Blog posts tagged with 'golf courses'

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

Since I started working at National Event Supply in 2010, we've shipped products across Canada and the United States. We've shipped tables and chairs to Nunavut in the North, and Aruba in the South. We've shipped dinnerware and cutlery to Vancouver, BC and St. John's Newfoundland. Most of the time, there are no problems. The products arrive on time, with no damage. On other occasions, products are lost or are damaged in transit.

When we find out that products are damaged in transit, we typically file a claim with the shipping company. As part of the claims process, the shipping company will refer to the bill of lading. If the customer has signed the bill of lading and has not indicated that there was any damage, the shipping company will typically deny the claim, as there was no damage indicated. This is why skids that ship from our warehouse in Toronto now have stickers on them that read "Inspect for Damage Before Accepting". But what should you be looking for?

4 Things to Look for Before Signing for your Order

Is the plastic skid wrap still intact?

National Event Supply wraps all skids in plastic wrap. For orders coming out of our Mississauga warehouse, we use a black wrap. Indianapolis and Vancouver both use clear wrap. The wrap should be tightly pulled around the products, and there should not be any tears or rips.

Is the pallet damaged?

If the pallet is falling apart or has noticeable damage, take a closer look at the whole skid. It could be that the skid was damaged while it was being loaded or unloaded at the shippers' depots.

Are there any dents or indentations on any of the boxes?

Take a look at the boxes on the skid. If there are holes or a corner is bashed in, then the skid may have been damaged in transit.

Is the skid leaning to one side, or does it look like it could topple over?

If the contents have shifted during shipping, there is a chance that the products within may be damaged.

Click to enlarge pictures.

What to Do if Your Order Arrives Damaged

If you discover that your order is potentially damaged in the course of your inspection, here is what you should do:

Take pictures of the damage while the driver is there. If you can take pictures of the skid on the truck that's even better.

This allows us to show the carrier that the product was damaged while they were responsible for it. It is important that the pictures of the skid are taken before the skid is broken down.

Write down on the Bill of Lading the exact damage that you have discovered and that you will be filing a claim

Be as specific as possible. If the corner is bashed in on the box that is third from the bottom, write that down. The more detail that we can give the shipping company claims department the better. Write down all the damage that you document with pictures.

Don't use the damaged product. Leave it in its box.

If the product is damaged, then you cannot use it. Let us know so that we can get replacement product out to you. Also, make sure that you keep the damaged product in its box at your facility so that if the claims adjuster wants to inspect it he can. If you return the product to us, the claims adjuster can dismiss the claim

Let us know and we will start the claims procedure.

The sooner you email or call us and let us know about the damage, the sooner we can get the ball rolling on the claims process. We'll need the photos that you have taken so we can give them to the shipping company and we'll need to know what happened when the shipping company arrived with your product.

As I wrote earlier, most of the time nothing goes wrong, the products arrive on time and in pristine condition. For those times that they don't however, it is important that you know what you're signing for. It's important to "Inspect for Damage Before Accepting".

As summer slowly draws to a close, we'd like to formally introduce a table that we've had in the warehouse since the spring. Like our NES Reliable Rectangular Plastic Fold in Half Tables, the 6FT NES Reliable Rectangular Plastic Folding Table with Adjustable Table Legs are another extension of our incredibly popular line of plastic tables. Currently available in a 6-ft length, 6FT NES Reliable Rectangular Plastic Folding Table with Adjustable Table Legs are constructed of the same material as our regular Rectangular Plastic Folding Tabes, but have an an easy-to-use adjustable leg system. The telescoping legs allow the table to go from normal height to bar height in seconds.

For locations without dedicated bar facilities, the NES Reliable Rectangular Plastic Folding Table with Adjustable Table Legs can be set up at it's full height to provide a temporary bar. If an additional banquet table is required, simply adjust the legs and your bar is now a normal banquet table. An if later you need a table that's just a little bit higher for task work, you can set the table to one of the two other intermediate heights. This table easily transform to whatever height you need without removeable parts or tools. And no matter the height the table is always stable and sturdy.

Click to enlarge pictures.

6-ft NES Reliable Rectangular Plastic Folding Table with Adjustable Table Legs are as durable as our normal 6-ft NES Reliable Rectangular Plastic Folding Tables and come with the exact same 2-year warranty as our normal plastic banquet tables.

We opened our warehouse in Indianapolis last year in the early spring and with the Douglass group helping our sales efforts from their Indianapolis head office, we have slowly been building our success in the US Midwest market. While the Douglass group have direct sales staff covering Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Wisconsin, Kentucky and West Virginia, we often ship to many other nearby states.

Now, less than 18 months later, we are growing our Canada/US presence once again. We have been thinking about this for quite a while now and had considered starting earlier this year but were concerned with everything that was happening in Europe. Now 6 months later, not much has changed in Europe (the economy is still as shaky as before) but we have decided it was time to bite the bullet and start warehousing some of our best-selling NES Reliable Plastic Folding Tables, plastic folding chairs and NES Wood Folding Tables in Vancouver.

We regularly get calls from across western Canada and in particular, BC and Alberta. While we get great shipping rates and ship coast to coast across Canada as well as into the far north (and of course throughout the US), shipping from Toronto usually takes a week and many of our western Canada Customers often need the product today or tomorrow. We provide same day and next day service throughout the Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal corridor and have felt this type of responsiveness was also needed for Vancouver and lower mainland area. Shipping to Calgary and Edmonton will be just 2 days (versus the 3 to 5 days it takes from Toronto).

What products will NES be warehousing in Vancouver?

We are starting off with a range of our best-selling NES Reliable Plastic folding tables and folding chairs as well as our most popular NES Wood folding tables. Over time we hope to expand the range to offer most of what we have available in Toronto as far as tables and chairs are concerned and later in 2013 we would like start stocking our popular Quadrato, Ovali and Hotelier dinnerware lines, our porcelain platters and bowls and some of our best-selling cutlery lines.

Our first shipments are arriving into the Locher Evers warehouse with the following expected schedule:

August 3rd

• 6ft and 8ft NES Reliable Rectangular Plastic Folding Tables
• 60 inch NES Reliable Round Plastic Folding Tables
• Tall NES Reliable Round Plastic Folding Cocktail Table

August 8th

• NES Wood Folding Tables, 4ft, 6ft and 8ft folding Banquet tables
• NES Wood Folding Tables, 48 inch, 60 inch and 72 inch round folding tables

August 9th

• NES Reliable White Wedding-Style Resin Folding Chairs (and Black)
• NES Folding Chair Carts

August 10th

• NES Reliable Series 3000 Plastic Folding Chairs in Black on Black, White on White, Grey on Grey, and Burgundy on Grey (additional colours will come later in the fall)
• 72 inch NES Reliable Round Blow Mold Folding Tables

Since we’re doing business with some very large companies in the movement of our products, these arrival date may slip a little. If there is something you are interested in picking up right away, give us a call and we can give you the latest information on when it is expected to arrive into the warehouse.

Where is the warehouse located?

We are warehousing our product with our strategic partner Locher Evers International and their sister company Westcon Terminals. The warehouse is conveniently located in the Annacis Business Park at the following address. This is located at the Alex Fraser Bridge and highway #91 with quick and easy on and off access.

456 Humber Place,
Annacis Business Park
New Westminster, BC
V3M 6A5

How do you order from the New Vancouver Warehouse?

The same as you always do, you can send us an email, call us at 905-795-1667 or toll free at 800-827-8953, or fill out one of our contact forms on our website and we would be pleased to help you. We already have well established relationships with national carriers for shipping and we’ll be able to provide you with even more cost effective shipping options now that we can ship from Vancouver to BC, Alberta and Washington State. For Saskatchewan and Manitoba, we’ll figure out which shipping options (Vancouver or Toronto) are the most cost effective.

Can I pick-up at the Warehouse?

Absolutely, we just need 24 hours notice so we can have the warehouse pull your order and get it ready for pick-up the next day in the afternoon. For larger orders, we’ll need to know the type of vehicle you’re picking up with so we can either have the skid of tables/chairs shrink wrapped or ready for hand loading. Rush pick-ups can also be accommodated but hopefully your customers aren’t always leaving changes to the last minute.

Click to enlarge pictures.

We loaded up one of our NES Reliable White Resin Folding Chairs with 12 cases of our Maria 18/10 Table Knives. If you`ve ever handled cases of cutlery you`ll know these can be pretty heavy. Each case of our Maria Table Knives contains 15 dozen knives and weigh a little more than 40lbs each. We weighed each of the cases and the weights ranged from a low of 40.25lbs to a high of 41.25lbs for a total weight 483.4lbs. We left the 12 cases of Maria Table Knives on the chair seat for about 15 minutes in total. It is interesting to note that the only stress noises we heard and saw came from the cardboard boxes holding the cutlery and not our chair. As you can see from the pictures we had to tape the boxes together to make sure that they would stay on the chair and not fall over.

Before performing this informal test, we felt positive that our chair would not just survive the test, but would fare no ill effects from the weight that was piled on. After performing this informal test, we feel we can confidently say that our NES Reliable White Resin Folding chairs will hold people who weigh up to 500lbs.