PRD-14 · TRADE
TradeSim
Import/export simulator for trade education
Overview
Learn international trade by running it.
Students can recite the Incoterms and still not know what an order costs once freight, duty and a late ship have landed. TradeSim gives each team its own trading company with the records a real one keeps - suppliers, customers, warehouses, orders, shipments, customs declarations, payments and accounts - in a market shared by the whole class, on a simulated calendar. Decisions have consequences the instructor can see and grade.
What it does
Inside the system.
FLO
The whole trade cycle
Purchase and sales orders with approval for large ones, sea, air and road shipments, customs declarations with HS codes and duty, payments and letters of credit - then landed cost, profit and loss and margin by order.
SCN
Guided scenarios that cannot be skipped
Twelve scenarios walk a team through a real workflow in the right order. A step closes only when the platform finds the evidence - the document issued, the declaration paid, the cargo stuffed - and every move is costed.
DOC
26 trade documents, filled in for you
Commercial invoice, packing list, bill of lading, certificate of origin, proof of delivery and more, filled from the order, with a QR verification code. Documents are checked against each other for mismatched quantity, value or consignee.
MKT
A live market
A shared simulated calendar and trade routes whose freight and transit times move. Instructors fire events - port congestion, freight surges, currency swings - and students have to respond.
ROL
Five roles, five logins
Student, client, trucker, bank and instructor are separate users with step-level authorisation. Inside a team, students hold departments the instructor can rotate.
INS
Built for grading
Cohort metrics, lock and reset, a decision log, per-student contribution reports and CSV export. The activity record is append-only: nothing in it can be edited or deleted.
Under the hood
Engineering depth.
A core ERP plus add-on modules, licensed per institution: only what is taught appears in the menu.
MOD
Nine add-on modules
Incoterms, Customs Clearance, Distribution Center, Trucker, Freight Forwarding, Ship Agent, Consolidation, Port Management and an integrated Forwarder / Agent / Line exercise.
PCK
Ten teaching packs
For the core and every add-on: a workflow, student manual, instructor guide with session plans and an assessment pack with rubrics, laid out as one 19-week semester. Sample data loads in one click.
ISO
Isolation enforced in the database
Teams cannot see each other's data, and institutions are separated the same way - by row-level security in PostgreSQL, not just by what the screens show.
LNG
Four languages
Interface, documents and teaching packs in English, Arabic, Filipino and Malay. Each person picks a language; the institution sets the default.
Deployment
Where it runs.
As a shared cloud service for several institutions, or as a self-contained server on the campus network with no internet needed. A single program with a PostgreSQL database; students use any modern browser and install nothing.
Frequently asked
Straight answers.
What is TradeSim?
TradeSim is an import/export simulator from Varuni Systems. It gives every student team its own virtual trading company in a browser, with purchase and sales orders, shipments, customs declarations, letters of credit, 26 trade documents and company accounts, so students learn international trade by running it.
What is an import/export simulator?
An import/export simulator is teaching software that lets students run a trading company without real money or cargo. TradeSim models the full cycle: buy, ship, clear customs, get paid and see the profit, in a market whose freight rates and transit times change as the class works.
Is there software to teach international trade and logistics?
Yes. TradeSim is built for universities, business schools and training institutes. It has guided scenarios, a live market, nine add-on modules (Incoterms, customs clearance, freight forwarding, port management and more), ready-made teaching packs and an instructor console for grading.
Which trade documents does TradeSim include?
TradeSim includes 26 trade document forms, among them the commercial invoice, packing list, bill of lading, customs declaration, certificate of origin, proof of delivery and gate pass. They fill in from the order, carry a QR verification code and are checked against each other for mismatched quantity, value or consignee.
How does an instructor grade students in TradeSim?
The instructor console shows cohort metrics, a decision log and per-student contribution reports, and exports grades as CSV. A scenario step closes only when the platform finds the evidence, such as the document issued or the declaration paid, and the activity record cannot be edited or deleted.
Can TradeSim run on a campus network without internet?
Yes. TradeSim runs either as a shared cloud service for several institutions or as a self-contained server on the campus network with no internet needed. Students use any modern browser and install nothing.
What languages does TradeSim support?
TradeSim's interface, documents and teaching packs are available in English, Arabic, Filipino and Malay. Each person chooses a language and the institution sets the default.
Do teams see each other's data in TradeSim?
No. Each team sees only its own company. Separation between teams, and between institutions, is enforced inside the PostgreSQL database with row-level security, not only by what the screens show.
Start here
See TradeSim
against your problem.
Tell us what you're trying to train, track or communicate through and we'll tell you honestly whether TradeSim fits - or whether you need something else built.
Start the conversation