condition reports, surveys, & advice

We frequently write treatment reports for clients considering purchasing new objects, before/after exhibitions as part of loan agreements, to support funding applications or tender specifications, for insurance claims, or simply for client records. These usually consist of written and photographic documentation and vary in length according to the requirements.

For planning works involving a lot of objects, it is best to start with a survey, ideally after the collection is catalogued. There are various ways of randomly sampling the collection and collecting information about the items such as condition, that can then be scaled up to reflect the whole collection and used to inform budgets, fundraising, and allocation of staff. A particular advantage (recognised by funders) of this being done by an outside company is that the report can be perceived as more objective.

We also periodically visit collections to look at all the preservation issues overall and give advice about collections care: how and how often to clean, any problems with shelving or storage, what needs particular care, and so on. We recognise that for institutions and serious collectors without conservators on staff, this can be a particularly daunting area for curators and librarians to manage. We give clear advice with priority rankings and indications of cost so that you can implement what makes sense for you.