The Transportation and Delivery of Your Steel Building: What You Need to Know
If you have recently purchased a steel building, you should be in contact with your steel building manufacturer or supplier to ensure that you understand all aspects of the delivery process of your building. Your building will be delivered to your job site once the design and fabrication has been completed at the factory. Delivery is normally handled by a third-party carrier, although some steel building companies will deliver using their own trucks. The building order documentation determines the delivery arrangements for your structure. Any special accommodations needed for shipping must be determined before purchase of the building, as these may affect the overall price. Any changes in shipping arrangements made close to the time of scheduled shipment can be expensive for you, the purchaser.
The factory that ships the building will be responsible for all shipping arrangements. A common carrier is going to be the most likely mode of transportation. The carrier will be responsible for the receipt of your steel building at the factory and the subsequent transport and delivery of your structure in good and complete order to your job site. Unless you have given written authorization to a subcontractor at your work site, it is your responsibility to receive all of the materials.
The steel building supplier will normally be responsible for all of the shipping arrangements to the address specified on the building’s shipping order. You should confirm the correct shipping address with the manufacturer/factory a few weeks prior to shipment. It is your responsibility to ensure that the proper delivery address is stipulated.
It is also your responsibility to specify a date for shipping upon finalizing the purchase contract with the steel building manufacturer or supplier. The design, rigging, fabrication, and shipping of a steel building can take many weeks or even months if it is in prime construction season. You should give ample time allowance for these processes and any possible unforeseen delays when considering the date the building will be actually be received.
A number of purchasers choose to have their steel building delivered to their job site weeks, even months, before the planned erection of their structure. In this case you need to ensure that there are ample covering materials available to protect all materials from the elements and pilferage. Most steel buildings today are delivered with primer and protective coatings applied. These protective coatings are not adequate in themselves, however, to remain uncovered even if the building materials will be sitting at the job site for only a few weeks.
It is your responsibility to ensure that arrangements have been made to assemble the building, long before the building is actually shipped. If it is prime building season you may find that most contactors or erectors are already booked for projects that may last weeks or months. Secure a qualified steel building erector as early as possible so that as soon as your building arrives, it can be assembled.