Software solutions provider Softship has launched an innovative, web-based Pricing Calculator that allows supply chain managers and operators to identify and select optimum end-to-end multi-modal solutions for their customers and achieve full cost transparency.

Designed for Trade, Sales and Agency Managers working within containership companies, the Pricing Calculator integrates seamlessly with a carrier’s internal operational software to rapidly and accurately identify all supply chain options and associated costs. In addition, the calculator will also present the contribution each option generates for the company allowing managers to select the optimum solution for both their customer and their employer. This enables users to rapidly provide informed, accurate and reliable quotations in what is a highly-competitive and complex market.

Basic information such as container quantity, preferred timings and load and discharge points are entered into the Pricing Calculator via the carrier’s own customer enquiry form or any other suitable method. The Pricing Calculator interrogates the carrier’s own internal databases and presents all viable routing options, across all viable transportation routes and modes, together with timings and costs. Contributions for each alternative are also given.

Thomas Wolff, Softship’s Managing Director, explains:

“Modern supply chains can be complex, especially those that contain a road or rail leg as well as one or more ocean legs. Most ocean carriers don’t consolidate their rates and tariffs in a single repository and tend to hold information in a range of formats which is often scattered around various divisions and geographies. This makes it challenging to identify all supply chain options and to price them accurately. Our Pricing Calculator retains all relevant information in one place which allows it to automatically calculate all feasible routing options quickly and accurately. The user is then able to compare the options and select the one best suited to their customer’s needs. Importantly, the user must also understand the financial implications to their own company of offering one route over another. Our Pricing Calculator accurately defines the contribution associated with each option allowing the user to make an informed decision.”

Similar facilities are available in the airline industry but none are in widespread use in maritime. Softship’s Pricing Calculator – which can include transport options such as road, rail, inland shipping as well as ocean shipping – delivers fast, accurate and fully priced supply chain alternatives alongside all-important financial contribution information. It integrates with a carrier’s internal systems using Application Programming Interface (API) technology.