Century-old collections preserved using unique storage solutions

Established in 1949, the Mead Art Museum, which houses the art collection of Amherst College that consists of more than 14,000 American and African works, world renowned paintings and unique textiles, underwent a major renovation of its collection storage areas to provide improved preservation through segregated temperature and climate-controlled storage areas. The ASA member worked with the museum’s collection manager to provide the optimum storage solution for its vast range of objects within each uniquely designed storage area

The firm has an extensive paper filing system and needed assistance with organizing exactly what would remain in paper form and what needed to be digitized. The new office space had limited storage capacity so preplanning and instituting a plan was vital to a successful move. In addition to reducing paper files, there were also floor loading weight restrictions that needed to be accommodated.

A large international financial agency/firm needed to renovate a 10 story, 40-year-old building due to an antiquated HVAC system. As the entire building was being gutted, a review of personnel versus storage space requirements was required and completed. In the end, more space was needed for personnel and the overall storage space was reduced by 30% without decreasing what they stored or losing easy access to any individual item.

Prestigious textile museum consolidates and preserves important collections
The American Textile History Museum, which houses the most significant, publicly-held, integrated textile collection of clothing, fabrics, tools, spinning wheels and hand looms in America, acquired two large coverlet collections and curators sought to develop a premier storage solution specially designed for its unique needs. Also, the textile collection reached maximum storage capacity, requiring an improved and space-saving solution. By partnering with an ASA member, the museum was able to improve preservation methods and increase storage capacity, allowing for additional space to expand the collections and provide staff with improved accessibility to stored objects.