Professional Processing Rate?

[Ray Barker]

Has anyone ever confirmed a professional processing rate for archivists? And if so, do you follow it? Maybe I'm wrong, but I've always felt that each collection has its own unique processing challenges, which, to me, makes a generalized processing rate rather relative and subjective.

Thank you for your comments.

[Terry Baxter]

I think the MPLP "standard" is 4 hrs/cf. But that is not for collections requiring more intensive measures.

[Marcus C. Robyns]

You should check Greene and Meissner, "More Product, Less Process: Revamping Traditional Archival Processing," The American Archivist, 68 (Fall/Winter 2005): 208-263. The article includes an excellent and extensive discussion of processing rates.

[Ray Barker]

Thanks, folks. I'll check that article, Marcus. I think I have that issue in my files at work. Thank you!

[chela]

This is from processing grant guidelines put out by the New York State Archives:

* Completely unorganized collection - 16 hours per cubic foot
* Complicated series, such as correspondence or subject files - 8 hours per cubic foot
* Fairly straightforward series that may need some work, such as case or job files or business records - 4 hours per cubic foot
* Well-organized series consisting primarily of bound volumes or voluminous series with uniform or repetitive information, such as invoices - 2.5 hours per cubic foot

[Ray Barker]

Thanks for the link, Chela. 8 hours per cubic foot seems to be moving pretty quickly for a complicated series. But that's just my opinion.