New programme takes the guess-work out of cost to profit ratio

CALCULATING variables to determine whether a transaction is profitable and ensuring timely delivery of goods won’t require a magical crystal ball, as a new software programme designed for such forecasting rolls out next month. Compu-Clearing chairman Arnold Garber explained his firm’s Trade and Track System: “Say an importer buys tea cups in China for $1 and sells them in South Africa for R20. That seems like a fantastic deal. But is it? The importer has to factor in other costs – customs, freight charges, other duties, finance charges, banking charges. These can erode the profit or even make it a bad deal.” The Trade and Track system is used to find out the real costs of a transaction. “It is the only system that can provide pre-order costing. It will tell an importer about calculating everything, every variable, to see if the transaction is viable or not. None of our competitors offer this,” said Garber. An additional task performed by the Trade and Track system is the preparation of purchasing invoices from the shipper to determine if it is cost effective. The system also offers shipping alternatives for a transaction. Garber said: “I was at a large tyre manufacturer here in South Africa, which uses imported raw materials. A supply ship was delayed by one day in Singapore, and this led to a series of events that caused the entire factory to shut down due to a lack of one item. Had the Trade and Track system been used, they would have had a Plan B when the ship failed to sail – air freight or another option. So, what the programme does is calculate all cost considerations, all charges from shipping, banking, financing, customs, so you know the costs before you commit to a transaction. It also shows alternative shipping options.”