A 'Commercial' for 'Commercial Grade' Furniture

Over the years there have been a number of times when I have seen operators insist on using "residential" grade furniture and furnishings rather than the more expensive, heavy duty commercial furniture that is designed and built to commercial use. Sometimes this was because as the project was nearing completion there wasn't enough money for commercial furniture, or the furniture wasn't available in time, or because the decision maker "fell in love" with a residential chair or table.

Commercial grade furniture is made of thicker wood or metal and has more and heavier hardware and will stand up to the use and abuse it is likely to receive. That lovely chair purchased for the home is not used anywhere near as often as the one in the restaurant. Moving it around and people getting in and out of a chair do put a strain on the joints. And don't forget the abuse that commercial furniture might be subject to - use your own imagination as to what the staff might do with it . . .

So here is a simple case of a new owner trying to save money . . . This occurred at a barbeque restaurant in a southern state. The owner, who was new to the restaurant business, decided to furnish the outside dining area with picnic tables. The commercial tables were made of kiln dried western cedar, the wood had no knots and was quite thick, so the tables were hard to move. The commercial tables had heavy duty stainless steel bolts and the wood was pre-treated with a water-proofing product. And they were expensive.

One of the "big box" hardware stores had some residential grade tables on sale for less than 1/3 of the cost of the commercial tables. The wood was pine, with lots of knots and much thinner, so the tables were lighter and easier for the staff to move. There was no factory applied weather proofing and no warranty. The six foot tables and attached benches were listed as seating six with a maximum weight of 400 lbs. per side.

The owner bought a bunch of tables and put them on the outside dining patio and had the staff apply a waterproofing product. The tables were not identified in any way. When there was a large party that needed a bigger table, the staff would drag a couple together. If a customer thought the table to sunny or shady, they would drag them to a slightly different location.

When a table became too wobbly, or a board cracked or broke, the staff would drag the table behind a fence and the restaurant's handyman would do what he could to repair the tables - adding more or bigger screws or a new board here and there as needed. No records were kept of which tables were repaired, when or what was done to them. Some tables were too far gone to be repaired, so the table would be scrapped and a new one purchased from the big box store where they got the tables in the first place. No records were kept of which tables were new and which were old or of how many had been replaced over the years.

Along came a party of five and selected one of the tables. They sat and waited for their meal to be delivered. It was, and as they were finishing, the board on the side with three cracked at a very large knot hole. The person sitting by the knot hole fell to the ground and jammed her spine. The restaurant offered to call an ambulance, but she declined because she was on a day trip about three hours from home with family members. The next morning she woke up with terrible pains in her back and hips and she had difficulty walking . . .

An accident re-constructor/structural engineer was hired by the injured party's lawyer to determine the cause of the accident. He determined that the board that was used to make the bench was weakened by the presence of the knot holes (there were multiple knot holes) and that the board wasn't strong enough to carry the weight of the two adults and one teenager who sat on it. He also found that that the handyman had replaced damaged or missing screws with larger ones and that might have contributed to a weakening of the table. He found evidence of water damage on many of the restaurant's tables.

Wheelwright Consultants was asked to comment of the appropriateness of the initial selection of the tables and their maintenance. We opined that the use of residential grade furniture was inappropriate to a commercial business. That it was not designed nor built to the level of use, wear and tear, or the weight of potential customers. Furthermore, the lack of a routine and documented inspection and repair program meant that the operator could not guarantee the tables and attached benches were safe for guest use. [We have been consulted on other cases where furniture fails injured a guest . . . ]

The injured individual sustained permanent damage and has incurred thousands of dollars in medical bills. The restaurant will very likely end up with a bill that will be far, far greater than their savings on the costs of the tables. Another case of pennywise and dollar foolish.

Our suggestions to you:

1) Do your research and develop a budget that will allow you to purchase and install furniture that is designated as "commercial grade". That will protect your guests and your business.

2) Develop an inspection and maintenance program and keep records to prove your due diligence to keep guests safe.

Don't know how to specify, select, and purchase commercial furnishing or aren't sure about setting up a maintenance program - you don't need to reinvent the wheel, just call us and we can help.

Posted: to Latest Wheelwright News on Thu, Sep 10, 2020
Updated: Thu, Sep 10, 2020