Three quotations arrive against one request, and two of them are not comparable until the scopes are aligned. The gap is rarely in the unit price: it sits in the packaging line, the certification scope or the delivery term, and it is visible within twenty minutes if the comparison is done in the right order.
Charger quotation: the steps to make three comparable
Align the scope, separate the five cost lines, add the landed costs, price the changes you are likely to make, and read the conditions.
The order matters because each step removes a source of difference: the first removes the specification gap, the second reveals what is included, the third adds what falls outside the unit price, and the fourth converts an option into a number.
What remains after those four steps is a comparison of the same product, and only then is the fifth step — the conditions attached to each offer — worth reading in detail.
Step 1: align the scope line by line
Compare the quotation with the request, not with the other quotations.
Take each section of the request — configuration, markets, packaging, quantity, delivery term — and mark whether the quotation covers it, covers it differently, or does not address it. A quotation that answers a different configuration is not a cheaper quotation; it is a quotation for something else. This step usually explains the largest apparent difference before any arithmetic begins.
Step 2: separate the five cost lines
Unit price, tooling, packaging setup, certification work, accessories.
Where the lines are quoted separately, the comparison is arithmetic; where they are not, the first task is to ask for them. A supplier that included packaging setup and certification while another priced them as options will look expensive on the unit price and cheaper at the total. The line that most often hides a difference is the packaging version, because each language version carries its own print setup.
Step 3: add the landed costs
Freight, insurance, duty and the handling that follows.
Two quotations on different Incoterms are not comparable at the ex-works figure: one includes an element of freight and risk and the other does not. Add the freight for the actual carton dimensions and weight, the insurance where the terms place the risk with the buyer, and the duty that applies to the declared value. The comparison that matters is the cost of the goods where they are needed, not where they are made.
Step 4: price the changes you are likely to make
The second order and the second market are the ones that move the cost.
Ask each supplier what a second language version, an additional plug variant or a fifty per cent quantity increase would do to the price, and record the answer as a line rather than a note. A quotation with a low opening price and a steep change cost is more expensive over a year than one that is slightly higher and stable. This step also shows which supplier is quoting a platform and which is quoting a development.
Step 5: read the conditions, not only the numbers
Validity, payment terms, minimum quantities and what reopens the price.
A quotation has an expiry, a payment structure, an assumed minimum and an assumption about the components. Two of those four explain most of the surprise in the second order: a validity that lapsed during the approval process, or a component assumption that changed because a part reached end of life. Reading them takes minutes and prevents a renegotiation later.
| Line | What to compare | Common variance | What it means |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scope | Sections of the request covered | A different configuration | The quotations describe different products |
| Unit price | The same configuration and quantity | Component assumptions | A bill of materials difference |
| Tooling | Included or separate | Platform versus new enclosure | Two different programme shapes |
| Packaging setup | Languages and versions | One version or six | A print cost difference |
| Certification | Markets and revision covered | Included or quoted as an option | A scope difference |
| Landed cost | Freight, insurance, duty | Different Incoterms | The ex-works figure is not the cost |
What a quotation should never contain
Four items that indicate the quotation is a starting point rather than an offer.
A price without a stated configuration; a certification line that names a market rather than a scope and a revision; a lead time without a start condition; and a minimum quantity that differs from the one previously stated without a change to the specification. None of the four is dishonest, and each of them means the number will move once the details are settled.
Recording the comparison
One table, five rows per supplier, kept with the request.
The table holds the five cost lines, the landed cost, the change costs and the conditions, one column per supplier, with the date of each quotation. It is the document that makes a decision explainable six months later, and it is also what turns the second round of quotations into a short update rather than another project.
FAQ
What if one supplier will not separate the cost lines?
Treat the quotation as a starting point and ask specifically which of the five items are included. Where the answer remains a single figure, the comparison rests on assumptions, and the assumption that matters most is usually the packaging version. Treat the quotation as a starting point and ask which of the five items are included, because the assumptions are what the comparison rests on.
How long should a quotation stay valid?
Long enough to cover the approval process, which is often longer than the supplier expects. Where validity is short, ask for the price to be held to a stated date, or for the components that could move it to be named. Ask for the price to be held to a stated date where validity is short, or for the components that could move it to be named.
Should we compare the same Incoterm?
Compare the cost at the point where you take responsibility, and record which term each quotation used. Quoting ex-works from one supplier and delivered from another is a comparison of two different transactions. Compare the cost at the point where you take responsibility and record which term each quotation used, because quoting ex-works against delivered compares two transactions rather than two prices.
How do we handle a quotation that is far cheaper than the others?
Find the difference rather than assuming an error: a smaller bill of materials, a packaging version with one language, certification priced separately, or a different delivery term. A large gap that cannot be explained is a specification gap, not a bargain. Find the difference rather than assuming an error: a smaller bill of materials, one language version, certification priced separately, or a different delivery term.
Next step
Send the configuration, the markets and the volume to Wecent Group through the contact page. The reply quotes the five cost lines separately, states the change costs for a second language and a larger quantity, and names the conditions attached to the offer. Related reading: OEM and ODM charger manufacturing, charger manufacturing services and the factory floor. External references: ICC Incoterms rules, IEC standards, EU CE marking rules, UL standards and certification, International Trade Centre Trade Map and BSI ISO 9001 quality management.
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