How to Brief a Reefer Container Inquiry
How to brief a reefer container inquiry: name the container type, the cargo, and the control question in general terms.
Start with the container type and the cargo
A reefer brief should start by naming the container as a reefer container, because every later question in the message depends on that name. It should then name the general cargo in plain terms, and it should name the control question in general terms, without stating a figure that has not been confirmed. A brief written this way lets the reply address the right category from the first line, instead of asking the buyer to clarify the category before anything else can be answered.
The brief should also name the quantity range under consideration for the reefer containers, rather than giving one quantity for a mixed order and leaving the reefer share unclear. If the order includes another category as well, the reefer share should be named separately from the other share, so that the reply can address each category in turn. A clear split in the brief leads to a clear reply, and a vague brief leads to a reply full of clarification questions.
Questions a reefer brief should list
A reefer brief should list the control question, the certificate question, the quantity question, and the timing question for the reefer containers named. Confirm the minimum order quantity for the items in the inquiry before ordering. Confirm the lead time for the items in the inquiry before ordering. Certificates are available upon request, and the applicable certificate for a specific container should be confirmed in the inquiry, naming the reefer container alongside the question.
A reefer brief should also list any inspection question for the reefer containers, and any destination question in general terms. Inspection and certificate questions should be named separately, because they are different kinds of answer, even when they appear in the same message. A brief that separates them will receive a reply that answers each in turn, without mixing the two.
What a reefer brief should leave out
A reefer brief should leave out temperature figures, dimensions, capacities, and cooling figures for any individual container, because those figures have not been confirmed for the container in question and do not belong in a brief. A brief that states a figure as if it were settled may lead the reply to assume a container that the buyer never meant, and the order may then be built around the wrong assumption. Figures belong in the reply, for the container actually named.
A reefer brief should also leave out any claim about other suppliers, any customer name, and any country list, because none of those belongs in a container brief. The brief is a short message about one order: the container type, the cargo, the control question, the quantity range, and the questions to settle. Everything else can wait until the reply, where it can be addressed for that order specifically.
A reefer brief in practice
A reefer brief in practice is a short message of five parts: the container type, the cargo, the control question in general terms, the quantity range, and the questions to settle. A buyer who writes those five parts in order will usually receive a reply that answers each in turn, without asking for the container type again. The control question is the part that distinguishes a reefer brief from a dry brief, and it should never be left implied.
A reefer brief that also names a second category, where the order includes one, should keep the reefer share separate from the other share, so that the reply can address each category in turn. Mixing two categories into one quantity figure, without saying how much belongs to each, forces the reply to ask for the split before anything else can be answered. A clear split in the brief is a small courtesy that saves a round of questions.
Brief a reefer container inquiry
Confirm the minimum order quantity for the items in the inquiry before ordering.
Confirm the lead time for the items in the inquiry before ordering.
Certificates available upon request.
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