Datastore, a Milwaukee record retention business, will soon move to a new 57,000-square-foot complex in Cudahy.
Datastore was started as an independent business by Coakley Bros. Co., a Milwaukee-based moving and storage company.
Peggy Coakley, president and CEO of Datastore and Coakley Bros. Co., said the new facility at 5255 International Dr. would accommodate the growth of the business and feature state-of-the-art security and storage at no extra cost to clients.
Datastore’s offices currently are located inside the Coakley Bros. facility at 400 S. 5th St., Milwaukee.
The Cudahy project will total $3.2 million, including the purchase of the land. Construction began in December. Coakley expects the building to be completed in April and fully operational by Aug. 1.
"We are building the facility because we feel we have a full turnkey offering for the entire lifecycle of a document, so clients will be able to access information on any medium they choose," Coakley said.
Coakley Bros. has offered record retention services since 1972. In January 2003, Coakley named the retention division Datastore and announced the expansion of offsite data protection to a higher level of protection and services that include imaging, bar coding, E-vaulting and destruction.
"Record retention has been a typical service provided by moving and storage companies," said Greg Jeske, vice president of Datastore. "Over the last 10 years, it has morphed into a specific industry, and there is now a new awareness of its importance."
Clients have several choices for record management with Datastore, ranging from simple storage with Web access, to imaging to a CD, a DVD or a server. They also can use E-vaulting, which is loading electronic storage onto a remote server.
According to Jeske, the Cudahy facility will have security cameras, lockdown at all times with keycard access to employees and clients, vaults with fire protection, a sprinkler system, temperature control and a natural gas generator with the ability to support the entire facility, if needed.
An individual operations manager will monitor each Datastore service, and employees will go through confidentiality and fire/safety training, Coakley said.
"In the last three years, we have literally transformed ourselves to be the best, the leader in Wisconsin, and we have tried to mirror ourselves with premier businesses in the industry," Coakley said.
Coakley said Datastore worked closely with ARMA International and Prism International, two industry organizations that help retention companies abide by regulations and set standards for record retention.
"In the current business environment, almost all businesses have to be cognizant of record retention regulations, and that offsite record retention offers a number of advantages for a company," said Jeske.
According to Jeske, record retention forces businesses to adapt internal policies and procedures when dealing with records for both storage space and disaster planning.
Coakley said Datastore is the fastest-growing entity of Coakley Bros. Co. Business increased immensely when she decided to combine storage services with imaging services, which are regular competitors in the industry.
"We are the only record retention company in Wisconsin that houses both storage and digital imaging," said Coakley. "With the extended services and the new facility, we feel we come in with a very objective solution for our clients."
Datastore currently has $3 million in revenue and is expected to continue rapid growth once the Cudahy facility is up and running. Coakley plans to add up to 15 employees within the year. Jeske said the capacity of the new facility also will enable Datastore to gain new clients.
"This is only Phase I for Datastore," Jeske said. "We purchased 6.2 acres on the site and have room for another building about 67,000 square feet in size."
Customers are charged for the storage space and the level of accessibility to information they need.
"When you’re talking about providing services to institutions that need to comply to rigorous regulations, this facility exceeds their expectations, and that’s what is important," Coakley said.
