Carolina Mobile Storage (CMS) has begun offering service to Moore County businesses and residents.

Mobile storage is a relatively new service offered by the moving and storage industry. Containers are delivered to customers' locations and, when the customer has finished packing them, picked up and stored or delivered to a new location.

CEO Alyce S. Lee said the new company would be able to deliver its containers at a cheaper price because it was local and did not have to come from Raleigh, Fayetteville or Greensboro, where most of its competitors are located.

"While the delivery cost saving is significant, we believe that the convenience of storing locally is an even more compelling factor," she said. "We're a locally owned and operated company, so our customers don't have to deal with a call center thousands or miles away or even if in a different country that may not be responsive to their needs. If there is a problem we are just up the road and a real person will be helping you."

CMS will offer a variety of sizes including 16 by 8 feet, 12 by 8 and 5 by 8.

Customers can save up to 50 percent compared to traditional long-distance moving companies' expense by using CMS's disposable containers, the company said in a news release.

Made from tough corrugated cardboard, the containers hold between a room and a room and a half and are designed to fit easily in most garages for packing convenience. They come with plastic covers, swing doors and can be thrown away when the move is finished or used for indoor storage in a garage, attic or basement.

The containers are shipped by CMS via a common carrier to a facility operated by a Mobile Self-Storage Association member near a destination city and then delivered to the customer's final location.

CMS is located at the new Carolina Storage Centers location on U.S. 1 South in Vass.