Handling Loose Items

Definition

Loose items are all materials that are not in boxes and are stored directly on shelves (or the tops of flat file cabinets).

There are five common types:

• Volumes
• Reels
• Rolls
• Tubes
• Artifacts

ArchivesSpace Management

Top Containers

Each item on the shelf must have a unique top container with a barcode in ArchivesSpace.

Numbering

Each type should have a separate numbering run.

Example: Boxes 1-2, reel 1, volume 1, rolls 1-3

Container Profiles

Tubes should be measured and assigned an appropriate container profile in the same way boxes are handled.

All other types should be assigned to the appropriate nominal container profile (volume, reel, artifact, roll).

Physical Management

Labeling and Barcoding

• Volumes: Use book flags
• Reels: Use standard labels, taking care not to obscure any existing labels. Applying barcodes to the edge of the housing is preferable, but may not be feasible depending on the style of the housing.
• Tubes: Use standard labels
• Rolls: Use standard labels if space allows, otherwise use tags
• Artifacts: Use tags

Storage

Items that use nominal container profiles (volumes, reels, rolls, and artifacts) should be stored on designated shelves in order to use ArchivesSpace space calculator for other shelving.