Start with technical equivalence
Place the full designation, origin and required acceptance documents beside each offer. If one supplier proposes a different grade, do not treat the prices as equivalent before technical approval. A clearer or shorter quotation is not necessarily a more complete one.
Identify what the supplier has actually confirmed. A typical specification, an indicative availability statement and a firm offer are different stages. Keep unanswered questions visible rather than filling them with assumptions.
Separate delivery costs from delivery risk
Under CFR and CIF, the seller arranges main carriage, but cargo risk transfers on board at shipment, not on arrival. CIF also requires the seller to arrange insurance. Consult the ICC reference for the applicable rule and contractual detail.
In your comparison, record the named port or place, version of the rule, and separately agreed services. Ask who handles loading, discharge, terminal services and onward transport under the actual arrangements. Do not assume that a freight-inclusive price covers every cost at destination.
Record quantity and timing on the same basis
Compare net quantity, packaging inclusion and any agreed tolerance. Then compare the proposed shipment window, offer validity and conditions that must be met before the order is executable. Mark an estimated schedule differently from a confirmed commitment.
The cheapest headline number may refer to a different scope. A useful comparison distinguishes a confirmed cost from an excluded or unquoted item. This is a decision worksheet, not a prediction of the final cost of an unspecified shipment.
Keep the open points with the decision
Before accepting, list remaining approvals and the party responsible for resolving each. Examples include producer confirmation, document wording, vessel suitability and the final receiving arrangement. Update the comparison when one of these points changes.
Nexus can discuss a proposal against this framework. The goal is to understand what is being purchased and what must happen next, rather than to rank offers that describe different products or services.
Before you send your enquiry
- Same product designation and accepted specification
- Quantity, packaging and tolerance stated
- Delivery basis with named port or place
- Included / excluded / unquoted services distinguished
- Validity, shipment period and approval points identified