Storage information

Iron Mountain's records storage facilities are configured for the efficient storage of the Standard Archive Carton. Our operating processes, costs, and pricing have been modeled around the Standard Archive Carton. Each Carton type, including the Standard Archive Carton, varies in dimensions based upon manufacturer, style of design, weight of loading, and normal wear-and-tear from storage and retrieval.

See the table below for a summary of the characteristics of the three most common Carton types stored at Iron Mountain. Most Cartons received for storage are assigned to one of these three categories based on functional equivalence and approximate dimensions: Cubic Footage for billing purposes is then determined, respectively. All other Carton types and Deposits received for storage are assigned a specific Cubic Footage for billing purposes based upon a similar methodology as the table below, taking into account such factors as: shape, weight, loading efficiency, legacy conventions agreed upon with our customers, compatibility with other cartons already in storage and past practices used by predecessor storage providers that we have acquired.

	Carton Type	Intended Use	Internal		External		Displaced Storage Volume* cf	Multiple of Standard Archive Carton	Billable Cubic Feet
			Dimensions*	cf	Dimensions*cf	cf
	Standard Archive (letter/legal)	Half drawer of letter or legal files	15 x 12 x 10	1.0	16.25 x 12.75 x 10.25	1.2	1.2	1	1.2
	Letter Transfer	Full Drawer of letter files	24 x 12 x 10	1.7	25.5 x 13 x 10.25	2.0	2.7	2	2.4
	Legal Transfer	Full drawer of legal files	24 x 15 x 10	2.1	25.5 x 16 x 10.25	2.4	3.5	3	3.6

*Carton dimensions are in inches.
*Internal dimensions are nominal for new Cartons, empty.
*External dimensions are approximate based upon average dimensions of several manufacturers' Cartons, loaded with Files.

Safeguarding Your Records

What are Iron Mountain’s inventory integrity operational procedures?

Iron Mountain requires customers to use cartons that are of sound condition and that are capable of supporting the weight of other cartons placed above them. One of Iron Mountain’s Inventory Integrity Operational Procedures is to identify and isolate any cartons that are found to be materially damaged, including during the inbound and outbound processes.

A carton is considered to be materially damaged if it has torn seams, a damaged top that no longer secures the contents, a bottom that is falling out, or a side that has collapsed or is at risk of collapse, is crushed, is held together by tape, has water damage or is so full that the top can not be secured. Please see the illustration of a carton that would require reboxing.

Why does Iron Mountain have inventory integrity operational procedures?

Providing secure storage for your information is a top concern at Iron Mountain. Records kept within a deteriorated carton are at risk, both in our facility and while in transit. In cases where records are in transit, these cartons raise the risk of compromising or losing your information. And even when records are located within our records center, an excessively deteriorated or damaged carton represents an unacceptable risk. If a carton falls apart or collapses from the weight of other cartons in the rack, this could result in damage to your records as well as to those of other customers.

What causes cartons to fail?

Poor Construction. Several different types of cartons are commercially available on the market, many of which are not designed for long-term archival storage. One way to gauge the quality of a carton is through stacking weight, which refers to the amount of weight that can be stacked on top of a carton. In addition to stacking weight, other factors affect construction quality, such as the grade of paper material utilized, the type of adhesive used, and certain design elements, like the flute direction. The depth of its top can also be a factor. The deeper the top, the more structural integrity it lends to the carton and to its handles. A deeper top will also help a carton to retain its shape and lessen the stress applied to the handles.

Age. No matter how well constructed a carton, it will eventually begin to deteriorate. Depending on the construction of the carton and the environmental conditions (moisture and humidity), carton life can range from six months to 10 years.

Overpacking. Overpacking a carton can lead to increased stress on the container itself and can ultimately shorten its lifespan.

Underpacking. Just like overpacking, under-packing, too, can shorten the life of a carton. When a carton is full, the contents help to support the overall structural integrity, preventing the sides from buckling under the weight of cartons stacked on top of it.

Handling. The more a carton is handled, the faster it will deteriorate. The better a carton is constructed, the longer it will last.

What can I do to minimize reboxing in the future?

• Use cartons designed for records management, frequent handling and long term storage.
• Replace damaged cartons before sending them to Iron Mountain.
• Don’t overstuff cartons.

- Tops that cannot be properly secured are more easily damaged.

- A top that is not properly secured will come off, exposing your records and creating risk.

What should I look for in a carton?

• Double-walled Construction
• Deep Tops (3 inches)
• High Stacking Strength

Tip: Don’t use inappropriate cartons such as copy paper cartons, shipping cartons, fruit boxes, crates and cartons with no lids.

What are my options regarding reboxing?

Choose from the following four options for reboxing damaged cartons. Customers can switch between options at any time by contacting customer service.

Always Rebox. Iron Mountain will automatically rebox damaged cartons as they are encountered.

Always Rebox with Notification. Iron Mountain will automatically rebox damaged cartons as they are encountered. You will also receive an email* that lists the cartons which were reboxed.

Customer Decision. Prior to reboxing, Iron Mountain will send you an email* that lists boxes in need of reboxing. You then have 14 days to decide the appropriate disposition for each carton:

• Have Iron Mountain rebox the carton.
• Have Iron Mountain return the carton to you for reboxing.
• Have Iron Mountain destroy the carton by tagging it as “Do not Rebox” and then initiating the normal destruction request process.

Always Retrieve. All damaged cartons will automatically be returned to you in an over-carton so that you can rebox the item yourself.

What are the procedures for reboxing cartons?

Always Rebox Process.

• The carton is removed from the shelf by an Iron Mountain Records Center specialist.
• The contents of the original carton are placed by the specialist into a new carton in the exact same order.
• A new carton label, with the same carton identifier as the original label, is then prin ted and affixed to the new carton.
• Any unique identifiers or written information present on the original carton are transferred to the replacement. Written information is rewritten onto the new carton, and other unique identifiers, including the face of the old carton, are cut off the old carton and placed within the new one.
• The carton is then stored or prepared for shipping.

Always Rebox Process with Notification.

• The carton is removed from the shelf by an Iron Mountain Records Center specialist.
• The contents of the original carton are placed by the specialist into a new carton in the exact same order.
• A new carton label, with the same carton identifier as the original label, is then prin ted and affixed to the new carton.
• Any unique identifiers or written information present on the original carton are transferred to the replacement. Written information is rewritten onto the new carton, and other unique identifiers, including the face of the old carton, are cut off the old carton and placed within the new one.
• The carton is then stored or prepared for shipping.
• The notification communication will automatically occur once a week, prior to reboxing, summarizing the work to be completed.
• If a carton requested for retrieval is identified as requiring reboxing and no notification has already been sent to the customer, it will be placed in an over-carton for shipment to ensure there is no delay in delivery.

Customer Decision Process.

• As damaged cartons are encountered, an Iron Mountain specialist will tag the item in our inventory tracking system as a rebox candidate.
• Iron Mountain will send the customer a weekly email that lists each rebox candidate identified for remediation.
• The customer has 14 days to inform Iron Mountain, via email or in writing, of the preferred action for each individual carton. At the end of this period, Iron Mountain will remediate the cartons per the customer’s request.
• Should the customer not respond within 14 days, Iron Mountain will rebox the cartons.
• If a carton requested for retrieval is identified as requiring reboxing, it will automatically be placed in an over-carton for shipment to ensure there is no delay in delivery.

Always Retrieve Process.

• The carton is removed from the shelf by an Iron Mountain Records Center specialist.
• The original carton is placed into an over-carton by the specialist. The purpose of the over-carton is to protect the contents of the damaged carton during shipping.
• The specialist places return instructions and a replacement label for the customer’s new box into the over-carton.
• The carton is then placed on a truck for delivery to you for disposition.
• Notification communication will automatically occur once a week prior to retrieving and shipping the rebox candidates to you, summarizing the work to be completed.
• If a carton requested for retrieval is identified as requiring reboxing, it will automatically be placed in an over-carton for shipment to ensure there is no delay in delivery.

How will I be billed for reboxing activities?

Iron Mountain Reboxes. Charges for Iron Mountain reboxing cartons will appear on your next monthly invoice. The reboxing charges include the price of the replacement carton and labor, at a rate per carton, to carry out the reboxing service. The rebox charge will appear on the invoice as a “Repack Charge,” along with the supply charge for the new carton.

Iron Mountain Retrieves. Charges for Iron Mountain returning damaged cartons to you via an over-carton will appear on your next monthly invoice. This will include a standard retrieval charge, and a standard transportation charge.

By placing an Order through Iron Mountain Connect or by calling Customer Response, you can request the Retrieval of your Cartons at any time. See the Transportation section of this website for detailed information on your Order scheduling options.

Please note that the Retrieval of Cartons from storage on a temporary basis does not reduce the storage volume for billing purposes as space for that Carton is reserved for its return. A Carton must be processed as an Archival Destruction or as a Permanent Withdrawal to result in a reduction of storage volume.

Cartons in Iron Mountain's custody for any day within a month are charged a full month's storage for that month. Storage charges are not prorated for a partial month. Since storage is billed monthly in advance, on the first invoice following the month in which a Carton is received for storage, the invoice will show a charge for the month received (in arrears) (shown as “Storage, Newtooltip” on your invoice) and for the next month (in advance) (shown as “Storage, Regular” on your invoice). After the first month, only one month's storage charge will apply for that Carton.

Conversely, on the invoice for the month in which the Carton is processed as an Archival Destructiontooltip or Permanent Withdrawal, the storage volume will be reduced by the volume of the Cartons processed through the Archival Destruction or Permanent Withdrawal order and no storage charge shall apply for that Carton on that month's invoice.

Monthly Carton storage will appear on your invoice as “Storage, Regular.” 

Program Services are outlined in your Pricing Schedule. For definitions of terms used in the Pricing Schedule, see Glossary.

For additional services not included on your Pricing Schedule, see Additional Services.

Find more information on order cartons with our box reference guide here.