Project Scope

The relocation project for the Victoria and Albert (V&A) Museum involved moving 18,000 linear meters of books and journals from Blythe House in Kensington to a new store/museum at Stratford NE London on the Olympic Park site. The scope later adjusted to relocating 5,000 linear meters to the main V&A Museum on Cromwell Road, with the remaining 13,000 linear meters going to the Storehouse in Stratford. The project required close collaboration with archive teams for labeling and sequencing, adapting to a split operation due to delays and unforeseen challenges.

Approach Used by Ede's

Ede's, appointed after a tender process, implemented a structured and adaptive approach. At Blythe House, a dedicated team sequentially packed materials in a specific order as directed by archivists, supported by a move team supplying crates and cages, then transporting filled units to holding areas for trucking to either Cromwell Road or Stratford. At Stratford, unloading was coordinated with shared loading bays, followed by unpacking in collection order by dedicated teams. Empty crates were returned to Blythe House for reuse. Despite Covid-related delays pushing the timeline back by 2.5 years and a flooding incident at Storehouse, Ede's sourced temporary off-site storage and adjusted plans to ensure continuity.

Project Outcome

The project was successfully completed despite significant disruptions. The move to the main V&A Museum occurred in early 2022 under Covid restrictions, while the larger relocation to Storehouse began in late 2023 and finished in early 2024. A mains water supply break flooded Storehouse’s ground floor, halting offloading; Ede's mitigated this by using temporary storage until repairs were completed, then finalised unpacking in sequence. The phased approach and contingency measures ensured all 18,000 linear meters were relocated and organised as planned, meeting the V&A’s archival requirements.