“We know that chains and other large users would like more automation and for equipment to be able to communicate so they can easily change recipes and things like that. There’s a lot of interest in any kind of automation that can speed up food prep and service, especially on the fast food side.”
— Rob August Vice President Ali Group
The pandemic and the labor shortage that followed could become the spark that pushes automation into the foodservice mainstream. Germ conscious customers have accelerated the desire for the kind of contactless service automation can provide. Meanwhile, consumers are craving affordable, healthy food on-demand, with operators challenged to meet those needs amid staffi ng shortages and skyrocketing operational costs. Could those combined factors mean that now is the time for automation to truly permeate throughout the foodservice equipment industry? Maahs doesn’t see automation
proliferating at the operator level, just yet. “My concern with automation is the service and support needed to keep operators up and running,” he says. “If I automate the entirety of a process and a robot goes down and can’t be serviced or I can’t get parts, I’m fully down. Knowing the service technician shortage and parts availability shortage, are we going to be able to keep it
24 FEDA News & Views
up and running? If a manufacturer can demonstrate reliability with their automation solution, that is the key.” With Ali Group’s acquisition of
Welbilt, a leader in kitchen automation, August is eager to learn more about what the technology can do for operators. “We know that chains and other large users would like more automation and for equipment to be able to communicate so they can easily change recipes and things like that. There’s a lot of interest in any kind of automation that can speed up food prep and service, especially on the fast food side,” he says, noting that there’s some novelty appeal to customers as well. “You see things like coffee robots at airports where you can pay a few dollars and the robot will go brew the coffee and serve it to you. It appeared to me that it took some time for the coffee to be served, so some of that is entertainment at the end user level.” Although consumer-facing robots might generate the most excitement, there is a lot of opportunity for these
emerging technologies to assist in the kitchen. “I also see a higher likelihood to automate back of the house operations,” Maahs adds. “We have to remember that this is the hospitality industry. It’s about humans connecting and socializing with each other. Operators are very in-tune with the fact that if their customers must serve themselves entirely or are being served fully by robots, they might just decide to stay home. We’re a social industry, and we can’t eliminate all human service, because that’s the heart of who we are.”
New Industry Technology Historically, the foodservice equipment
and supplies industry has been behind other industries when it comes to technology adoption. “Despite all the consolidation, our industry is still very fragmented,” August explains. “That’s one of the challenges with tech when it comes to pricing, quoting, e-commerce and things like that – one size doesn’t always fi t all in our business.”
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