Where to Start With Food and Beverage Automation

Harrison Goldberg
January 28, 2022 1:22:13 PM EST
If you are reading this article, it is likely that you are interested in implementing food and beverage automation into your business, or you have been tapped by senior management to see to it that it happens. If you are new to automation or research and development (or both) it can seem overwhelming and all but impossible to know where to begin. It is especially difficult when the directive from above is simply, “We need automation.” In this article we discuss how to begin the food and beverage automation journey.
Start by Applying Food and Beverage Automation to One Task

When we start with “we need automation,” we tend to spin our wheels and accomplish very little. In any kitchen operation there are likely tens or hundreds of opportunities for food and beverage automation. Developing and implementing automation takes time and is expensive. If the scope of implementation is too broad it will require a massive staff to manage and significant financial resources that may never become available. Additionally, so much is learned with each food and beverage automation project that the master plan may change with each implementation.

Our recommendation is to pick one single challenge and solve it all the way through.

Why Does The Business Need Food and Beverage Automation?


The first step is to ask why a business needs food and beverage automation. Here are a few of the most common reasons, although there are many others:

Not Enough Staff
Food and beverage automation can help when there are not enough staff members available to complete necessary tasks on a regular basis. In this case, technology can reduce or eliminate the time required by kitchen staff to perform tasks.

More Throughput
Wait times are too long which upsets customers. Lines are too long, and patrons simply pass your business up. This is all leads to lost revenue opportunities. Food and beverage automation, when implemented correctly could help perform an existing task faster or perform multiple tasks in parallel. This means more product throughput in the same kitchen, which allows for more customers to be served in the same period.

Product Consistency
Customers become attached to your meal offerings. They like the way it was cooked, folded, presented, you name it. It can be upsetting for a customer to return to a business and order the same thing as last week only to receive something different. This could be as simple as receiving a perfectly toasted golden-brown bun last week, but a charred bun this week. Depending on the time of day, which employee, or even a different location, there are many opportunities for variation. Food and beverage automation which performs the task of toasting the bun will ensure a consistent result regardless of location or staff.

There are many other reasons why a business may consider food and beverage automation. What is important, is for a business to define its reason. This will help establish a metric to measure the success of a project. It will also help a business to narrow down the number of opportunities for food and beverage automation.

Establish the Businesses Top Three Opportunities for Food and Beverage Automation


Now that we have reviewed why we need food and beverage automation, it is time to establish which processes to consider. Here are a few tips on where to look.

Listen to kitchen managers and staff. Ask what their biggest pain point is. Better yet, staff and managers may already be vocal about which parts of the kitchen need better equipment or more staff. Just listen. When considering food and beverage automation, make observations. Spend time in the kitchen. Do each of the tasks yourself for a few hours. If possible, have a few different people spend time making observations.

Look at the books. What is causing the biggest expense? Are some materials being wasted more than others? These can all be good opportunities for food and beverage automation.

Read your Yelp reviews. Unfortunately, the most vocal customers are not usually sharing positive feedback. We would not recommend a food and beverage automation project based on one angry customer, but are there any patterns? Are most of the complaints about the same thing? Can this issue be solved with food and beverage automation?

Determine Resources for Food and Beverage Automation


For successful food and beverage automation implementation there must be assigned resources. This means a champion, a budget, and at least one or two people whose first priority is the success of this project.

A champion is someone who wakes up every day and feels responsible to see that a project gets completed. At their annual review, they will be measured based on the progress of this project. They will establish the budget, make sure the budget remains available and manage all other resources. This is the single most important element to a successful food and beverage automation project. Projects often take longer and cost more than anyone expects. It is all too common for a project to get sideline because there is nobody around who cares.

Next, a clearly defined budget is imperative. The obvious reason is to keep projects from spending excessively. The more nuanced reason is to ensure that a project can go on. Without dollars carved out for a food and beverage automation project there are often delays waiting for funding. These projects are difficult enough, the last thing they need are internal roadblocks.

Lastly, there must be resources assigned whose primary day-to-day activities are the food and beverage automation project. If the resources assigned are instructed to work on this when other priorities are met, you can forget about it. In any operationalized business, there are always more important problems in the present than research and development. By the time the project gets completed, if it ever does, it will likely have gone through multiple teams, be over budget, and possibly not successful. In a business which is new to research and development and food and beverage automation, it can be helpful to hire an outside firm to guide the process. Remember, this only eliminates the needs for staff. A champion and a budget are still an absolute for project success.

Food and beverage automation projects can seem overwhelming at first. The key is to establish one pain area in your operation and focus in on ways to automate that process. A first success will go a long way in the ability to serve the rest of the kitchen.

 

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