Rapid-response media disposition

The challenge

Following a catastrophic fire in a previous vendor’s vehicle, a major tech corporation needed an immediate partner to destroy 5,244 backup tapes. The project was highly sensitive, requiring the removal of assets from a robotic tape library and a complex audit trail to ensure no data left the facility intact. The client estimated the project would take at least two weeks.

The solution

Iron Mountain architected a specialised Scan > Degauss > Re-scan > Shred workflow. Iron Mountain’s team manually decommissioned the tape library, performed three separate scanning cycles for 100% audit accuracy, and utilised an onsite Mobile Operation Centre for immediate destruction. Unlike competitors, Iron Mountain utilised its own waste transfer licenses to assume total liability and remove all debris the same day.

The result

• Unprecedented speed: Completed a project originally scoped for 14 days in just 3 days.
• Zero residual risk: Achieved total data sanitisation through degaussing followed by physical shredding.
• Audit-ready: Provided a comprehensive, itemised Certificate of Data Destruction for the entire 5,200+ asset lot.