Patent No: 183626

The philosophy pursued in the Planorama^® is the preservation of cultural objects in their original condition while still allowing the opportunity to study and document them, without handling, ensuring their preservation for the future. 's Planorama System is suitable for the archival conservation of a variety of objects and artifacts Charters, Seals, Maps, Prints, Drawings, Posters, Newspapers, Stamps, Coins, Herbaria, Butterflies, Lace, Flags and Articles of Dress.

The first Planorama^® System was delivered to the Utrecht State Record Office in 1970 (see report Professor Dr. Van Buytene) and as a consequence was acknowledged as being a revolutionary advance in archival storage. Since then we have developed enormous experience; and have benefited by working directly with an increasingly aware and expanding conservation and archival market; and have continued to develop their unique Planorama System to meet increasingly stringent archival specifications, applications and aesthetic requirements.

THE PLANORAMA^® is a unique modular system of standard or custom made archival, aluminium, variable base, cabinets and storage drawers. Specially designed for conservation storage, the modules are light, rigid, compact and easily transportable. They are ideal for rooms in difficult locations or with a low floor load capacity often the case in older buildings. The standard dimensions of the modules are designed to facilitate easy access through small passages, staircases and doors. They can be lifted and assembled easily by two people. The special patented design allows the construction of hitherto impossibly large sizes capable of storing items such as military colours, flags, large textiles, posters, etc. PLANORAMA^® small size cabinets for the storage of coins, entomological specimens or other such objects are also possible because of the flexibility of the system.

The patented Planorama^® System is composed of extruded aluminium profiles and aluminium sheets (quality 51 ST). The colour of the Standard range is silver anodised aluminium. we can, on special request, also manufacture the Planorama^® System in a variety of colours achieved by anodising or polyester powder coating. The modular design of the Planorama system offers the ultimate in flexibility.

The Planorama^® drawers (patent number:183626) are manufactured in multi-functional aluminium profiles (quality 51 ST) and are available in a range of depths:10; 20; 42 and 86 mm in both small and large sizes, which can be assembled in a variety of configurations. The Standard drawer has a flat base made of heavy duty and inert transparent polyester film. On request the drawer bases can easily be made of other materials. The drawer front faces and handles can also be manufactured in a variety of materials and colours. The inner side walls of the modules and the drawers feature the unique PLANORAMA^® sliding and object protection system.

Specific Advantages Of The Planorama® System Preservation in plan chests Light weight and thin drawers constructed for ease of removal including drawer contents, so eliminating handling and consequently reducing wear and tear. Variety of choice in drawer sizes and depths to suit size and quantity of objects. Minimum Internal Measurements: 100 x 100 x 10 mm Maximum Internal Measurements: 3000 x 2300 x 80 mm Standard (internal) size drawers are offered as: Type A: 840 x 640 mm; Type B: 1340 x 1060 mm; Type C 1840 x 1360 mm (available in modules of various depths) Multi functional drawer profiles allow the use of a variety of different materials for drawer bases: e.g. drummed polyester, aluminium, stainless steel, polycarbonate, stainless steel, carbonate, acid free cardboard, gauze, textiles Drawers are normally fitted with nylon dust brushes to prevent the ingress of dust, if extra ventilation is a requirement the brushes can be easily removed. Extruded drawer profiles allow the simple insertion of a drawer lid which can be made from polycarbonate or U.V. perspex which gives protection against U.V. radiation. Longevity ensured by the durability of materials used in construction. Low floor load per sq metre and large area of usable surface e.g. 333kg per sq metre with a usable surface area of 157 metres2 or 112 drawers of 20mm = 7 modules; total height 2940mm Transparent and flat underside to drawers ensures safety of objects in the drawer beneath. Variable drawer depths (10; 20; 42; 86mm) and the possibility of using different drawer depths in the same module provides efficient storage of variable sized objects. Click for PLANORAMA pictures