EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Offsite physical record storage facilities and scheduled document destruction services routinely lock companies into high minimum box counts and steep retrieval fees, wasting 10% to 20% in archival overhead. Records audits right-size physical storage.
Offsite record storage is priced per box, and contracts typically commit to a minimum box count that persists regardless of whether those records are still needed. Organizations keep paying for boxes long after the retention requirement has passed.
On top of storage, retrieval fees are charged each time a file is pulled. Because retrieval is an undocumented, per-request charge, the fees can be high and are rarely benchmarked. Together, inflated box minimums and steep retrieval fees inflate archival overhead well beyond need.
Streamlining storage begins with an information governance audit that reconciles boxed records against actual retention requirements. The audit right-sizes box count, negotiates retrieval rates, and aligns shredding to genuine disposal schedules.
Identify boxes beyond their retention requirement and purge or digitize them to reduce stored volume and minimums.
Benchmark retrieval, box-pull, and access fees against the market and negotiate fixed, transparent rates.
Right-size scheduled shredding to the genuine volume of records requiring destruction rather than a fixed recurring minimum.
Price the right-sized storage and shredding scope against alternative providers to confirm market alignment.
A records governance audit reconciles boxed records to retention, negotiates retrieval fees, and aligns shredding to real disposal needs — recovering up to 20% of archival overhead. The first step is a confidential advisory conversation.