Client
Our client is a leading asset liquidation company in Texas that provides data center decommissioning, e-waste recycling, and generator removal services that go above and beyond other liquidation companies. They have serviced numerous businesses like hotels and large enterprises by helping them resell old but still functional equipment at a good value. They are a green company whose aim is to reduce the e-waste footprints left when equipment upgrades are made within a company.
Problem
The client had a somewhat unique business model, in which they would inventory and process assets from numerous client companies. They would ensure the destruction of any sensitive or confidential client information, test all equipment, resell it online, and then pay back a commission to the client who owned the equipment.
This model was very appealing to clients, but it presented certain complexities. It meant the client was still the owner of the asset until final disposition. Because of the sensitive nature of the arrangement, great care must be taken to protect client data and track all assets, and report inventory effectively.
Meanwhile, in addition to serving these clients, they were also running an eCommerce business, managing online listings, titles, shipping, and everything that comes with that. They needed to track everything in a consistent manner while processing goods efficiently in order to maintain profit margins.
Solution
We built a custom FileMaker application that managed nearly every aspect of the company’s day-to-day operations. This included tracking of incoming trucks, pallets, and assets; automatically importing product photos for online sales; ODBC import/export with MSSQL-based eBay listing tool; complex financial report generation; and automated pick and shipping systems.
We also built a web interface, allowing clients to log in and view the complete status of items entrusted to the company in real-time.
During this project, we used FileMaker Pro, PHP, MySQL, MS SQL, eBay Blackthorne, ODBC, rsync, Groovy, UPS Shipping XML API, Java printing APIs, among other technologies.
Results
With the improvements and automation implemented, our client was able to successfully streamline their business processes easily and efficiently and had greatly reduced (if not eliminated) basic system errors that usually came along with the process.