Discussing Contract Terms

Voronin:	Good morning, Mr. Blake.
Blake:	Good morning, Mr. Voronin. Sorry, I'm a bit late.
Voronin:	Never mind. How are things?
Blake:	Not too bad, thanks.
Voronin:	Would you like a cigarette?
Blake:	No, thank you, I don't smoke.
Voronin:	May I offer you a cup of coffee?
Blake:	Yes, thank you. Well, Mr. Voronin. I think we can discuss business now. I'd like to clarify some details with you. How many compressors would you like to buy?
Voronin:	We can buy 40 compressors.
Blake:	And when do you require the goods?
Voronin:	As soon as possible, say in December.
Blake:	In December? Let me see. I'm afraid, that's impossible. Our compressors are selling very well, and we are heavy with orders. We can deliver only 15 compressors in December.
Voronin:	And what about the other 25 compressors?
Blake:	We can deliver them only in six months.
Voronin:	All right. And how about the terms of delivery? I hope they suit you.
Blake:	Yes, we agree to sell the goods FOB to English port and we can accept payment for collection too.
Voronin:	Fine. Now comes the question of price. I must say that your price is not attractive to us. Can you give us a 10 % discount.
Blake:	That's a bit difficult. The fact is our compressors are in great demand. However we can offer you a discount of 5 %, as we've been good partners for a long time.
Voronin:	I think we can agree to a 5% discount, Could we meet tomorrow at 10 to sign the contract, Mr. Blake?
Blake:	Yes, certainly. Mr. Voronin, would you like to have dinner with me tonight?
Voronin:	With pleasure.
Blake:	I can pick you up at the Intermash at 6.30 if that's convenient to you.
Voronin:	Yes, thank you.

NOTE: FOB (free оn board) - ФOБ (условия поставки, по которым продавец доставляет товар на судно за свой счет).

 Trip Report

People take business trips for a variety of reasons: to become familiar with a division of the company, to meet new personnel, to promote new business, or to investigate problems at a plant. Whatever the reason for the trip, they usually need to document the trip upon their return. That's where the real problems begin.

Most people don't know what's expected of them in a trip report. Some people believe they should write down everything that happened while they were away, account­ing for every minute spent while on the road. This way, they try to convey the impression that they weren't slough­ing off while out of the office. Others get so involved with the technical issues they are reporting that they forget to focus on the purpose of the trip. Still others get so general that a supervisor reading the report would wonder why he or she'd ever sent the person in the first place.

Your company sent you somewhere so that you could accomplish something. Perhaps you were sent to make a sale or to evaluate a process or a piece of software that might benefit your department. In any case, in the first paragraph or two, remind the reader why you took the trip and give the highlights of what you discovered. Also, give a hint as to how your discoveries may benefit your department or organization.

Even in a familiarization report, you are usually expected to uncover something of importance – for example, a suggestion based on your observations or a problem you'd like to investigate.

The trip report should include a cover sheet with the conference name, date and your name and company. Subsequent pages should detail your interest in the conference, your experience and how you will implement what you have learned into your organization. Customize your trip report to showcase the benefits you received and highlight how your organization will benefit from your attendance.