How to win ship supply RFQs: quoting so buyers can compare

A purchaser or superintendent reading quotes for a requisition sets them side by side and asks, line by line: is this the item I asked for, in the unit I asked for, and what will it cost me delivered on board, by when? The lowest total rarely wins on its own if it hides a smaller pack, a different brand or a delivery charge that appears later. This is our reading of how buyers work, not an industry rule — but every point below follows from it.

Most requisitions carry IMPA codes. The IMPA Marine Stores Guide gives each product a unique six-digit code tied to an individual description and covers more than 50,000 products; the 8th edition changed more than 40,000 existing codes and added over 3,000. Quote against the code and repeat the description you are pricing, so an edition mismatch shows up before the order, not on the delivery.^[4,5]

Each Marine Stores Guide product carries its own unit of measure, so price in the unit the code defines. If you can only supply a different pack — a 20-litre tin where 5 litres was asked — quote it, convert the quantity, and mark the line. Some buyers use ISSA codes instead, from ISSA’s own Ship Stores and Provisions & Bonded Stores catalogues; answer in whichever system the buyer used.^[6,3]

When you cannot supply the brand asked for, offer an equivalent — on its own line, named, with the reason. The ISSA Code of Ethics calls it unethical to substitute one product for another where the substitution might deceive or mislead a purchaser, and unethical to mislead by advertising or labelling. A flagged alternative is a service; a silent one is a claim waiting to happen.^[2]

The same code also calls it unethical to sell or offer products below cost or at unreasonably low prices. Under-quoting a line to win the list and recovering it on the invoice loses the next enquiry.^[2]

For life-saving, fire-fighting and navigation equipment the question is not only brand but approval, and the ship’s flag state decides which one counts. The LSA Code — mandatory under SOLAS since 1 July 1998 — requires life-saving appliances to be marked with approval information, including the Administration that approved them, and with a means of telling their age or replacement date.^[8]

• EU-flagged ships: the Marine Equipment Directive applies to equipment for which the international instruments require flag approval, wherever the ship is when it is fitted; compliant equipment carries the wheel mark, which may not be fixed to any other product.^[9]
• US-flagged ships: the Coast Guard issues a certificate of approval to the manufacturer and publishes the approval record in its CGMIX database.^[10]
• Class type approval is a separate layer: DNV, for example, offers type approval for fire-fighting equipment, valves, hoses and lashing equipment against its rules and standards such as SOLAS and MED. See class society.^[11]

On the quote, name the approval (“MED wheel mark”, “USCG approved”, the type-approval certificate) and say that the certificate travels with the goods. Ask the flag if the requisition does not give it.

Under the ISSA conditions, which many suppliers trade on, your responsibility for transport ends at the nearest point to the vessel your vehicle can reach with the necessary authority — the Point of Delivery — and the cost of getting there is agreed in advance or charged at cost. Anything beyond it, such as a boat to a ship at anchor, is agreed separately. Quote it as its own line: a buyer who sees “launch to anchorage” priced can compare it; one who finds it on the invoice will not order again.^[1]

The conditions also make deliveries outside the port’s normal hours, on weekends or on holidays an extra cost for the buyer, and waiting beyond a reasonable time chargeable. Say so on the quote. At Fujairah, deliveries to the anchorage go through the service harbour by utility boat — our anchorage delivery guide and launch boat delivery explain the chain.^[1]

• Validity: the ISSA conditions set no quotation validity period, so state one. Without an accepted quotation, prices current at the port at the time of delivery apply.^[1]
• Partial award: under the conditions a supplier may decline to supply only some of the items it quoted. If you will accept a partial award, say so — buyers who split lists will read that as flexibility.^[1]
• Packing: goods come in the packing customary at the time and place of delivery; special packing must be asked for at order and is chargeable. Price it when the requisition asks.^[1]
• Lead time per line: ex-stock lines and lines you must order in should be separated, against the ship’s ETA and ETD. A complete quote that arrives after the ship sails wins nothing.

The ISSA conditions expect orders and receipt notes to be signed by the master or an authorised representative, and once the buyer takes delivery and signs, the goods are deemed accepted in every respect, subject only to quality claims made in writing within 8 days (at once for perishables). A delivery note that matches the quote line for line — code, description, unit, quantity — is what lets the ship sign quickly and the office pay without query.^[1]

On GeoMarineHub the buyer does this comparison for you: requisitions arrive as structured lines, you bid sealed per unit against them, and bidding on a port call closes at the vessel’s ETA. Register as a supplier, activate your ports and categories, and see how sealed bidding works for suppliers. Getting paid afterwards is the subject of our payment guide.