Must-Know Tips for Receiving FF&E Shipments [Infographic]
Receiving FF&E shipments is a far more complex process than meets the eye. With ever-changing delivery schedules and plenty of outside parties involved, detailed planning is critical. Follow these guidelines for FF&E deliveries to enhance your methods and efficiency.
Be Prepared
Before your FF&E deliveries arrive, you must prepare and be ready. You’ll need to make sure you have plenty of help on-hand, whether that be hotel staff or project team members, to offload product and place or install. All parties should be fully aware of when deliveries will take place, which items the shipments contain, and exactly how many of each product are in the purchase order. Most trucking companies allot two hours for unloading, so you must have enough people to make the process go quickly and not exceed the time limit.
Having the appropriate equipment on-site is another major component of receiving. Determine whether products will require offloading accessories such as forklifts or rug pulls in advance and make sure they’re available at the time of FF&E delivery.
Monitor Project Status, Communicate, & Adjust
There’s a whole bevy of unforeseen circumstances that can impact the status and timeline of your hotel project. While you may not be able to predict setbacks, you can minimize casualties by keeping a close eye on all aspects of your project and acting swiftly when they occur. All project team members should engage in frequent communication on their status, as delays in even a single component of your project will have a domino effect, potentially affecting appropriate timing for product receiving. If any projected dates change, you will need to update delivery appointments and scheduled contractors or equipment to account for this shift to safeguard FF&E shipments from arriving too soon or too late.
Protect Yourself
When dealing with outside parties such as manufacturers and delivery trucks, you should take precautions for any missteps on their end, so you don’t experience the brunt of any potential errors.
Set Up Delivery Appointments
Some vendors may ship an order as soon as it’s ready without first looking at the requested delivery timing on purchase orders. This means that you’ll obtain product before the expected timeframe and might not have the right arrangements in place to properly receive them. Delivery appointments act as an agreement between hoteliers, manufacturers, and delivery trucks that a shipment will arrive at a predetermined time. This contract allows hoteliers to refuse deliveries should they appear off schedule, so project teams aren’t left scrambling to handle an FF&E shipment they were unprepared to receive.
Inspect Merchandise ASAP
From missing items to damages, FF&E products don’t always show up in proper condition or quantities. Realizing there’s an issue with your order too late can result in project setbacks or even trouble getting manufacturers to replace items. Protect yourself from these complications by doing a thorough inspection of all shipments prior to signing for them. If you notice a discrepancy in your order, take pictures of boxes and items for proof of quality errors and communicate this to your vendor immediately so that a timely resolution may take place.
The right preparation and planning paired with great communication from all project team members will go a long way in making the FF&E receiving process a smooth one. Feeling overwhelmed? Innvision Hospitality’s end-to-end procurement services feature dedicated specialists such as our project logistics department and FF&E installation providers to simplify your FF&E deliveries. Reach out today for assistance on your next project!
