region and we are always striving to provide our clients with the best service we can manage.

If you need document management services, or just want to talk about potential solutions for your business, get in contact. We also have some helpful resources on our blog page that may answer your questions.