Blog posts from October, 2012

At National Event Supply, we pride ourselves on being a stocking warehouse. What this means is that we try to keep everything but our special order items in stock. This way if you need a table, you're not waiting a month for one to arrive from China. To keep items in stock, we're always monitoring inventory levels, examining outstanding quotes, and listening to what our customers are saying so that we can anticipate their needs. Sometimes though, we get suprised by the demand for a particular items and unfortunately run out of stock.

Until last week, when our container came in, we were sold out of our NES Reliable Blow-Mold Stacking Chairs. The Blow-Mold Stacking Chair is a relatively new chair for us. We've only had it in inventory for a little over a year, and sales have just started taking off. The Blow-Mold Stacking Chair is unbelievably comfortable over long periods, while being strong and durable. Unlike banquet chairs, where you can cut the fabric or vinyl, the Blow-Mold Stacking Chairs have no vinyl or upholstrey to cut, burn, or otherwise mutilate. Blow-Mold Stacking Chairs are made of the same strong and durable material as our NES Reliable Plastic Folding Tables, and have passed a 6 inch, 275 pound drop test and are capable of holding static weights in excess of 500 pounds.

Click to enlarge pictures.

We also received a shipment of our NES Reliable Blow-Mold Folding Chairs. The Blow-Mold Folding Chairs are, like the Blow-Mold Stacking Chairs, manufactured from the same heavy-duty plastic and steel as our NES Reliable Plastic Folding tables. This combination of high-quality plastic and heavy-duty steel tubing forms the basis for the strongest folding chair that we sell. Blow-Mold Folding Chairs are just as comfortable as their stacking sibling, and as strong as well. Blow-Mold Folding Chairs were exposed to the same 6 inch, 275 pound drop test as the Blow-Mold Stacking Chair, and passed with flying colours. We also carry a Blow-Mold Folding Chair Cart to help move up to 30 of these chairs from event to event.

Our next container should be arriving near the end of the month, and should have a load of NES Reliable Bar-Height Plastic Folding Chairs. If you have any questions about the Blow-Mold Stacking Chair, the Blow-Mold Folding Chair, or any of our other fine products, our sales reps would be happy to answer them!

Port Image courtesy of samarttiw / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

National Event Supply has been an associate member of the Canadian Rental Association ever since my partner and I bought the business from the previous owners. We see the value in belonging to a trade-group dedicated to the rental industry and recently became a member of the CRA Ontario Board of Directors to help out anyway that we can.

One of the big advantages of belonging to the CRA, is the talks that you can take part in. Tomorrow, I'll be going to the CRA Ontario October Meeting in Newmarket to hear Manuel Parreira of the Bank of Canada speak on Currency Education. Manuel Parreira is the Senior Regional representative for the Ontario Regional Office. He is responsible for ensuring the delivery of the Bank of Canada's currency education program.

When I was out in Edmonton for the Alberta Foodservice Expo, our booth was right next to the Bank of Canada's booth where they were passing out information about the new Canadian bank notes. While the hundred dollar note and the fifty dollar note are currently in circulation, the big change will be occuring next month when the new polymer twenty dollar note enters circulation.

So what changes have been made to the $20 bill? To start, they are made of polymer (plastic). Instead of the the paper/cloth feel of the existing $20 bills, these will be a smooth, single piece of polymer with transparent areas. These see-through areas of the bill will have a detailed metallic portrait and an image of the peace tower in Ottawa. The bills will also have raised ink on the large 20 on the front of the bill, the queen's top, and on the words the Banque du Canada and Bank of Canada. There is also a frosted maple leaf window, which is again transparent. If you would like to find out more about the new polymer bills, I would highly recommend checking out the Bank of Canada's website.

The informative monthly meetings and networking are not the only benefits of membership in the CRA. The CRA also runs an insurance program that covers the following items:

• Property Insurance
• Rental Equipment Off-Premises Insurance
• Liability Insurance
• Business Interruption
• Crime
• Equipment Breakdown
• Equipment Re-Rental
• Theft by Conversion Coverage

This is an incredible insurance program if you're in the rental industry. Because the CRA runs the program, costs are kept low and they understand the business that you're in. If you're interested in learning more about this insurance coverage, or would like more information about the program, I'd recommend checking out the CRA's page on the insurance program.

When we started planning for our expansion in Vancouver, we thought we'd start small. We'd start by stocking plastic folding tables in Vancouver, and then we'd stock wood folding tables in Vancouver, and then we'd stock plastic folding chairs in Vancouver. It didn't take us long to realize that we also needed to stock white resin folding chairs in Vancouver. So that's what we did. We stocked our NES Reliable Plastic Folding Chairs, Plastic Folding Tables, White Resin Folding Chairs, and Wood Folding Tables in our Vancouver warehouse at the beginning of August.

Since then, things have been going very well. We're getting new customers who are happy with the quick shipping turn-around and improving shipping times for existing customers that had been buying from our Toronto warehouse. As to be expected with any new endeavour, there were a few growing pains, but we have them all ironed out now, and we're ready to meet your table and chair needs for the rest of the year and heading into next spring.

We have since added two additional products to the mix in Vancouver. In the past month, we had several calls about table carts, and their availability in Vancouver. We're happy to announce that we now have round folding table carts and rectangular tables carts now available in our Vancouver warehouse.

NES Round Table Carts are 32.5 inches wide and are able to get through most standard-sized doors. They are light grey in colour and have a storage area that is 30 inches wide and will hold 10-14, 48 inch, 60 inch, or 72 inch round plywood or plastic folding tables. The NES Round Folding Table Cart features 4 swiveling wheels allowing for easier manoeuvering when the cart is full or empty.

Click to enlarge pictures.

NES Rectangular Table Carts are also 32.5 inches wide and are also able to get through most standard-sized doors. Depending on the size of folding table you are moving, the NES Rectangular Table Cart can be 76 inches or 100.25 inches long. The storage area of the table cart will hold 12 to 18, 72 inch, or 96 inch rectangular wood or plastic folding tables. In addition, the NES Rectangular Folding Table Cart also features 4 swiveling wheels.

Our table carts have been a strong seller from our Toronto warehouse and we have no doubts that they will sell briskly from our Vancouver warehouse. If you have any questions about our NES Round Table Carts, our NES Rectangular Table Carts, or any of our wood or plastic folding tables, please feel free to ask us any questions that you may have.

"Vancouver Skyline And Stanley Park" courtesy of Rosemary Ratcliff / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

With my family living out west, out east and in Taiwan, I spend a lot of holidays with my roommate’s family. Normally this involves a trip to the family house just down the street. This year, however, we spent Thanksgiving at The Keg, as the kitchen and bathrooms have been torn up for renovations. There were only six of us so we were seated at a 60 inch round table in front of a fireplace. What a great setting!

We had our dinner and lots of conversations about work, technology, diets, television, and our plans for the week and what we had accomplished the preceeding week. Everyone had a great time and the wine and conversation flowed freely.

When we got home, my roommate commented on how nice it was that we had a round table like that. Normally when we have a larger group for a get together, we get seated around a long rectangular table. These longer tables are not as conducive to conversation, and only rarely do you get a chance to speak to someone at the other end of the table. The last time we were at a restaurant, there were more of us and we were seated at a long rectangular table. That night, there were two or three conversations going on, and I only very briefly spoke with people sitting on the far end of the table from me.

It's not only at restaurants that round tables make a big difference. I've been to weddings where we were seated at round folding tables and weddings where we were seated at rectangular folding tables. At both weddings I was sat with the same group of people (gotta love your cousins) and I felt like I had a better visit with my cousins when we were seated around the round table.

If you've never worked with round folding tables, here are 4 things to keep in mind:

1. There are round plastic folding tables and round wood folding tables. Good-quality plastic folding tables can be just as strong as a good-quality wood folding table. Ask about weight ratings, and the materials used in the construction (plywood vs chipboard with a plywood veneer). Usually the big difference is in the weight of the table. Our 60 inch NES Reliable Round Plastic Folding Table weighs 40lbs. Our 60 inch NES Round Wood Folding Table weighs 58lbs.

2. A round folding table requires two feet of space around it for chairs and an additional 1 foot for aisles. When planning out how many tables you need, or how many tables will fit in a facility, it is important that you account for space around the tables for chairs and for an aisle. A 60 inch (5-foot) round folding table will require a 120 inch (10-foot) diameter circle of space. This is a standard guideline for round tables. Please note, however, that some jurisdictions may require more space between tables.

3. 60 inch (5-foot) Round Folding Tables are the most popular size of round table. 60 inch Round Folding tables are by far the most popular size of round table. They seat eight comfortably for sit-down dinner service and are not so large and unwieldy that they are difficult to move. Most tablecloths are designed for 60 inch Round Tables, as are most table skirts.

4. 48 inch Round Tables will seat 6-8, 60 inch Round Tables will seat 8-10, and 72 inch Round Tables will seat 10-12. If you are planning for a sit down meal, be it buffet or served at the table, you should use the smaller number as your guideline. If you are serving light refreshments, you can use the larger number as a guide. Keep in mind, if you seat 10 people around a 60 inch round table, you are giving each person 18 inches of table space. With 8 people around a 60 inch table, everyone gets 23.5 inches of table space.

Turkey Image courtesy of debspoons / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

We've been selling our NES Reliable lines of Plastic Folding Tables and Chairs for more than five years and each year we've seen increased sales. Much like with our Plastic Folding Tables, we also get asked daily about the cost of our Plastic Folding Chairs. And like with our plastic folding tables, there is the easy answer (pricelist) and the more complicated answer (why the big difference).

Traditional Samsonite plastic folding chairs typically cost between $8.95 and $19.99 each. Unlike plastic folding tables however, plastic folding chairs with a subpar weight rating can be dangerous for anyone looking to use them. So while some consumers can likely survive with a plastic folding table that has a subpar weight rating, the same is not true for plastic folding chairs. The three key factors in the strength of a plastic folding chair is the use of recycled plastic in the construction of the chair, the limited value of a static rating, and the importance of drop test results.

Many consumer focused companies are proud to say that their plastic folding chairs have a certain percentage of recycled material in the hopes of gaining a green reputation. Many others will hide the fact that their chairs have recycled content because they are worried commercial buyers will avoid their products like the plague. In the case of plastic folding chairs it is extremely important to avoid recycled content. If the manufacturer uses recycled plastic to produce their plastic folding chairs, the chairs will be brittle which means they will crack and break quickly. New virgin plastic on the other hand allows the chair to flex further without breaking and results in a folding chair that is very strong, more durable and not brittle. So why do some manufacturers use recycled plastic then? It all comes down to cost. It is much less expensive to produce a chair using recycled plastic than it is using new plastic.

Static weight ratings are in many cases something else to watch out for. Many companies will have spectacular static weight ratings that frankly fall short in reality. You want to look for a weight rating that is in the 300-350lb range. If they claim higher you should consider asking more questions about the product, especially if the price seems too good to be true (as the saying goes, it normally is to good to be true).

Drop test results are something that is very important to consider when buying plastic folding chairs. The BIFMA standard is 225lbs from 6" above the seat. In the case of the NES Reliable Plastic Folding Chairs, this is the exact test that has been done, and the chair will not fail. Some manufacturers have even stepped up with chairs rated for a 275lb test from 6" above the chair. This is no doubt a very impressive feat for a plastic folding chair however those chairs also come at a premium price.

All of these factors are important to consider when purchasing a plastic folding chair for your church, facility or for your business to rent. If you buy a plastic folding chair that meets all of these requirements, that is:

• Contains only virgin plastic
• Has a static weight rating of 300-350lbs
• Has passed the BIFMA 225lbs drop test

Not only will you be purchasing a more durable plastic folding chair that will last longer, but there is less chance they will fail when someone sits on them.