Planning a weekend office move

Small and mid-size offices in the Bay Area often move on a weekend so the team loses as few working days as possible: pack on Friday, move on Saturday, unpack and test on Sunday, work on Monday. It is a sound plan if the details are handled in advance. This is a planning guide; for our commercial service overview, see commercial moving.

Our rate is the same on weekdays and weekends, and Spartan works Sundays, so there is no premium for moving on Saturday or Sunday. Morning arrival is 8 to 10 AM in the South Bay and Peninsula and 9 to 11 AM in San Francisco and the East Bay, with a call 30 minutes before the crew arrives. A larger office may be scheduled over two days; tell us the size early so we can plan the crew.

Office buildings usually have more rules than homes. Ask both building managers, early, about: a certificate of insurance (we provide COIs free; we need the management company name, mailing address and email), allowed move hours on weekends, freight elevator reservations, loading dock access, and floor protection requirements. Elevator waiting time is billed as part of the job, so a reserved freight elevator saves money. If the street is tight for a 26-foot truck, David checks access before the day.

Remove files from filing cabinets before the move; files slip behind drawers when cabinets are tilted, and full cabinets are heavy. Pack files in boxes in drawer order. Monitors and screens are fragile items and travel in boxes; they usually fit two to a dish-pack box depending on size. Desks are taken apart and rebuilt as part of the service.

$175 per hour for 3 movers or $235 for 4, with a 3-hour minimum and 15-minute increments. Packing supplies are charged as used. Payment is by cash, money order, Visa or Mastercard; card payments carry a 3% fee. If the company needs to be invoiced or billed through an account, ask when you book; David sets billing arrangements case by case. A free on-site inspection gives you a not-to-exceed price.

The fastest office moves run off a numbered floor plan. Give every desk, cabinet and room a number on the new plan and put the same number on every box and piece of furniture from that desk. The crew places by number, so nobody has to ask where things go, and staff walk in to their own setup. Mark boxes that must be opened first, such as the kitchen, the front desk and IT, with a separate color.