Asia Pacific · South Korea

Ship Chandler Software for
Busan

Ship chandlers at Port of Busan use Tidal to turn RFQ emails into priced quotes in under 30 minutes, matched to their own catalogue and margin rules. Send us one real RFQ and we will quote it with you on a 30 minute call.

Built for ship chandlers and marine suppliers who quote vessels calling at Busan
One AI-native ERP for RFQs, quotes, purchase orders, invoices and stock, matched to your own catalogue and margin rules
You approve every line before the quote goes out. Live in about a week, no IT team needed

See how it works Is Tidal right for you?

Get a live demo on one of your own RFQs

Leave your work email and company. We reply within one business day to set up 30 minutes, then quote a real RFQ from Busan with you.

Looking for a ship chandler in Busan, or selling to us? Read this first.

Is this for you?

Software for the chandlers who supply Busan, not a chandler

Tidal is quoting software. Ship chandlers and marine suppliers use it to answer buyer RFQs faster. We do not supply vessels ourselves.

A good fit if you

Run a chandlery or marine supply business serving vessels at Busan
Retype buyer RFQs into spreadsheets or your ERP before you can price them
Lose orders because a faster supplier answered first
Want consistent prices and margins on every quote, whoever prepares it

Not the right page if you

Need provisions or stores delivered to a vessel. Tidal does not supply ships, please contact a local chandler or your ship agent.
Want to sell products or services to Tidal. The demo form is for chandlers and suppliers looking at the software.
Are looking for a job. Please see the Agility careers page.

How it works

From buyer RFQ to priced quote, on your own catalogue

What changes for a Busan chandler on the first day with Tidal.

1
RFQ arrives
By email, PDF, Excel or a portal export. Tidal reads every line, including vague descriptions and missing codes.
2
Lines matched
Each line is matched to your own catalogue and item codes, with unclear lines flagged for your team.
3
Priced your way
Your supplier prices, client tiers and margin rules are applied. You review and approve every line.
4
Quote goes out
Send the quote, turn it into a sales order, then check supplier invoices against it when they arrive.

See it working

A real quote, priced line by line

Quote Desk

Turns buyer RFQs into priced quotes and sales orders from your own catalogue and supplier prices.

See Quote Desk

Invoice Capture

Reads supplier invoices from a photo or PDF and checks them against the order before they reach your accounts.

See Invoice Capture

Meet us at IMPA Singapore

Stand SUZ 4, Suntec, 24 to 25 November 2026. Bring an RFQ and see it priced.

Plan your visit

Busan ferry terminal and waterfront — Photo: Jiwoon Kim (CC0)

Busan and its port

Korea's main port, where container lines, fishing fleets and ships from the southern yards all need supplies

Busan is South Korea's largest port and its second city, set on the southeastern tip of the peninsula facing Japan. It handles most of the country's container traffic and is a major transshipment hub for Northeast Asia. Busan New Port, opened in 2006 west of the city, takes the largest ships, while the old North Port has been redeveloped. The city also runs one of Korea's biggest fishing ports.

For a ship supplier, Busan offers a wide range of customers in one place: container ships on short transshipment calls, deep sea fishing vessels, tankers, bulk carriers and ships coming from the yards of the southeast coast. Korean ship managers expect fast, accurate quotes and often send detailed RFQs. A chandler who can turn those around quickly, in the format the buyer uses, wins repeat work.

Time zone: KST, UTC+9 (no daylight saving)
Business languages: Korean and English
Working week: Monday to Friday
TEU a year: 22M+
vessel calls/year: 35,000+

Business culture

Business in Busan is relationship based and fairly formal, with respect for seniority and job titles. Korean is the main language of deals, and English is used with foreign lines and agents. Email carries formal quotes, but KakaoTalk and phone calls handle many quick questions. Decisions can take time as they pass up the chain, and Seollal and Chuseok, the lunar new year and harvest holidays, slow activity.

Port and maritime heritage

Busan was a small fishing and trading town until the Treaty of Ganghwa opened it to Japanese trade in 1876, making it Korea's first modern port. During the Korean War it served as the temporary capital and the main entry point for UN supplies. From the 1970s it grew with Korea's export industries, and Busan New Port opened in 2006 to handle larger container ships.

Local market

Container ships dominate, many on transshipment calls, alongside fishing vessels, tankers, bulk carriers and ships delivered from nearby yards. Busan is also a base for distant water fishing fleets. Buyers expect quick turnaround on RFQs, correct part numbers and descriptions, delivery that fits short port stays, and quotes laid out clearly so their office can compare suppliers easily.

Working with us from Busan

Working with us from Busan begins with a remote 30 minute demo on one of your own RFQs. We set Tidal up on your catalogue and margin rules, with no IT team needed, and you can expect to be live in about a week. Korea is 3 hours 30 minutes ahead of India, so your afternoon, from about 13:00 to 18:00, overlaps with our team's working day.

FAQ

Common questions from Busan ship chandlers

How does Tidal handle ultra large container vessel RFQs at Busan?

Ultra large container vessels (ULCVs) calling at Busan's Gamman and New Port terminals regularly submit RFQs with 800 or more line items. Tidal processes these in full, the AI extracts every line item from PDF, Excel, or plain text format, matches each line to your own catalogue at 90%+ accuracy, applies your margin rules, and generates the complete quote in under 30 minutes. Processing time does not scale linearly with line item count the way manual processing does. A 50-item RFQ and an 850-item RFQ both receive completed quotes in under 30 minutes. For Busan's ULCV traffic, this is a fundamental operational advantage.

Can Tidal help Busan chandlers respond to Korean and Japanese operator RFQs?

Yes. Tidal processes RFQs in any language and format. Korean and Japanese vessel operators frequently submit RFQs in their native language, often as scanned PDFs or structured Excel files. Tidal's AI extraction engine handles all of these formats, interpreting item descriptions semantically and mapping them to your own catalogue regardless of the source language. The resulting quote is generated in whatever language and format your client expects. For Busan chandlers serving both Korean domestic fleet operators and international shipping companies, this eliminates the language barrier that currently adds hours to the manual RFQ process.

Does Tidal support the car carrier chandling operations at Busan?

Yes. Busan is a major port of call for car carriers (PCTCs) on Korea Europe and Korea Americas routes, and these vessels generate specialized provision and stores RFQs with specific automotive cargo considerations. Tidal handles the full provision spectrum, deck stores, engine stores, safety equipment, provisions, and spare parts, using item code matching to your own catalogue across all categories. Car carrier operators often have standardized specification lists that repeat on every call; Tidal recognizes repeat customers and their stored pricing tiers, making subsequent quotes even faster than the first.

Ship Chandler Software forBusan