Processing physical items

The 3 Rs (for all material)

Remove security tags

Rewind

Rehouse

Handling Material

Avoid touching the shiny side of a DVD/CD and the magnetic tape of a VHS/cassette

Discs

• Handle grooved discs (78s, 45s, LPs, lacquer discs) by the edge and label areas only

• Handle optical discs (CDs, DVDs) by the edge and centre hole only

Magnetic tape (Reel-to-Reel or Open Reel)

• Handle by the edge of the plastic or metal reel (the flanges) and centre hub only

• Do not squeeze the flanges together, which will crush the tape pack in between

Magnetic tape (Cassettes, Audio and Video)

• Handle by the outer shell only

• Do not touch the spools

Rehousing

If the item is loose or container is damaged, re-house into an appropriate container (Empty containers can be found in room 373)

If original case contains covers/papers with metadata (that can be easily removed), move across into new container.

If metadata on the original case is not easily transferred to a new container (e.g. it is on a label stuck onto the case) ensure the metadata is recorded in the boxlist or it is transferred to a new piece of archival paper to be put in the new case.

Barcoding

Each physical item should have an individual barcode

Place a barcode on the case (not the item)

Barcodes can be found in stationary cupboard on the 3rd floor of 215 (contact Collections Development if barcodes cannot be found or are close to running out)

Playing Material

Allow materials from cool storage to acclimate to room temperature before playing back

References

Handling guidelines taken from https://www.loc.gov/preservation/care/record.html