Freight Charges for Paragon Kilns

    Freight charges are based upon distance and service provided.  Paragon's factory is in Mesquite, just outside of Dallas Texas.  Dogwood Ceramic Supply is located in Gulfport Mississippi.  Paragon Kilns are shipped from either the Paragon factory or Dogwood Ceramic Supply's Showroom.  It stands to reason that a customer located in Maine or Montana would pay more in freight charges than customers located in Texas or Mississippi simply because the Texas and Mississippi customers are located to the shipping points.

    The freight system developed by Dogwood Ceramic Supply justly reflects the true costs of shipping a kiln across county. In the simple terms, the customer located closest to Dallas or Gulfport (the Paragon Factory or Dogwood's showroom) will pay the least in shipping costs.

    Dogwood's freight table is based upon two primary factors:
       A) The Location (state/city) of customer.
       B) The Weight Group of the kiln.

    There are additional factors that may adjust the freight costs of the kiln.  Specific cities or areas have special (higher or lower) rates, and residential deliveries, special delivery locations and liftgate service will also adjust the freight charges.  A complete list of adjustments follows the rate table.

2011 Paragon Kiln Freight Rates

   Freight Rates are valid until at least March 31, 2011, subject to adjustment for fluctuating fuel surcharge rates.

Additional Notes:

   Freight rates for delivery to any point outside of the Continental USA are not included in Dogwood Ceramic Supply's Paragon Kiln Freight Rates.  In general terms the freight rates for locations outside of the Continental USA will be GREATER THAN the rates to Metro NYC.

    The freight rates listed above are based upon delivery to schools and commercial locations with a loading dock.  The rates themselves were computed from the average delivery costs, adjusted for the fuel surcharge and rounded in $25 increments, for the range of kilns, as determined by size, weight and common accessories, in each of the specified kiln weight classes for delivery to all freight terminals, and locations within the direct daily service area of those freight terminals, in the State or location.  The rates are based upon Dogwood Ceramic Supply's YRC tariff effective April 1, 2011.  The published freight rates above are considered accurate until March 31, 2012 except as noted in the adjustments listed below as well as any significant changes in the fuel surcharge rates.

    In general terms the location (state) of the customer will determine the applicable freight rate.  However, customers located in border regions of some states may be serviced by the terminal in the adjoining state (such as customers in Vancouver Washington receiving freight from the Portland Oregon terminal).  For the purposes of the Paragon Freight Rates, Dogwood Ceramic Supply will determine the freight rate charged based upon the location of the servicing freight terminal rather than the location of the customer.  Please note, typically there is little difference between the rates in adjoining states, but the delivery terminal rate (higher or lower) is always applicable.

    Freight Rates posted above were calculated from the least expensive shipping point (the Paragon Factory near Dallas Texas or Dogwood Ceramic Supply's warehouse in Gulfport Mississippi) to the customers location.  In general all points East of Mississippi River are rated from Dogwood's warehouse while all points West of Mississippi River are rated from the Paragon Factory.  States adjoining the Mississippi River may be shipped from either Dogwood's warehouse or the Paragon Factory as there is no significant change in the freight rates for the States adjoining the Mississippi River when shipped from either location.  Kilns may also be shipped from Dogwood's warehouse to customers West of the Mississippi River, however the freight rates when shipped from the Dogwood warehouse to the customers West of the Mississippi may be higher than the posted rates.

Adjustments:

General Location Adjustments:

    California is divided into two regions.  Northern and Southern.  For the purposes of the Paragon Freight Rates, Bakersfield is the dividing point between the Northern and Southern California freight rates, with shipments serviced by the Bakersfield YRC freight terminal rated at the Southern California freight rates.

    The Florida Panhandle is charged a lower rate than the standard Florida rate.  Delivery at this rate is limited to the communities located in the Florida Panhandle serviced by the Pensacola or Tallahassee YRC Terminals.

   Metro Memphis TN is charged a lower rate than the standard Tennessee rate. The rate only applies to deliveries to a physical address within Shelby County Tennessee.

   Metro Dallas-Fort Worth freight rates are lower than the standard Texas rate due to the physical proximity to the Paragon factory. The rate applies to any delivery within Denton, Collin, Rockwell, Dallas and Tarrant counties of Texas.

    See also:    Traffic Congestion Surcharge.

Liftgate Service Fee:

    Customers lacking a loading dock or forklift service can request Liftgate service.  Liftgate is a hydraulic tailgate on the delivery vehicle used to lower the heavy kiln from the bed of the trailer to the ground.  Liftgate service fees are based upon the weight of the shipped goods.

Residential Deliveries:

    Freight companies routinely charge an additional fee, named Residential Delivery Surcharge, for the more time consuming residential deliveries.  Residential Delivery Surcharge applies to any actual residence as well as apartments, dormitories, estates, farms, home based businesses, ranches, rectories, parsonages or other locations where a dwelling for living is located and is not open to the walk-in public during normal business hours.  Residential Delivery Fees are based upon the weight of the shipped goods.

Common Adjustments:

Restricted Access Deliveries:

    Freight companies routinely charge an additional fee, named Restricted Access Surcharge, for the more time consuming delivery locations.  The list of Restricted Access Deliveries includes prisons and other controlled access facilities including psychiatric hospitals and construction sites as well as single deliveries to controlled access military facilities. The Restricted Access Surcharge is $115 per delivery, except for the Borough of Manhattan which is $175.  The Restricted Access Delivery Surcharge does not include any other accessorial services required by the customer.  The Restricted Access Delivery Surcharge does not apply to accumulated (consolidated) shipments for delivery to military facilities or military ports of embarkation.

Lazy School Fee:

     Does your school lack a centralized receiving point?  Are your maintenance staff never around when you need them and even if you could find them, nothing ever gets done in a timely manner?  Welcome to the Lazy School Fee.  The Lazy School Fee, also known as Limited Access Fee or Lack of Staff Fee, does NOT apply to schools, colleges or university bookstores with normal receiving hours and/or where an employee is readily available to assist with unloading and signing for the received goods.  In others words if your maintenance or receiving staff is remotely competent the fee will not apply.

     For the applicable (read: Bad) schools, colleges and universities the Lazy School Fee is accessed by the carrier after the delivery has been complete.  The fee is $90 or $125 depending upon the delivery zip code and will be assessed to the responsible party.

Traffic Congestion Surcharge:

    Applicable to customers located in specific major metropolitan areas:

   For customer convenience Dogwood Ceramic Supply has published the freight rates with the Traffic Congestion Surcharge for Metro New York City, Extreme Southeast Florida, Washington DC and the San Francisco Bay area.

   The Traffic Congestion Surcharge for the listed major cities (A, B, C, H, LA, P & T) is only applicable to a limited number of specific zip codes overlapping with the heavily congested Downtown business districts. The Traffic Congestion Surcharge rate for those specific Zip Codes is 20% above the rate for standard rate for the State.

Geographic Limitations:

    Customers on islands only accessible via ferry or weight restricted bridges, islands a significant distance the mainland (Key West) as well as some narrow points of land (Dorr County, Delmarva peninsula etc) are geographically limited delivery locations.  Daily scheduled service may or may not apply to these locations.  The freight rates list above may (or may not) apply to your special location.  Basically all bets are off.  Freight Rates for these Geographically Limited locations will need to be hand calculated.  Non-Direct service may also apply.

Non-Direct Service:

    Do your neighbors consist mostly of cows and corn?  Do you drive 60 miles just to see a stop sign?  Is the closest fast food joint out by the highway in the next county over?  Welcome to the land of Non-Direct Service. Non-Direct Service generally applies to rural locations with very limited populations.  Non-Direct Service can also apply to some islands and narrow points of land.  In many instances, Non-Direct Service will require the freight being transferred from the major national freight carrier to a "local" delivery service.

    YRC (Yellow-Roadway) is the exclusive freight company for Dogwood Ceramic Supply.  YRC provides service to more than 99% of all US cities with a population more than 30,000.  Yes, even Starkville Mississippi has daily YRC delivery service.  When it is not practical to handle bulk freight to Very Small Town America, YRC Freight will transfer the freight to a connecting service or marketing partner.  In some cases the marketing partner will honor Dogwood Ceramic Supply's YRC freight rates, other times the rates will not be honored.

   The connecting service may be a reasonably large freight company specializing in rural deliveries over a broad area (such as The Dakotas and Eastern Montana) or may be nothing more than a guy with a really big pickup truck who handles everything on your side of the mountain valley.  Delivery times can range from an extra day or two to an extra week (or three) if you are really remote.

   Regardless of the level of service, the rate for customers without Direct Service must be hand computed.  You can visit yrc.com to determine whether your Zip Code has direct service.  Dogwood Ceramic Supply will confirm whether your Zip Code has direct service as part of our ordering process when you place your order.

Difficult Deliveries:

    Does "over the river and through the woods to the kiln shed we go" sound familiar?  Does your private driveway wind through narrow tree lined paths only wide enough for your Mini-Cooper?  Are tire chains needed to climb your steep frozen driveway in the middle of Summer?  Any of these situations apply to your kiln location?  Welcome to Difficult Deliveries.  If there is a risk of the Freight Truck not being able to have direct access to your delivery location please inform Dogwood Ceramic Supply at the time of your order.  In some locations the Freight Company may have a box truck (smaller 10 wheeled truck) that can make deliveries at little or no extra cost.  Sometimes.  In some locations the use of the box truck will increase the shipping costs.  In many instances the kiln can be shipped to the freight terminal for customer pickup at standard commercial rates for your State.  If you are purchasing an especially large kiln it may be best to ship the kiln to a moving company for final delivery to your special location.  This is especially true if you need the kiln to be moved to a basement or a kiln shed far from any paved surface.

No Freight Charges:

   Customers can purchase (from our warehouse stock or with advance order) nearly any Paragon Kiln directly from the Dogwood Ceramic Supply showroom and avoid additional Freight Charges.

   For customers in close proximity to the Paragon Factory, or for those customers desiring to make the trip to the Dallas Texas area, Paragon kilns can be purchased with NO freight charge by picking up your desired kiln in person during Paragon's standard business hours of Monday thru Thursday from 7 AM to 5:30 PM.

Factory Pickup, Terms and Limitations:

     The kiln (s) must be ordered in advance from Dogwood Ceramic Supply and requested for factory pickup.  The kiln will be crated for ease of handling and the factory has fork lift service and will lift the kiln into your vehicle. Please insure the dimensions of the crated kiln will fit within your vehicle space.  The customer is responsible for any tie downs, dunnage, and tarps needed to protect the kiln.  The factory staff will not work overtime to meet the timetable of the customer.  Any change order in the shipping status / pickup status of the kiln will result in additional charges.

Multiple Kiln Purchases:

    Freight costs are dependant upon the weight shipped and as such purchasing multiple kilns can realize substantial savings on freight costs.  For example two Group D kilns, such as the Paragon TnF 27-3, when shipped at the same time to the same location will travel at freight group F's freight rate for the combined shipment.  Call for details on specific combinations of kilns.  Shipping multiple kilns via UPS usually does not result in any significant savings on the freight charges.

Factory Freight Free:

   Dogwood Ceramic Supply has worked with Paragon to establish a Factory Freight Free program to service commercial customers with a loading dock purchasing multiple kilns.  Additional charges for restricted access or limited access delivery may apply.  The Paragon Factory Freight Free Program applies to any combination of two or more Paragon kilns that exceed $7000 or more at Dogwood's selling price, before the addition of furniture kit or any accessories.

Additional Information regarding Kiln Shipping

    Paragon has prepared a tutorial on how to receive a crated kiln and handling damages. Please review the Paragon website Receiving_a_Kiln_Shipment prior to having a kiln delivered to your home or studio.

     For additional general information concerning receiving a kiln at your home, school or studio, please refer to Dogwood Ceramic Supply's How am I going to get My Kiln Home (to my school) on our Paragon Information webpage.

Combining Products

   Many customers purchasing products from Dogwood Ceramic Supply will combine kilns with wheels, slab rollers, glazes or other equipment and supplies.  In the simplest terms, adding these additional products may or may not increase the posted freight rates.  When the freight rates are increased, it is often by only a small margin.  For example, adding a pottery wheel to a kiln shipping at the Group C freight rate will generally cause the entire shipment (Group C Kiln and the wheel) to ship at the Group D freight rate.  Customers are strongly encouraged to purchase products together to save shipping costs.

Paragon Freight Rates apply to large Paragon Kilns:

Paragon Catalog Home

Paragon Information

12590 Dedeaux Road
Gulfport Mississippi, 39503
Telephone (228) 831-4848        Fax (228) 831-3111

Showroom Business Hours:

Monday, Tuesday, Friday and Saturday 10AM to 5PM
Thursday 1PM to 6PM

Closed Wednesday and Sunday

     Table of Freight Charges for Large Paragon Kilns shipped from the Paragon Factory or Dogwood's Showroom to the customer's location, including school and residential rates.