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How does your foam come to you?

Started by sofadoc, December 24, 2013, 01:20:22 pm

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sofadoc

Normally, I get my foam from a supply truck that delivers it UN-shrunk.

Today, I got some in that the client ordered herself. It came to me shrink-wrapped.

Damn! There must be 10 bucks worth of plastic wrapping here:


The Dacron was the same way. I'm not sure if all the wrinkles are going to pop out or not.

Do you guys get your foam/Dacron this way?
"Perfection is the greatest enemy of profitability" - Mark Cuban

jojo

December 24, 2013, 02:07:29 pm #1 Last Edit: December 24, 2013, 02:10:35 pm by jojo
Yes, my foam is always vacuum packed, without too much plastic, though. After you cut the plastic off, you should let it puff up for a whole day before you use it. Also, there isn't usually a box, they just wrap it in heavy plastic and get it as small as they can.
Great movie. Half way through I got up for some popcorn.

MinUph

Luckily our shop shares a building with our supplier. No sucked down foam for us. But I have gotten it this way. Some of it takes days to recover. But it saves a lot a shipping.
Paul
Minichillo's Upholstery
Website

sofadoc

Quote from: jojo on December 24, 2013, 02:07:29 pm
Great movie. Half way through I got up for some popcorn.
:D OK, I realize it was somewhat lacking in plot or sub-plot, but I thought it "flowed" well. And the climax was well worth the wait. ;)
"Perfection is the greatest enemy of profitability" - Mark Cuban

bobbin

My supplier isn't very far away.  I coordinate visits to marinas/customers and pick it up myself.  They roll it and contain it with a brown paper "cummerbund".  I ask them to skip the plastic bag and vacuum packing.  I unroll it as soon as I get home (and use the brown paper for patterns or to start a fire in the shop stove).  If it's still looking curled I steam it out.  And add the time to customer's bill.  Only steaming will return seriously scrunched foam/Dacron to a reliably stable size. 

(when I've had too many rolls to fit in my ride without vacuum packing, I ask them to NOT cut off the end of the bag.  I have reused some of those bags 6-7 times!) 

Bainbridge and TriVantage need to wise up with the heavy use of plastic (and they need to get an acrylic scrap recycling program in place)!  Any reps. reading this???  (MiamiMike please take note!)

Mike

December 24, 2013, 04:11:03 pm #5 Last Edit: December 24, 2013, 04:13:16 pm by Mike
wow never vacuum packed but  rolled with plastic.

kodydog

Gotta watch that shrink wrapped Dacron. Our supplier started sending it this way and it left little wrinkles in it.

When used on a cushion, you couldn't see them but could feel them when you rubbed your hand across the fabric. Steam didn't help. We never got a complaint but I just knew it was a matter of time.

When I questioned the supplier he said his supplier delivered it this way to be able to put more into the truck. This way reducing costs. He said to unwrap the bails as soon as they were delivered but this didn't seem to help.

I guess I wasn't the only one complaining because he soon stopped delivering it this way. And yes price went up a little. 
There cannot be a crisis next week. My schedule is already full.
http://northfloridachair.com/index.html

sofadoc

Quote from: kodydog on December 24, 2013, 07:29:31 pm
Gotta watch that shrink wrapped Dacron. Our supplier started sending it this way and it left little wrinkles in it.
The video that I posted above was just one of 5 boxes of foam and Dacron that I busted open today. I've heard that load of crap before "Just cut it open as soon as it comes in......it'll pop right out". I don't think that Dacron will ever fully recover from being shrunk.

The FedEx guy said he almost didn't even try to deliver it to me today because he didn't think I would be open. That means it would've stayed shrunk for at least 2 more days.

I know that suppliers say that shrinking drastically reduces shipping costs. But my regular delivery truck delivers to me un-shrunk. And he does it at the best prices that are available anywhere around here.

He has a huge refrigerated truck. He delivers fruits and vegetables to North Carolina, and then loads up foam and Dacron there and delivers it to shops all along his way back home to south Texas. 
"Perfection is the greatest enemy of profitability" - Mark Cuban

Mojo

Reminds me of when the wife and I ordered a new mattress 2 years ago. It was a memory foam bed 15 inches thick. It came from Sam's in a huge box and was sealed inside a huge plastic bag. That box weighed a ton.

I got it centered into the room and just before I cut the bag I told the wife to get out of the way. I cut the bag and ran like hell thinking it would explode open. It didn't. Directions said to let it sit for 24-48 hours before using.

Most comfortable bed I have ever owned BTW. :)

Chris

Grebo

I am lucky, since we moved I now have a industrial supplier who cuts it off huge blocks delivered to them, so I pick it up in the van & just roll / ram it in, take it out 2 minutes later.

Suzi

Darren Henry

If we get a chance to buy "off the truck" it is roll of the dice if it will vac-packed, other wise it's in that inside bag from Doc's video in a heavier plastic bag. The sooner you can open them the better, especially Dacron.
Life is a short one way trip, don't blow it!Live hard,die young and leave no ill regrets!

JuneC

My suppliers are local so nothing gets shrunk or boxed, but in the past I've bought long-distance and the foam seems to recover pretty well, but dacron never does.  Those wrinkles are in there for life. 

June
"Horse sense is the thing a horse has which keeps it from betting on people."

     W. C. Fields

kodydog

Quote from: sofadoc on December 24, 2013, 01:20:22 pm

Damn! There must be 10 bucks worth of plastic wrapping here:



With all the money they're spending on plastic and labor wrapping it, wouldn't it be cheaper to ship it un-shrunk?
There cannot be a crisis next week. My schedule is already full.
http://northfloridachair.com/index.html

MinUph

Quote from: kodydog on December 28, 2013, 03:32:25 pm
Quote from: sofadoc on December 24, 2013, 01:20:22 pm

Damn! There must be 10 bucks worth of plastic wrapping here:



With all the money they're spending on plastic and labor wrapping it, wouldn't it be cheaper to ship it un-shrunk?


Shipping cost way outweigh the cost to wrao it.  No pun intended.
Paul
Minichillo's Upholstery
Website