How a Leading Collectibles Company Streamlined Inbound Operations without Overbuilding
INDUSTRY
E-commerce and Logistics
A collectibles trading company needed to improve its outdated, manual sortation process, which was causing operational issues and high labor costs. They faced frequent disruptions and struggled to handle spikes in volume. The process lacked scalability, and the company recognized the need for a more efficient solution.
The new sortation system was implemented over a weekend with no downtime, reducing labor from 12 to 1-2 team members and achieving 100% uptime since go-live. The team quickly adapted, and the system improved workflow, allowing staff to focus on more valuable tasks while enhancing speed and safety.
SOLUTION
Overview
A leading company in collectibles authentication and trading was facing operational challenges with its inbound package processing. Each day, the company received thousands of shipments from multiple carriers. Their manual sorting process was consuming labor resources and creating inefficiencies, limiting their ability to scale with growing customer demand.
As their team put it: “It wasn’t really an error issue—it was more about efficiency. We knew there had to be a better way."
Partnering with Fidus Global, the company implemented a right-sized sortation solution designed for high-intensity use during peak operational windows. The result: a faster, more secure, and more labor-efficient inbound process without overbuilding infrastructure they didn’t need.
The Challenge
The customer’s inbound workflow relied on 12 team members manually sorting thousands of packages daily over the course of a few hours using folding tables and handheld scanners. This led to:
- High labor demands, pulling staff away from higher-value tasks
- Operational disruptions from constant task switching
- Inflexibility to accommodate service-level sortation or future volume growth
The Solution: eSort Powered by Pontem
To optimize the customer’s inbound sorting challenges, Fidus Global implemented eSort, a compact, modular sortation system powered by Pontem Bolt. The system was designed with flexibility in mind, easily fitting into the company’s limited physical space and integrating with minimal IT overhead.
Space efficiency was a top priority. eSort’s small footprint allowed the team to deploy high-performance automation without reconfiguring their entire layout. As the customer shared, “The footprint was most important. The modularity was a bonus—we’re already looking at adding another section.”
Equally important was eSort’s ability to customize divert logic. The company needed a unique round-robin sortation method tied to service levels. With Pontem, they got tailored functionality that met their operational needs. “The way we wanted to round robin our diverts was a custom development—which has been amazing,” the team said.
Integration was simple and seamless. eSort passed package IDs directly into the customer’s existing rating platform, with minimal development work required. “It’s a pretty loose integration,” they noted, “and that’s exactly what we needed.”
Built to run during daily peak hours rather than 24/7, the system was right-sized to match the customer’s volume profile—avoiding unnecessary costs while preserving room to grow. As needs expand, the customer can easily add modules without requiring a major infrastructure investment.
Implementation & Results
The system was installed over a single weekend with zero downtime – allowing the team to validate, train, and go live without disruption. The solution also reduced dependency on security staffing and freed employees for more strategic work.
Since going live, the system has proven highly reliable and impactful:
Conclusion
By implementing eSort: Powered by Pontem, the customer didn’t just automate an inefficient process—they built a smarter, more sustainable way of working. What once required a dozen team members now takes just one or two, without sacrificing accuracy, visibility, or control.
The system’s modular design, minimal integration lift, and peak-use optimization delivered immediate value and positioned the business for future growth without costly overhauls.
eSort: Powered by Pontem is more than just automation – it's a competitive advantage.