Granular Asset Information for Everything You Ship or Store with FGX

Traditional inventory platforms weren’t designed for high-value IT hardware moving through global supply chains. As a result, IT and infrastructure teams often track hardware in siloed spreadsheets, poorly maintained databases, and email threads. This lack of clean and complete data can dramatically increase the risk of delays, misdeliveries and compliance issues when moving IT hardware internationally.

Nearly a year ago, we introduced the FGX Platform with dedicated Sites, Entities, Quotes and Live Shipments features to centralize and simplify global IT logistics for multinational enterprises. We also recently added new Inventory and Reports features.

Today, we’re announcing new features related to viewing details for every asset you’ve shipped or stored with FGX, integrated into the FGX Platform to provide clearer visibility into shipments and inventory. In this post, we’ll outline our compliance manifest process, detail the data we collect and store in the FGX Platform, and demonstrate how it streamlines your global IT shipments.

How Compliance Manifests Make Customs Clearance Smoother

Freight forwarders and major couriers often place full responsibility for shipment contents on clients without verifying that declarations matched the actual cargo. As a result, damaged or incorrect hardware may arrive at your destination, causing costly delays and derailing deployments. Global IT logistics require a more careful verification process.

A manifest serves as an itemized record of a shipment’s contents by listing descriptions, quantities, weights, country of origin markings, and special handling instructions. At FGX, we initiate every shipment by inspecting and photographing each device and its label, then linking those images to our compliance manifest for visual verification.

We store this data in the FGX Platform backend. If authorities request more details, we simply pull the exact image and serial number from our records. Here’s how our compliance manifest process supplies the FGX Platform with clean, comprehensive data:

Verifying Quantities and Serial Numbers

In order to start the manifest process, clients book their shipments with FGX. When dropshipping their IT hardware to our export facility, they send tracking numbers for the inbound shipments, which we automatically record against each carton received along with its condition and serial number(s) included.

During the compliance manifest, we inspect each unit to ensure it matches our client’s declared contents, flagging any shortage or surplus quantity for client review. For multi-site projects, we assign each item’s serial number to its intended destination. The serial number assigned to each outbound shipment is visible in the FGX platform once the manifest is completed.

FGX proprietary labelling, applied to each carton, serves as a universal reference for remote-hands or field technicians, ensuring every rack-mounted device, power distribution unit (PDU), and accessory kit is instantly identifiable and installation-ready.

In the FGX Platform, the Inventory feature provides an overview of every asset’s location, condition, and serial number across our global warehouses. You can select assets individually or in bulk through the simplified CSV upload selection feature. This ensures clean IT asset data, lets you view quantities at a glance, and dive into details for each piece of hardware.

Assessing Condition

During the manifest process, we inspect each device and its packaging for scuffs, wear, or damage and check handling indicators such as ShockWatch for signs of rough handling prior to arrival at FGX. We photograph each inspection to document the device’s condition, any signs of damage, and ShockWatch status as well as the product’s compliance labelling. We immediately flag anomalies to arrange replacements or repackage items before shipping.  

Currently, photos are uploaded to the FGX Platform backend and can be shared upon request. Our roadmap includes a more comprehensive manifest interface that clients will be able to access through the FGX Platform.

Instead of sorting through dozens of email threads to see what was shipped, you can instantly view the bill of materials for each shipment via the FGX platform, with serial number-level data visible and exportable to CSV with one click.

Inspecting Compliance Marks

Accurate country of origin labeling has always been critical for customs compliance, and its importance has grown as minor discrepancies can trigger significant tariff implications. We capture and verify item-level country of origin data during the manifest process to prevent costly misclassifications. We also inspect devices for market-specific logos (such as FCC, CE, BIS, NOM, and others) before they ship.

We document each compliance mark on products and packaging through photography in the FGX Platform backend. 

Instead of uncovering missing or incorrect logos during a customs audit at the border, we catch them while we can make adjustments. If a shipment faces inspection, we support the process with these photographs. This diligence lets us maintain precise, auditable records and minimize the chances of unexpected tariffs.

Additional Compliance Manifest Processes

In the FGX Platform backend, we record photographs and data for each of the following compliance manifest stages. We plan to make select information available to customers in upcoming releases:

• Dual Part Number Verification: We photograph and log both marketing and regulatory model numbers to ensure customs sees the certified product and prevent part-number mismatches.

• Packaging Accessories for Compliance Precision: We classify separately packed power supplies (PSUs) and accessories correctly. We also reconfigure packaging when we see an opportunity to streamline declarations (such as combining a router and its PSUs for BIS).

• Declaration of Batteries & Accessories: We check for any batteries included in each shipment, assign proper UN numbers and packing groups, and itemize all accessories to prevent hazardous-goods misclassification.

• Compliant Packaging: We ensure wood pallets and crates meet phytosanitary regulations or switch to plastic pallets when needed.

• Detailed Manifest Summary: After each manifest, a detailed summary including serial numbers will be available for client access.

These integrated backend processes demonstrate FGX’s commitment to seamless customs clearance, and gives you a clear record of which equipment arrived at each destination. It can serve as a single source of truth for every asset. By documenting every manifest step in the FGX Platform, we ensure each shipment element is accurately recorded and fully customs-ready.

Turning the Manifest Process into an Asset

These enhancements turn the manifest from a hidden back-office task into a transparent, data-driven asset that accelerates customs clearance, reduces operational risk, and gives teams clear visibility into asset counts and locations. Integrating every compliance check and inspection into the FGX Platform lets you manage global IT logistics more effectively and streamline shipments worldwide.