A Catering Directory Helps You Find Local Caterers

Catering is one service where you are likely to prefer a local supplier. Very few persons would want to bring a caterer from some other country and risk a party disaster. Corporate parties might go for specialized and reputed catering organizations headquartered elsewhere. Even they might often find it necessary to go for local caterers when time is short.

Catering directories generally focus on the final consumers, listing vendors by food categories such as beverages, chocolate fountain, fruit, juice, etc; and by supplier categories like food vendors, caterers, mobile vendors, party organizers, restaurants, party shops, etc. There might also be sections on Health & Safety and Catering Tips.

Another catering directory might arrange vendors by such categories as caterers, event venues, entertainment, photography, transportation, wedding, event planners, florists, etc.

All are likely to provide the option to narrow down the lists to locations you select, such as a city or area.

Some might collect information such as number of guests, event type, services required (such as food, servers, liquor, chocolate fountain, decorations, tables/chairs, tents, etc), date and time, location and so on, and give you a quote based on your requirements.

Caterers might even help you select a menu depending on your budget per person or an event venue or other related matters. Services offered could include sit-in, food station and buffet type serving options, and also clean-ups, drop offs, beverages only service, etc.

<b>Detailed Catering Directory Categories</b>

A brief look at some detailed catering directory categories would help you understand what you could expect. A selection is listed below:
<ul>
<li>Corporate catering</li>
<li>Personal Chefs</li>
<li>Banquet Halls</li>
<li>Yachts/Boats</li>
<li>DJs</li>
<li>Live Music/Bands</li>
<li>Videographers</li>
<li>Limousines</li>
<li>Wedding Planners</li>
<li>Wedding Financing</li>
<li>Equipment Hire</li>
</ul>

<b>Catering Directories Are Not Only for Party Hosts</b>

Another kind of catering directory focuses on the requirements of caterers by listing suppliers of catering requirements. The following sample list provides a look at the kind of requirements caterers typically have:
<ul>
<li>Refrigeration: Chilled display cabinets, Ice makers,...</li>
<li>Beverages: Coffee Equipment, Beverage Jugs,...</li>
<li>Bar supplies: Spirit measures, Bottle openers, Blenders,...</li>
<li>Cookware: Pots & Pans, Cooks Knives, Chefs Clothing,...</li>
<li>Tableware: Cutlery, Napkins, Tablemats,...</li>
<li>Furniture: Bar stools, Tables, Outdoor furniture,...</li>
<li>Kitchen planning: Assessing requirements, design, advice,...</li>
</ul>

<b>Regional Directories</b>

You can find catering services providers near you either through regional directories, such as Chicago Caterer directories, or through national directories that lists caterers by cities and areas. Local catering can be arranged quickly and is ideal when you are short of time. For domestic parties, local catering would be the better option in most cases.

A local catering directory like a Chicago catering directory might list such local resources as banquet halls, buffet services, corporate party organizers, and so on.

<b>Conclusion</b>

Catering directories generally focus on the consumers of catering services, listing different types of caterers by their services or locations. Thus, you could find a wedding organizer in or near your town, or a restaurant that offers Chinese dishes in city you plan to visit.

Other catering directories focus on the caterers, helping them find cookware, tableware, furniture, refrigeration equipment, and so on. Some might offer kitchen planning and design services and other kinds of consultancy services.

This article looked at the kinds of information you could expect to find in a catering directory.

Chemical Directory Can Come in Two Flavors

A chemical directory can come in one of two different flavors, technical and commercial.

<b>Technically Oriented Chemical Directories</b>

This kind of chemical directory allows finding a chemical by its molecular formula, common name, or other technical specification. It is a directory for those with technical familiarity of chemicals.

Once you specify a name, formula etc. the directory takes you to a page that lists the chemicals meeting the search criteria. Against each, supplier names are also given. You can then get more details of a particular supplier, or a particular chemical.

Links would also be available for getting an offer from a particular supplier for a chemical.

Such a technically oriented chemical directories would typically have other technical features, such as chemical calculators that calculates different properties such as molecular mass from a formula or other information.

Another valuable technical feature is a property explorer that calculates drug-relevant properties from valid chemical structures. This helps identify high-risk side effects of the structure. You can identify toxicity for example.

<b>Commercially Oriented Chemical Directories</b>

This kind of directory lists suppliers of particular chemicals in the conventional manner. For example, you can find suppliers for absorbents, acids and so on in alphabetical order. Some directories might also allow you to find suppliers in different countries.

Forwarding a request for quotation - RFQ - to suppliers is a facility that a chemical directory might offer. At least one directory allows you to send enquiries wholesale to many suppliers with just one RFQ form. You can select the companies you want the RFQ to be sent.

There are also chemical suppliers databases in print and computer readable media formats. You can buy these databases against payment. Alternatively, you might pay a monthly or such fee and access their online databases.

While some directories charge the buyers to access their databases of suppliers, others might allow free access to buyers and charge sellers for including their information. In the latter case, only those sellers who pay for inclusion might be included in the directory, i.e., it would be a less comprehensive directory than the other kind.

<b>Regional Chemical Directories</b>

Regional chemical directories seek to promote the chemical industries of different regions. It would also help buyers to find sources near them, or low cost suppliers from all over the world. For examples, lower cost manufacturers in, say, India and China can supply chemicals that meet specifications at lower costs.

<b>Conclusion</b>

The chemical industry is discovering new formulations continuously. The chemicals have different properties and effects. Many might be drugs that can have side effects along with specific curative properties.

To serve users in this industry, chemical directories need to incorporate some unique features. Thus you can find directories where you can search for chemicals by their molecular formula or CAS number, as well as by name.

The technically oriented directories might also provide chemical calculators and details of reactions based on the chemical structure.

Then there is the conventional chemical directory where you find suppliers for each kind of chemical, whom you can contact directly or through the directory publishers.