12 Questions to Ask a Lab Mover in Montreal Before You Sign Anything — The Complete Due Diligence Checklist

Hiring the wrong lab mover doesn't just cost you money. It costs you irreplaceable samples. It costs you months of research data. It costs you accreditation standing, regulatory compliance, and — in the worst cases — it costs you your laboratory's reputation with funding agencies and institutional review boards.

A mass spectrometer that arrives with an undetectable ESD discharge doesn't look broken. It powers on. It runs. And then six weeks later, your chromatography results start drifting. You spend three months troubleshooting before you realize the instrument was compromised during transport. By then, your warranty claim window is closed, your mover has no documentation of how the unit was handled, and you're looking at a $350,000 replacement.

This isn't a hypothetical scenario — it's the kind of failure that happens when laboratories hire general moving companies who claim they can handle specialized equipment. The difference between a qualified lab mover and a general mover with good marketing is measured in protocols, documentation, equipment, and verifiable experience. Not promises.

This checklist gives you the 12 questions that separate genuinely qualified laboratory and medical moving companies from general movers who have added "lab" to their website. Ask every one of these questions in writing. Demand specific answers, not vague assurances. And if a prospective mover can't satisfy at least 10 of these 12, they are not qualified for your lab move — regardless of their price.

At CNS Logistics, we've completed over 200 laboratory and medical equipment relocations across Montreal. We built this checklist because we believe informed clients make better decisions — and because we're confident in our answers. Here's every question you should ask, why it matters, and what the right answer sounds like.

Question 1: "Are You NIR Licensed in Quebec?"

Why It Matters

In Quebec, every company that transports goods commercially must hold a Numéro d'inscription au registre (NIR) from the Commission des transports du Québec (CTQ). This isn't a recommendation — it's provincial law. The NIR confirms that the carrier has met minimum safety, insurance, and operational standards set by the CTQ and has submitted to regulatory oversight.

An unlicensed mover has no regulatory accountability. If something goes wrong — equipment damage, a workplace accident on your premises, a liability dispute — you have no recourse through the CTQ's complaint and enforcement process. Your institution's risk management department will ask about this, and if they discover after the fact that you hired an unlicensed carrier, the liability exposure falls on the department that authorized the contract.

This is the single most important disqualifying question. If the answer is no, the conversation is over.

Many general movers operating in Montreal do not hold an NIR because they've historically operated in the residential market where enforcement is inconsistent. When they expand into commercial and institutional work, they often don't realize — or don't disclose — that they lack the required registration. Some will tell you their "business license" covers it. It doesn't. The NIR is specific, verifiable, and non-negotiable.

How to Verify

Ask for the NIR number. Then verify it directly on the Commission des transports du Québec's online registry. It takes 30 seconds. If the mover hesitates or cannot provide the number immediately, that tells you everything you need to know.

CNS's Answer

Yes. CNS Logistics is NIR licensed and has been since our founding. Our NIR number is available on request, and it can be independently verified on the CTQ website. We proactively provide this information in every institutional proposal because we know your procurement team requires it.

Question 2: "What Is Your Liability Insurance Coverage Amount?"

Why It Matters

Laboratory equipment is not furniture. A single HPLC system runs $80,000–$250,000. A mass spectrometer can exceed $500,000. A -80°C ultra-low freezer filled with ten years of biological samples has a replacement value that is functionally incalculable — the samples themselves may be irreplaceable, but the freezer, reagents, and collection time represent hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Standard moving company liability insurance typically covers $1 million in aggregate. That sounds like a lot until you realize that a single room in a molecular biology lab can contain $2 million in equipment. If a truck carrying your instruments is involved in an accident, $1 million doesn't come close.

The insurance question has two parts: How much total coverage do you carry? and Can you provide a certificate of insurance naming our institution as additionally insured for the duration of the move? Every Montreal hospital, university, and research institution requires this. If your mover cannot produce a certificate within 48 hours of your request, they either don't have adequate coverage or their broker doesn't handle institutional work.

What to Watch For

Some movers will quote their general liability coverage but not their cargo insurance. These are separate policies. General liability covers accidents on-site (a mover damages your floor, trips over a cable). Cargo insurance covers the goods in transit. You need both, and you need the numbers for both.

Also ask about the deductible. A $5 million policy with a $50,000 deductible means the first $50,000 of any claim comes out of your pocket — or gets tied up in a dispute about who pays it.

CNS's Answer

$5 million in comprehensive coverage through Intact Insurance, one of Canada's largest commercial insurers. This includes both general liability and cargo-specific protection. We provide certificates of insurance naming your institution as additionally insured as a standard part of every institutional moving contract. Certificates are typically delivered within 24–48 hours of request. Our coverage is specifically structured for high-value laboratory and medical equipment transport — not a generic commercial policy with equipment added as an afterthought.

Question 3: "Do You Have ESD-Safe Handling Protocols?"

Why It Matters

Electrostatic discharge (ESD) is the invisible destroyer of precision laboratory instruments. A static discharge as small as 20 volts — far below the threshold of human perception — can damage sensitive semiconductor components in analytical instruments. You'll never see it happen. The instrument won't spark, won't smell burnt, won't show any immediate sign of damage. But the internal circuitry is compromised, and the failure will manifest weeks or months later as calibration drift, intermittent errors, or outright component failure.

This is particularly dangerous for: HPLC systems (high-performance liquid chromatography), mass spectrometers, PCR machines and thermal cyclers, DNA/RNA sequencers, flow cytometers, electron microscopes, and any instrument with sensitive detectors or circuit boards.

Montreal's climate makes this worse. Winter humidity in Montreal regularly drops below 20% indoors — the exact conditions where static charge accumulates fastest. A mover who wraps your mass spectrometer in standard moving blankets and rolls it across a carpeted hallway in January is creating the perfect conditions for an ESD event.

Most general movers have never heard of ESD. If you ask them about electrostatic discharge protocols, you'll get a blank stare or a confident "we're very careful with electronics." Being careful is not a protocol. A protocol is a documented, repeatable procedure with specific materials and verification steps.

What a Real ESD Program Looks Like

A qualified lab mover's ESD program includes: anti-static wrapping materials (not standard bubble wrap — ESD-rated pink poly or static-shielding bags), grounded wrist straps worn by every crew member handling sensitive instruments, anti-static mats placed under instruments during disconnection and reconnection, grounding straps connecting the truck bed to a ground point during loading and unloading, and humidity monitoring — particularly critical for winter moves in Montreal when indoor humidity plummets.

CNS's Answer

Full ESD protection program. Every CNS crew assigned to laboratory moves is trained in ESD-safe handling. Our kit includes anti-static wrapping, wrist straps, grounding mats, truck grounding straps, and portable humidity monitors. For winter moves — which in Montreal means roughly October through April — we take additional precautions including pre-conditioning instrument staging areas and using humidifiers in transit when required.

This is not an add-on service. It is standard protocol on every laboratory and medical moving job. We invested in ESD training and materials because we handle instruments worth hundreds of thousands of dollars on a regular basis, and we understand that a single discharge event can create a loss that dwarfs the cost of the entire move.

Question 4: "Do You Offer GPS Tracking on Every Truck?"

Why It Matters

When $500,000 worth of laboratory equipment is on a truck somewhere between your old facility and your new one, "we'll call you when we arrive" is not an acceptable answer. Institutional clients — hospitals, universities, pharmaceutical companies — need real-time visibility into where their equipment is at all times during transport.

GPS tracking matters for three specific reasons in lab moves:

Chain-of-custody documentation. For regulated labs, accredited facilities, and grant-funded equipment, you may need to prove the continuous location and custody of instruments during transport. GPS data provides an objective, timestamped record that supplements your written chain-of-custody documentation.

Incident response. If a truck is involved in a traffic incident, a road closure forces a detour, or extreme weather creates a delay, you need to know immediately — not two hours later when the driver remembers to call. For temperature-sensitive cargo, even a 30-minute delay can matter.

Coordination at the destination. Lab moves require precise coordination with elevator booking, building access windows, and receiving teams. Real-time location data lets your project manager coordinate these elements based on actual arrival time, not estimates.

What to Ask For

Don't accept "yes, we have GPS" without specifics. Ask: What is the update frequency? Is tracking available in real-time to the client, or only to dispatch? Can you provide a tracking link we can share with our receiving team? Is GPS data retained and available as part of the post-move documentation package?

CNS's Answer

Real-time GPS tracking on all 12 trucks, updating every 30 seconds. Every CNS vehicle is equipped with GPS tracking as permanent fleet infrastructure — not a phone app that depends on driver compliance. During lab moves, your project manager receives a live tracking link and can share it with your receiving team. GPS data is retained and included in the post-move documentation package as part of our chain-of-custody record. Learn more about our AI and GPS technology and how it supports institutional clients.

Question 5: "Are Your Crews Bilingual (French and English)?"

Why It Matters

Montreal operates bilingually. This isn't a cultural observation — it's an operational reality that directly impacts the safety and efficiency of your lab move.

Your building manager likely operates primarily in French. Your principal investigator may communicate in English. Your institution's environmental health and safety officer switches between both depending on who they're talking to. The fire safety plan posted in the stairwell is in French. The equipment manuals your crew needs to reference are in English. The Hydro-Québec technician who shows up to disconnect the high-voltage line to your electron microscope speaks French.

A unilingual English crew creates communication failures at every one of these touchpoints. A unilingual French crew has the same problem in reverse with English-speaking researchers and some equipment documentation. In a lab move where miscommunication about which instrument goes where, which circuit needs to be shut down first, or which cabinet requires decontamination before moving can have serious safety and financial consequences, bilingual fluency is not a nice-to-have. It is an operational requirement.

This is especially critical for institutional moving at hospitals and universities where safety protocols must be communicated clearly to every person on-site, regardless of their preferred language.

CNS's Answer

Every CNS crew member is fully bilingual in French and English. This is a hiring requirement, not a claim we make about "most" of our team. Our project managers, crew leaders, and every crew member assigned to institutional and laboratory moves can communicate fluently in both languages. This ensures seamless coordination with every stakeholder — from your French-speaking building superintendent to your English-speaking lab director, and everyone in between. We are a Montreal company, headquartered in Ville Saint-Laurent — bilingualism is in our operational DNA.

Question 6: "Do You Provide Chain-of-Custody Documentation?"

Why It Matters

Chain-of-custody (CoC) documentation creates a continuous, auditable record of who had physical custody of your equipment and materials at every stage of the move. For many laboratory environments, this is not optional — it is a regulatory, accreditation, or institutional requirement.

Controlled substances. If your lab stores or uses controlled substances regulated by Health Canada, you are legally required to maintain chain-of-custody documentation during any transport. This includes scheduled pharmaceuticals, certain reagents, and radioactive materials. A mover who cannot provide CoC documentation is disqualifying you from compliance.

Accredited laboratories. Labs accredited by the Standards Council of Canada (SCC), the Canadian Association for Laboratory Accreditation (CALA), or operating under ISO 17025 must demonstrate that their equipment and reference materials were maintained under controlled conditions at all times — including during relocation. Without CoC documentation, your accreditation audit trail has a gap.

Grant-funded equipment. Equipment purchased with NSERC, CIHR, or CFI funding has specific inventory and custody requirements. If audited, you need to show that the equipment was tracked and accounted for during any move. CoC documentation is your evidence.

Legal and insurance protection. In the event of a damage claim, CoC documentation establishes exactly when and where damage may have occurred. Without it, you have no objective evidence — just competing narratives between your team and the mover's team. Insurance adjusters know this, and claim resolution without CoC documentation is significantly more difficult.

What Good CoC Documentation Includes

A complete chain-of-custody system should include: numbered and sealed packaging (tamper-evident bags or seals with unique identifiers), a manifest listing every item with descriptions, serial numbers, and condition notes, dual sign-off at origin (your representative and the crew leader), dual sign-off at destination, GPS-tracked transport linking the physical chain to location data, photographic documentation of condition at pickup and delivery, and a consolidated digital documentation package delivered within 48 hours of move completion.

CNS's Answer

Full 7-step chain-of-custody system. Every lab move conducted by CNS includes: (1) pre-move inventory with serial numbers and condition documentation, (2) numbered tamper-evident seal bags for small items and sensitive materials, (3) dual sign-off at origin — your representative and our crew leader, (4) GPS-tracked transport with 30-second location updates, (5) dual sign-off at destination, (6) photographic condition documentation at both ends, and (7) a consolidated digital documentation package delivered within 48 hours.

This system was developed specifically for institutional clients who require audit-ready documentation. It is standard on every laboratory move — not an upgrade or add-on. For more detail on how we approach lab relocations, read our complete lab moving Montreal guide.

Question 7: "Can You Handle Temperature-Controlled Transport?"

Why It Matters

Cold chain integrity is non-negotiable for laboratories that work with biological samples, reagents, cell cultures, enzymes, antibodies, or any temperature-sensitive materials. A single break in the cold chain can destroy samples that took years to collect, cultures that took months to grow, or reagents that cost thousands of dollars to procure.

The risk isn't limited to the obvious scenarios. Yes, a -80°C freezer that loses power for four hours during transport is a catastrophe. But so is a box of antibodies that sits in a 25°C truck bed for 90 minutes when it should have been at 4°C. So is a shipment of cell culture media that freezes because it was placed next to a dry ice container without adequate insulation. Temperature-controlled transport requires specific equipment, training, and monitoring — not good intentions and a cooler from Canadian Tire.

Montreal's climate adds another layer of complexity. In winter, the challenge is preventing freezing during the walk from building to truck. In summer, the challenge is preventing heat exposure. A qualified lab mover accounts for both and has the equipment to manage ambient temperature extremes in either direction.

What to Ask About Specifically

"Temperature-controlled transport" is a broad term. Get specific. Ask: What temperature ranges can you maintain during transport? What equipment do you use — gel packs, dry ice, portable freezers, liquid nitrogen dewars? Do you use continuous temperature monitoring with data loggers? Can you provide the temperature log as part of the post-move documentation? Have you transported materials requiring -80°C or colder?

A mover who says "we'll pack it in a cooler" is not equipped for laboratory cold chain transport. A mover who can describe their tiered system — which methods they use for which temperature ranges and why — is demonstrating real capability.

CNS's Answer

Tiered cold chain system covering the full range of laboratory temperature requirements:

• 2–8°C (standard refrigeration): Validated gel packs in insulated containers, monitored with digital data loggers recording every 60 seconds.
• -20°C (standard freezer): Dry ice packing with calculated sublimation rates based on transit time and ambient conditions.
• -78°C (dry ice range): High-density dry ice in insulated shipping containers, double-walled with thermal barriers.
• -80°C (ultra-low): Portable battery-backed -80°C freezer units for extended transit or when plug-in power is unavailable at staging areas.
• -196°C (liquid nitrogen): Liquid nitrogen dewars for cryopreserved materials — vitrified embryos, cell lines, tissue samples.

Every cold chain transport includes continuous temperature monitoring with data loggers. Temperature logs are included in the post-move documentation package. If any temperature excursion is detected during transport, our project manager is notified immediately and corrective action is taken before the excursion can compromise your materials.

For more on how we handle pharmaceutical and biotech lab environments specifically, see our guide on biotech pharma lab moving.

Question 8: "Do You Have After-Hours and Weekend Availability?"

Why It Matters

Laboratories cannot shut down during business hours for a move. Research protocols are running. Instruments are mid-cycle. Staff need access to remaining operational equipment. Patient samples are being processed. Clinical tests are being run.

The reality of lab moving is that most of the physical execution must happen during off-hours — evenings, weekends, and sometimes overnight. A mover who can only operate Monday to Friday, 8 AM to 5 PM, is fundamentally incompatible with laboratory relocation work. This isn't a convenience issue; it's an operational requirement dictated by the nature of the facility you're moving.

For hospital departments, this is even more critical. Patient care cannot be interrupted. Moves of clinical laboratories, imaging departments, or pharmacy operations must be staged around operational windows that the hospital defines — not the mover. If your mover can't start at 6 PM on a Friday and work through the weekend, they can't move a hospital department. It's that simple.

What to Clarify

"We're flexible" is not the same as "we have structured after-hours operations." Ask specifically: What are your earliest available start times? Can you execute a full weekend move from Friday evening through Sunday? Do you charge premium rates for after-hours work, and if so, what are they? Have you completed overnight moves for hospitals or 24-hour facilities?

CNS's Answer

Full after-hours and weekend availability as standard for institutional moves. CNS operates with start times as early as 5:00 AM — earlier than most competitors in Montreal. Weekend execution is standard protocol for laboratory and hospital department moving, not a special request that requires premium pricing negotiations.

Our operating hours — Monday/Thursday 6 AM–6 PM, Tuesday/Wednesday/Friday 5 AM–6 PM, Saturday 5 AM–5 PM — are designed around the needs of institutional clients. For complex lab moves that require overnight execution or extended weekend windows, we coordinate scheduling during the planning phase with your project stakeholders.

Question 9: "Do You Assign a Dedicated Project Manager?"

Why It Matters

A laboratory relocation is not a move — it's a project. It involves coordination across multiple workstreams running in parallel: equipment disconnection and reconnection sequences, IT infrastructure migration, vendor coordination (instrument service engineers, calibration companies, biosafety decontamination services), building management at both origin and destination, institutional facilities departments, and the research or clinical staff whose work is being disrupted.

A crew leader can manage the physical moving. They cannot simultaneously manage vendor scheduling, building access coordination, elevator booking across two sites, institutional stakeholder communication, and real-time problem-solving when the freight elevator at the destination breaks down at 7 PM on a Saturday.

A dedicated project manager is the single point of accountability who owns the entire relocation from planning through completion. They develop the move plan, coordinate all stakeholders, manage the timeline, and serve as the escalation point when something doesn't go according to plan — because something always doesn't go according to plan.

For complex institutional moves, the PM should be physically present on-site during execution, not managing remotely from an office. When the building engineer says the loading dock is unavailable because another contractor showed up without booking it, you need someone standing right there who can solve the problem in real time.

What to Ask

Ask for the PM's name before you sign the contract. Ask about their experience with lab relocations specifically. Ask whether they will be physically on-site during execution or managing remotely. Ask how status updates are communicated and how frequently. Ask what happens if a problem arises at 8 PM on a Saturday — who do you call?

CNS's Answer

Dedicated project manager assigned from planning through completion. Every CNS lab relocation is assigned a PM who manages the project end-to-end: planning meetings with your stakeholders, development of the detailed move plan, vendor and building coordination, and on-site oversight during physical execution.

Our PMs are physically present on-site during execution — not managing from a phone. They provide status updates every 30 minutes to your designated stakeholder during active move phases. After hours and on weekends, your PM is reachable directly by phone. Mr. Vermette, who leads our laboratory division, brings over 20 years of experience in specialized equipment logistics and personally oversees our most complex institutional relocations.

We believe project management is what separates a relocation from a move. It's a core part of why Montreal trusts CNS for their most sensitive equipment.

Question 10: "Can You Provide References from Montreal Research Institutions?"

Why It Matters

Anyone can build a website that says "laboratory moving specialists." Anyone can write a proposal that uses the right terminology. References are the only way to verify that a mover has actually completed the work they claim to be capable of.

For laboratory moves specifically, references are more important than for any other type of move because the consequences of incompetence are so severe. A general mover who drops a filing cabinet dents the cabinet. A mover who mishandles a cryogenic storage unit destroys a decade of biological research. The gap between adequate and inadequate is measured in institutional consequences that cannot be undone.

When you call references, ask specific questions: Did the mover maintain chain-of-custody documentation throughout the move? Were there any equipment damage incidents? How did they handle unexpected problems? Were they on time and within budget? Would you use them again? Did they provide a dedicated project manager? Were the crews bilingual?

Generic references ("we've moved offices for Company X") don't count. You need references from research institutions — organizations that had the same type of equipment, the same regulatory requirements, and the same zero-tolerance-for-error expectations that your lab has.

CNS's Answer

Verified institutional references available on request:

• McGill University — Faculty of Medicine equipment relocations
• Concordia University — Research laboratory moves
• LifeLabs Canada — Clinical laboratory relocations
• MGI Tech Canada — Genomics and sequencing equipment
• Ananda Devices — Precision scientific instrument transport

These are not aspirational claims — they are completed projects with contact references available to qualified prospective clients during the proposal process. We are proud of the institutional relationships we've built across Montreal's research community, and we encourage you to verify our capabilities directly with these organizations.

Our laboratory moving experience is also documented in our lab moving Montreal guide and our analysis of how to choose laboratory movers in Montreal.

Question 11: "How Do You Handle Biosafety Cabinet Decontamination?"

Why It Matters

Biosafety cabinets (BSCs) are among the most regulated pieces of equipment in any laboratory. Class II and Class III BSCs contain HEPA filters that may be contaminated with biological agents — potentially including pathogens classified as Risk Group 2, 3, or even 4 depending on the research conducted in the facility.

Moving an undecontaminated BSC is a serious safety violation. It exposes your moving crew, building occupants, the public, and the destination facility's staff to potential biological hazards. It also violates the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) biosafety guidelines and your institution's biosafety protocols.

Decontamination must be performed by a certified biosafety professional before the BSC is disconnected, sealed, and prepared for transport. The process typically involves formaldehyde gas decontamination or, increasingly, vaporized hydrogen peroxide (VHP) decontamination. Either way, it requires specialized training, equipment, and certification — and it must be completed and documented before a mover touches the unit.

This question is a litmus test. A mover who says "we can handle that" is either lying or doesn't understand the question. A mover who says "we coordinate with certified decontamination services and require a valid decontamination certificate before we move any BSC" understands laboratory work at the level required.

What the Right Answer Sounds Like

A qualified lab mover does not perform BSC decontamination themselves. That is not their role. What they do is: (1) flag BSCs during the planning phase, (2) confirm that decontamination is scheduled with a certified provider, (3) require a copy of the decontamination certificate before moving the unit, and (4) coordinate the timeline so that decontamination, disconnection, and transport happen in the correct sequence.

CNS's Answer

We do not move any biosafety cabinet without a valid decontamination certificate. This is an absolute rule with no exceptions.

During the planning phase, our project manager identifies all BSCs in the scope of the move. We work with your institution's biosafety officer to confirm that decontamination is scheduled and that the certified provider has the correct timeline. We require a copy of the decontamination certificate before our crew disconnects or moves any BSC.

We do not perform decontamination ourselves — that is the responsibility of certified biosafety professionals. Our role is to ensure the coordination is seamless and that no BSC is moved before it is safe to do so. This is one example of the protocol-driven approach that defines our laboratory and medical moving service.

Question 12: "What Is Your Minimum Notice for a Lab Move?"

Why It Matters

Rushed lab moves are dangerous lab moves. The planning phase exists for a reason — it's where your mover identifies risks, coordinates vendors, books building access, sequences the disconnection and reconnection of instruments, and develops contingency plans for the things that will inevitably not go as expected.

When a lab move is compressed into an unrealistic timeline, corners get cut. Biosafety decontamination gets skipped or rushed. Vendor coordination is inadequate. Building access windows are too tight. The crew doesn't have time to review equipment-specific handling procedures. The result is a higher probability of damage, safety incidents, and compliance failures.

A qualified lab mover will tell you honestly how much time they need — and they'll tell you honestly if your timeline is too compressed to execute safely. A mover who says "sure, we can do it next week" for a complex lab relocation is either not taking the job seriously or doesn't understand what's involved.

What Realistic Timelines Look Like

Straightforward lab moves (single room, standard equipment, no controlled substances, no BSCs): 4–6 weeks minimum from contract signing to execution.

Complex or regulated moves (multi-room, high-value instruments, controlled substances, BSCs, temperature-sensitive materials, multi-vendor coordination): 8–12 weeks minimum.

Large institutional relocations (entire departments, phased moves across multiple weeks, hospital or clinical laboratory environments): 3–6 months of planning before the first box is moved.

These timelines account for vendor scheduling (instrument service engineers often need 3–4 weeks' notice), building management coordination at both sites, institutional procurement and approval processes, and the development of a detailed move plan that all stakeholders have reviewed.

CNS's Answer

4–6 weeks minimum for straightforward lab moves. 8–12 weeks for complex or regulated moves. We are transparent about these timelines because they exist to protect your equipment, your research, and your team.

We do maintain emergency capacity for situations that genuinely cannot wait — but we will always be honest with you about whether a compressed timeline creates unacceptable risk. If we believe a timeline is too tight to execute safely, we will tell you so, and we will explain specifically what risks the compressed schedule creates. We would rather lose a contract than execute a move that compromises your laboratory.

For more on planning timelines and what to expect from a complex lab relocation, read our comprehensive lab moving Montreal guide.

The Scorecard: How Does Your Lab Mover Measure Up?

Here's the complete checklist in summary form. Use this as your evaluation scorecard when comparing prospective lab movers:

If your prospective lab mover can't answer yes to at least 10 of these 12 questions, they are not qualified for your move. The risk of hiring an under-qualified mover — in equipment damage, compliance failures, sample loss, and regulatory exposure — far exceeds any cost savings they might offer on paper.

CNS Logistics answers yes to all 12. Every one. That's not a marketing claim — it's a statement of operational fact, verifiable through our institutional references and documentation.

Ready to Move Your Lab with Confidence?

CNS Logistics ticks all 12 boxes. We've completed over 200 laboratory and medical equipment relocations across Montreal, including work for McGill, Concordia, LifeLabs, MGI Tech, and Ananda Devices. Our team is NIR licensed, carries $5M in insurance coverage, uses ESD-safe protocols, provides GPS tracking on every truck, operates bilingually, delivers full chain-of-custody documentation, and maintains cold chain capabilities from 2°C to -196°C.

We don't ask you to take our word for it. We ask you to verify every claim on this list — and we provide the documentation and references to let you do exactly that.

Get your free lab moving quote →

Call us directly: (514) 416-9610

CNS Logistics — Headquartered in Saint-Laurent, Montreal. Serving every research institution, hospital, university, and biotech company in Greater Montreal and across Canada for long-distance lab moves.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does it cost to move a laboratory in Montreal?

Laboratory moving costs in Montreal depend on the volume and value of equipment, the complexity of the move (controlled substances, cold chain requirements, multi-phase execution), and the distance between sites. A single-room lab with standard equipment might range from $5,000–$15,000. A multi-room facility with high-value instruments, cold chain requirements, and phased execution can range from $25,000–$100,000+. CNS provides detailed written estimates after a site assessment — get a free quote to start the process.

Can you move a lab in one day?

Simple single-room moves with standard equipment can sometimes be completed in one day. However, most laboratory moves — especially those involving sensitive instruments, controlled substances, or multi-room facilities — are staged over multiple days or weekends to minimize risk and ensure proper protocols are followed. Your CNS project manager will develop a realistic timeline during the planning phase.

What happens if equipment is damaged during the move?

CNS carries $5M in insurance coverage specifically structured for laboratory and medical equipment transport. In the rare event of damage, our chain-of-custody documentation, GPS tracking data, and photographic records provide the evidence needed for efficient claims resolution. Our claims process is transparent and documented — we work with you and our insurer to resolve any issues as quickly as possible.

Do you move controlled substances?

Yes. CNS maintains chain-of-custody documentation that satisfies Health Canada requirements for the transport of controlled substances. This includes numbered tamper-evident seals, dual sign-off at both origin and destination, and GPS-tracked transport. We coordinate with your institution's regulatory compliance team during the planning phase to ensure all documentation requirements are met.

How far in advance should I book a lab move?

For straightforward lab moves, 4–6 weeks minimum. For complex or regulated moves, 8–12 weeks. For large institutional relocations (entire departments or phased moves), 3–6 months. These timelines allow for proper vendor coordination, building access scheduling, and detailed move planning. Contact our Montreal movers as early as possible — earlier booking also provides more flexibility for scheduling execution during optimal windows.

Do you handle the disconnection and reconnection of lab equipment?

CNS handles the physical transport, staging, and placement of all laboratory equipment. For specialized instruments that require certified service engineers for disconnection and reconnection (mass spectrometers, sequencers, electron microscopes), we coordinate scheduling with the manufacturer's service team as part of our project management service. This ensures that disconnection, transport, and reconnection happen in the correct sequence without gaps. We also offer secure storage for equipment that needs to be staged between sites.