The Evolving Commercial Records Center Industry.

• Author: FABER, MICHAEL J.

AT THE CORE

THIS ARTICLE EXAMINES:

* the development of the commercial records center industry

* how increased document creation and new laws and regulations for records retention fueled the growth of commercial records centers

* how technology may impact the industry in the future

For approximately 50 years, the commercial records center (CRC) business has evolved from what began as a repository of mostly inactive or, as some have said, "dead," records into a much more interactive, high-tech relationship with its clients. Employing some of the latest computer technologies, CRCs now offer very sophisticated computer-based indexing, file tracking, fireproof vault storage of computer media, electronic vaulting of customers' data, disaster recovery, and contingency planning programs, as well as a number of other new services (e.g., consulting) and products. This article takes a look at how the CRC industry began and how it has developed over the last half century. It also addresses some of the new technologies, such as radio frequency identification (RFID) and global positioning satellite (GPS), to learn how new technological developments may impact the future of the CRC business. Far from being in decline, CRC is a growth industry.

Development of U.S. Records Management Programs

Until the mid-1930s, no formal records management programs were in place in the United States. The federal government and private businesses kept records in whatever form they felt appropriate without the benefit of retention schedules, disposition guidelines, or other formal information life-cycle procedures. The federal government, however, recognized that some controls needed to be implemented to manage the massive volume of U.S. government files being created. In 1934 the National Archives was established with the primary task of identifying federal records that should be retained as opposed to those that might be eligible for disposal. By 1937, the National Archives was completing the initial survey of federal government records and was becoming aware of a serious lack of uniformity of procedures and an enormous amount of duplication in the records programs of different agencies. During World War II, the U.S. government experienced a proliferation of new agencies and departments. Along with that growth, the government also experienced an unprecedented explosion in the volume of documents it needed to create, store, and manage.

Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR), who signed the legislation creating the National Archives in 1934, was the first U.S. president to take an active interest in the management and preservation of U.S. government records. He had his own long-term plans for the gigantic Pentagon, which was built at breakneck speed at the outset of World War II and was the world's largest building at the time. "FDR hated the Pentagon [architecturally] but recognized the need for it; his lan for it after World War II was to use it to store records." (Brinkley 1991). Little did Roosevelt know that the Pentagon would have nowhere near the space needed for the government's records.

The Records Disposal Act of 1943 was revised by the National Archives and amended in 1945 to include the government-wide general schedule (GS), which authorized the systematic disposal of government records common to most agencies. In 1948, the first Hoover Commission extended the efforts to control government records and awarded a contract to the National Records Management Council of New York to study and make recommendations to improve efficiency in governmental records management programs.

At about this time, the U.S. business community began to see the emergence of what is now the CRC industry. That emergence was led by Emmett J. (Ed) Leahy, who was with the National Archives from 1935 until 1941. He became the director of records coordination for the Department of the Navy during World War II. Leahy received the Navy Commendation Ribbon for his innovations and cost-saving initiatives and was released from duty with the Navy Department in 1945. In 1948 Leahy became the first executive director of the National Records Management Council. That same year, Leahy formed the Business Archives Center, which was probably the first CRC in the United States. In 1953 he formed the records management consulting firm of Leahy & Company and Leahy Archives, which later became Pierce-Leahy Archives of Pennsylvania. Leahy continued in his role as a pioneer and innovator in the records management industry until his death in 1964. Each year...