Going through a fire or natural disaster can be highly stressful. The electronic files and physical media you keep inside are often vital to the function of your business. Contracts, bookkeeping data, employee files and physical certificates can be difficult and in some cases impossible to reproduce or replace.
Fortunately, an unexpected disaster doesn’t necessarily have to mean your important documents or belongings are gone if you turn to professional restoration experts for assistance.
Respond in a Timely Manner
One thing that could stand in the way of document and media recovery is time. Making sure it’s on your side is the best chance you have at recovering your possessions.
Removing these items from the disaster area as soon as possible may be the difference between a salvageable document and disintegrated paper scraps or water-logged electronics. The less time your belongings spend in the affected area, the less damage is likely to be done.
Contact an emergency response team immediately, so you don’t have to put yourself in a dangerous situation trying to obtain your important pieces. You will want to make sure the recovery team you are working with knows what pieces are a priority and how to get to them most efficiently.
When you contact BMS CAT before a disaster strikes, we can help you create a disaster recovery plan, which includes a priority list of your possessions, including documents. This will ensure that should an emergency occur, we will start protecting and restoring the things that matter most to your business from the start.
Taking the Time for Careful Handling
The best way to ensure maximum document recovery after a disaster is gentle handling and a light touch. Not every disaster recovery company applies an adequately cautious, methodical approach when handling damaged electronics and documentation. That’s why it pays to work with an experienced restoration company like BMS CAT, which built a reputation for minimizing document loss.
Making sure the company you work with is familiar with the privacy protocols or industry regulations governing your particular industry will also prevent you or your customer’s information from being violated, which is absolutely essential for many businesses.
Our recovery facility enables us to maintain high standards of privacy, therefore sensitive and confidential papers, even top-secret information, remains safe. Regulatory compliance procedures and standards, including HIPAA, FACTA, GLB, and Sarbanes-Oxley, are in place and followed.
Having Backups is a Must
Of course, the ideal outcome is to avoid the possibility of losing documents and data in the first place. Keeping backups of your QuickBooks or other accounting data is a no brainer, and you probably have one already. Just make sure it’s something you update on a regular basis. And it’s always advisable to have some form of cloud backup. Housing your backup in your office could result in one disaster wiping out all your contingencies. There should be settings within your particular accounting software to establish automatic backup at certain intervals, and this can be a real godsend if disaster is ever to strike.
There are other options for storage of your physical documents that should make them more resistant to the threat of disaster damage. For example, many personal safes are rated at various fire resistance levels, meaning they’re designed to withstand so much heat for a predetermined amount of time.
Set Up a Plan Beforehand
Putting a plan in place before your business experiences any disasters can help make restoration efforts more organized and successful. When you take this preemptive step you can rest assured that your preferred restoration company doesn’t waste time analyzing and discussing a plan of action, and instead can go straight into disaster recovery mode. Additionally, this prevents any confusion and helps everyone know exactly which steps need to be taken from the first minute.
Keep Up with Routine Property Maintenance
Ensuring your business is in optimal condition before storm season approaches could also help protect your documents from damage. Having a sturdy building without leaks, a cracked foundation or roof damage could help keep the weather outside where it belongs. Spending some time looking for these flaws beforehand could not only protect the contents of your commercial property but could also reduce the future expenses of a large-scale restoration project.
Time to Talk to a Professional
Physical documents, hard discs, tapes, specialty media, electronic media and more can be restored thanks to cutting edge technology and techniques possessed by restoration professionals. Communicating with a professional team who knows exactly how to do this can save much of your business’s essential documents and data should a disaster occur.
The experts at BMS CAT have extensive knowledge and experience with the commercial document and media recovery. We utilize the largest vacuum freeze-drying chambers in the world to quickly dry your items in a secure manner. Our specialized equipment allows us to deal with everything from water damaged books and documents to possessions afflicted by an insect or microbial contamination. Our professionals are always very careful when handling other people’s property and respond as quickly as possible with our 24/7 emergency call center.
Contact us today to establish a disaster recovery plan or for assistance cleaning up any type of disaster-related mess you may be currently dealing with.