Industries · Import & export
Know the landed costbefore the containerreaches Jebel Ali.
We build trading systems that connect supplier orders, consignments, shipping documents, duties and freight, stock in every warehouse and the customers you sell to — so every container has a real margin attached before it's sold.
- CN-24118Guangzhou → Jebel Ali · 3 × 40HCFree days: 2Kitchenware · discharged Mon · DO pendingAt port
- CN-24121Mundra → Jebel Ali · 2 × 20GPOn timeRice · ETA 06 Nov · B/L receivedShipped
- CN-24109Istanbul → Jebel Ali · 1 × 40HCDeliveringTextiles · cleared to mainlandCleared
- Supplier POs
- Consignments
- Shipping documents
- Landed cost
- Free-zone & local stock
- Sales orders
- Re-exports
01Where trading companies lose margin
The goods arrive. The real cost turns up later.
Most trading businesses know what they paid the supplier. Freight, duty, clearing, storage and currency movements arrive weeks later on separate invoices — after the stock has already been priced and sold.
01Freight, duty and clearing charges arrive after pricing
What happens
Freight, insurance, duty, clearing agent fees and port charges arrive on separate invoices and are added to a spreadsheet when someone has time.
What it costs
Stock is priced on the supplier invoice alone, so some lines are sold at a loss and nobody notices until the accounts close.
With one system
Every consignment carries its expected and actual costs. Each charge is allocated to the lines by value, weight or volume, and selling prices are checked against the real landed cost.
02Nobody knows exactly where each consignment is
What happens
Booking confirmations, vessel updates and the clearing agent's messages sit in different inboxes and WhatsApp chats; the status lives in one person's head.
What it costs
Customers are promised dates the shipment can't meet, demurrage and detention build up, and sales can't plan around incoming stock.
With one system
Each consignment moves through clear stages — confirmed, produced, shipped, at port, cleared, received — with ETAs, documents and the next action owner visible to sales and operations.
03Shipping documents are rebuilt by hand for every order
What happens
Commercial invoices, packing lists and certificates of origin are typed again from the PO in Word or Excel, and checked against the bill of lading by eye.
What it costs
Mismatched HS codes, weights or values hold shipments at clearance and create rework with the forwarder and the bank.
With one system
Documents are generated from the same order and line data, with HS codes, weights and values checked for consistency before they go to the forwarder or the bank.
04Free-zone and duty-paid stock are mixed up
What happens
Goods held in a free zone, goods cleared to the mainland and goods re-exported are tracked in one spreadsheet with notes in the margin.
What it costs
Sales promise stock that hasn't been cleared, duty is paid on goods that are later re-exported, and stock counts never agree.
With one system
Stock is held by location and customs status — free zone, duty-paid, in transit, re-export — so sales see what is actually available to sell where.
05Supplier deposits, LCs and payment terms are tracked in email
What happens
Advance payments, balances against B/L, letters of credit and their expiry dates are followed through bank emails and a finance spreadsheet.
What it costs
LC deadlines are missed, discrepancies cost fees, and the business has no clear view of the cash committed to goods on the water.
With one system
Each supplier PO carries its payment terms, deposits, balances and LC milestones, with due dates and owners — and a live view of cash tied up in open consignments.
06Customers ask for updates the team has to go and find
What happens
Buyers call and message for ETAs, document copies and proforma revisions; the sales team chases operations for answers.
What it costs
Time goes into status updates instead of selling, and buyers lose confidence when answers differ.
With one system
Sales see the same live consignment record as operations, and an optional buyer portal shows order status, ETAs and documents for each customer.
02Trading platform preview
What your trading system could look like.
Switch between the views a buyer, logistics coordinator, finance lead and owner would use every day. Every screen is designed in discovery around your product lines, routes and warehouses.
- CN-24118Guangzhou → Jebel Ali · 3 × 40HCFree days: 2Kitchenware · discharged Mon · DO pendingAt port
- CN-24121Mundra → Jebel Ali · 2 × 20GPOn timeRice · ETA 06 Nov · B/L receivedShipped
- CN-24109Istanbul → Jebel Ali · 1 × 40HCDeliveringTextiles · cleared to mainlandCleared
- CN-24125Ningbo → Jebel Ali · 4 × 40HCDeposit paidBuilding hardware · ex-works 12 NovIn production
- CN-24097Jebel Ali → Mombasa · re-exportOn timeKitchenware · ex free zone · sailed 28 OctShipped
Illustrative interface with sample data — your system is designed around your suppliers, routes and markets.
Illustrative demo · sample dataCan you picture your next consignment on it?
Build your trading system03Solutions
The parts of a trading system — chosen for your company.
Every supplier commitment in one place
Supplier & purchase orders
RFQs, proformas, supplier comparisons and confirmed POs, with payment terms, deposits, balances and letters of credit tracked against each order.
- Proforma comparison by supplier
- Deposits, balances and LC milestones
- Multi-currency POs
- Supplier performance history
Every supplier commitment in one place
Supplier & purchase orders
RFQs, proformas, supplier comparisons and confirmed POs, with payment terms, deposits, balances and letters of credit tracked against each order.
- Proforma comparison by supplier
- Deposits, balances and LC milestones
- Multi-currency POs
- Supplier performance history
Not every trading company needs every module. We scope the ones your operation actually uses, and add the rest when you need them.
04AI inside the system
AI that reads the paperwork trade runs on.
AI in your trading system works on its own records — POs, consignments, documents, costs and orders. It reads, checks and drafts; your team approves.
AI here supports trading administration. It doesn't classify goods for customs, make declarations or decide payments — HS codes, declarations and supplier payments stay with your team and your clearing agent. Anything sent to suppliers, buyers or agents, and any change to costs or prices, is approved by a person first.
- 01
Document reading
Coordinator confirmsA supplier emails a proforma, packing list and B/L draft as PDFs.The assistant reads them, fills the consignment record with quantities, weights, container numbers and dates, and lists any line where the documents disagree with the PO for the coordinator to resolve.
- 02
Document consistency checks
Is the export pack for SO-5509 ready to send to the forwarder?Checks the commercial invoice, packing list and certificate request against the order — totals, weights, HS codes and consignee details — and flags anything that doesn't match before it leaves the office.
- 03
Landed cost explanations
Why did CN-24118 land higher than estimated?Compares each estimated charge with its actual invoice and explains the difference line by line, with the invoices behind each figure.
- 04
Buyer updates
Sent after approvalWhich buyers are waiting on goods from consignments that have slipped?Lists the affected sales orders with the new ETAs and drafts a short update for each buyer, ready for the sales team to review and send.
- 05
Supplier comparison
Compare the three proformas for 200 t of basmati rice.Lays out price, incoterm, payment terms, lead time and each supplier's delivery history side by side, with an estimated landed cost for each option.
- 06
Plain-language reporting
How much cash do we have tied up in goods that haven't arrived?Answers from your POs, payments and consignment stages, with the consignments behind the figure — no spreadsheet needed.
05A day with ORCHESTR
One trading desk, two different Mondays.
- 08:00Consignments already updatedThe tracker shows every consignment's stage and ETA, with the two that need action today at the top.
- 09:30Missing document flagged earlyThe document checklist flagged it on Friday; the certificate is already attached and sent to the agent.
- 11:15Quoting on real landed costSales quotes from the landed cost per unit, and the system warns when a price falls below target margin.
- 13:00Availability by statusSales see what is duty-paid, in the free zone and in transit, and reserve stock against the right location.
- 15:30Payments and LCs on scheduleDeposits, balances and LC milestones are on one calendar, with owners and reminders ahead of each date.
- 18:00Margin and cash, liveThe owner sees margin on landed cost, cash on the water and ageing stock on one screen.
An illustrative day — every system is designed around how your team actually works.
06Integrations
Works with the tools your trade already uses.
Integrations depend on what each provider exposes — we confirm every connection in scoping before committing to it. Names are examples of categories we work with, not partnerships.
- Accounting & ERP
- Zoho BooksQuickBooksXeroOdooSAP Business One (via API or export)Tally (via export)
- Shipping & tracking
- Container and vessel tracking services (where available)Forwarder updates by email or APIShipping line booking exports
- Customs & free zones
- Declaration and permit status tracked in the systemDocument packs prepared for your clearing agentFree-zone portal records via export
- Banking & FX
- Bank statement importsCurrency rate feeds (where available)Payment status from your bank exports
- Messaging
- WhatsApp Business APIEmail (Microsoft 365 / Google Workspace)SMS gateways
- Data
- Spreadsheets & exportsExisting databasesBI tools
07How we build your system
Built around your trading company — not a template.
- 01
Understand your business
We learn how the business actually runs — people, tools, hand-offs and where time is lost — before proposing anything. - 02
Map your workflows
Every workflow is mapped end to end: who does what, when, with which information, and what should happen automatically. - 03
Design your system
Screens, records, permissions and integrations are designed around those workflows, and the scope is agreed in writing. - 04
Build and integrate
We build in stages and connect the tools you keep, so your team sees working software early and gives feedback as we go. - 05
Test and launch
We test with real scenarios, migrate the agreed data, set up roles and access, and onboard the team. - 06
Support and improve
After launch we support the system under an agreed arrangement and extend it as the business changes.
08Why it matters
What changes for a trading company.
We don't quote savings we haven't measured. In discovery we baseline how your team works today, so improvements can be tracked against your own numbers.
Margin you can trust
Every line is priced and reported on its landed cost, not on the supplier invoice alone.Fewer surprises at the port
Documents, free days and agent tasks are visible early, so clearance isn't held up by something that could have been sent last week.Stock you can actually sell
Sales see availability by location and customs status, so promises match what can be delivered.Cash visibility
Deposits, balances, LCs and goods on the water are visible in one place.Less re-typing
Trade documents are produced from the order data the team already entered.Calmer customers
Buyers get consistent ETAs and documents from one live record.
09Possible use cases
How different trading companies could use it.
Examples of what we could build — not completed client projects.
Two stock pools, one picture
A Jebel Ali free-zone company importing from Asia and re-exporting to Africa and the GCC tracks free-zone, duty-paid and re-export stock separately, with export packs prepared from each order.
Batches, expiry and landed cost
An importer of rice, spices and staples tracks consignments by batch and expiry, allocates freight and port charges by weight and watches margin per line as prices move.
From factory floor to wholesale order
A distributor buying from several factories manages proformas, deposits and production follow-ups, then reserves incoming stock against wholesale orders before it lands.
Export orders without the paper chase
A company exporting to several markets keeps buyer orders, document checklists by destination, payment terms and shipping status on one record per order.
FAQs
Trading company questions, answered.
Manufacturing & industrial
01Do you connect directly to customs or free-zone portals?
No. Declarations and permits are submitted through the official portals by you or your clearing agent. The system tracks each step's status, holds the documents and prepares the packs your agent needs, so nothing depends on searching email.
02How does the landed cost calculation work?
Each consignment collects its charges — freight, insurance, duty, clearing, port, storage, bank fees — first as estimates, then as actual invoices arrive. You choose how each type of charge is allocated (by value, weight, volume or quantity), and the landed cost per unit updates as the real figures come in.
03Can it handle several currencies?
Yes. Supplier POs, payments and sales can be in different currencies, with the rate recorded for each payment so landed cost and margin reflect what you actually paid. Rates can come from a feed or be entered by finance.
04We use Zoho Books (or another accounting system). Does this replace it?
Usually not. Accounting stays where it is; we sync suppliers, customers, invoices and payments with it where its API allows. The trading system handles the operational side — consignments, costs, stock status and documents — that accounting software doesn't cover well.
05Can we track free-zone and mainland stock separately?
Yes. Stock is held by location and status — free zone, duty-paid, in transit, reserved for re-export — and moves between them with a recorded transfer, so sales always see what can be delivered where.
06Will the AI decide HS codes or fill in declarations?
No. It can read documents, check that HS codes and weights match across them, and flag inconsistencies, but classification and declarations stay with your team and your clearing agent.
07Can we move our existing spreadsheets across?
Usually, yes. We map your supplier list, product master, open POs, consignments and stock into the new system, clean duplicates and agree with you what history is worth bringing over before launch.
08Can our buyers and forwarders use it too?
Optionally. Buyers can have a portal for orders, ETAs and documents, and forwarders or agents can be given limited access to update the consignments they handle. Each external user only sees their own records.
09How is a trading system priced?
It's quoted after a discovery session, based on the modules, integrations, number of warehouses and users involved. Hosting and support are agreed separately, in writing.
Start here
Let's traceyour next container.
Tell us how goods move from your suppliers to your buyers today. We'll show you how one system could connect purchasing, shipments, costs, stock and sales.
- 01We get back to you to arrange a call.
- 02A focused conversation about how your trading company runs today.
- 03If there's a fit, a written scope and quote — no obligation.
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