Collection solutions do not only need to be presentable and allow for the convenient display of materials placed in them but also secure. This means that the materials used in production must be safe and allow for long-term archiving.
To this end, a whole range of different materials has been developed that, even with prolonged use, do not pose a threat or react with the valuable items placed in them, such as coins, banknotes, postcards, or stamps.
Of course, no manufacturer can guarantee that nothing will happen to the items stored in their solutions, primarily because the materials to be archived may themselves contain or have come into contact with chemically reactive substances, depending on where and how they have been previously stored or handled.
While collectors are primarily aware of hazardous materials like PVC and perhaps also plasticizers, which make plastic soft but also chemically reactive, well-known safe materials include acid-free polypropylene (PP), uPVC, and Mylar. These can indeed be called materials of archival quality, and items stored in them are well-preserved.
Different manufacturers use different materials. SAFE predominantly uses polypropylene, from which coin pockets, various sizes of plastic sleeves, and interleaves are made. These are secure solutions used by several museums worldwide. In Estonia, various SAFE collection solutions have been used, for example, in the Saaremaa Museum and the Estonian War Museum.
Aivo Põlluäär, the curator of the Saaremaa Museum, explains the background of the collaboration and the choices made as follows:
“I have ordered plastic sleeves to replace old photo packaging in the Saaremaa Museum’s collection. Vilk Varustus OÜ offers these archival-quality transparent sleeves at a reasonable price. The alternative would be to order from abroad, probably from the USA. In a transparent plastic sleeve, both sides of the photo are viewable, eliminating the need to remove and replace them, which over time damages the photos. All photos undergoing digitization receive new packaging. I also pack all new photos acquired by the museum in plastic sleeves. Certain formats have also been suitable for use in the document collection.“
SAFE archival-quality plastic sleeves are available in sizes ranging from 93×61 mm to A1 format! Additionally, we offer archival-quality coin pockets and solutions suitable for large-scale archiving, such as the BEBA coin system, which is used in Estonia by the History Museum.
If you are interested, you can find our contact information in our online store. For any questions or requests, feel free to get in touch. We now have sufficient experience and contacts to find a suitable solution for any collection.
