Yields
Front-of-house technology, particularly point-of-sale and payment systems, remains a priority for restaurant operators. However, savvy players are also strongly embracing back-of-house automation/kitchen display systems (KDS)—and seeing a return on investment (ROI) that averages 94%, according to a survey conducted for QSR Automations by HT parent company EnsembleIQ. What’s more, such payoff is only one reason why kitchen automation is a smart move all around.
Fielded by EnsembleIQ for QSR Automations from March 10, 2023 to April 3, 2023
Participants included 65 restaurant industry professionals with involvement in restaurant technology purchasing decisions, representing standalone or hotel/resort dining establishments
In some cases, results reflect perspective of KDS users with kitchen automation/KDS already implemented in their restaurants, as well as feedback from non-KDS users
KDS users view the technology in a positive light and as worth the investment. The same rings true of some non-KDS users, boding well for a potential wave of KDS adoption going forward and placing operators that fail to follow suit at an even more competitive disadvantage in the future.
SURVEY SNAPSHOT
Show of Hands for KDS
A majority (84%) of restaurant operators with a KDS in place believe it yields a strong ROI, and more than half (54%) of those that have not implemented one anticipate a similarly solid payback from KDS deployment.
Nearly three-fourths (72%) of KDS users and 67% of non-KDS users are so impressed with the technology that want the “best-in-class” KDS option, even if it carries a higher price than other solutions in the category.
KDS users are significantly more likely than non-KDS users to describe their back-of-house kitchen technology as:
52% of study participants call cost a roadblock, and one of their biggest barriers to jumping on the kitchen automation bandwagon. The research shows that this isn't the case! The study demonstrates the business benefits of KDS deployment. These stats show that the benefits of KDS deployment make the financial outlay more than worthwhile!
Restaurants are seeing a marked return on their kitchen automation investments, at an average of 94%.
Operators that leverage automated solutions like KDS have reduced their ticket time by an average of 69%, while increasing order accuracy by 83%.
KDS is perceived as sparking some or considerable/substantial improvements in numerous areas, including:
But what’s behind all these statistics? The kitchen is the heart of every restaurant—and efficient kitchen operation, fueled by automation, works in many ways to ensure a high-caliber guest experience that sparks repeat business. At the same time, it reduces staff pain points with solutions that are readily accepted based on ease of use.
Automating kitchen operations helps to cut down on food waste. A delayed routing capability enables efficient pacing of food preparation, eliminating time and inventory squandered in remaking inaccurate orders. It also helps to create low-stress environment for staff.
When kitchen displays replace paper tickets, staff can focus more on food preparation and less on finding, reading, handling, and sorting tickets. Meanwhile, operators save on costs associated with printers, printer maintenance, ribbons, ink, and paper.
The automated “safety net” provided by KDS frees kitchen staff from worry about task orchestration and other details, so they can concentrate on crafting the optimal dining experience.
Features such as delayed routing let operators set cook times for menu items. Items are then cooked in priority order, hitting the expo window at the same time and further contributing to a higher-caliber dining experience.
KDS empower restaurateurs to reduce ticket times and turn tables faster via customizable routing, pacing, and prep stations—translating to higher kitchen throughput.
Kitchen automation solutions support dynamic capacity management, permitting incoming orders to be throttled based on actual kitchen workload. Capacity management is based on real-time kitchen data, such as rush status or the total number of orders in the queue.
QSR Automations takes a consultative approach to helping restauranteurs maximize the benefits of automation, delivering integration, flexibility, and strong reporting tools that address operators’ key concerns.
QSR Automations’ ConnectSmart® Kitchen is a back-of-house solution that improves kitchen workflow and communication to provide an overall stress-free restaurant. In addition to improving order accuracy, eliminating paper tickets, bolstering staff efficiencies, improving food quality, increasing speed of service, and better managing capacity, users can:
1 “Strongly” or “somewhat” agree
2 “Strongly” or “somewhat” agree
3 “Strongly” or “somewhat” agree
Consistent/reliable
vs.
Well-integrated
Easy to use
Automated
average return on investment (ROI) when restaurants use back-of-house automation like kitchen display systems (KDS)
Kitchen Automation
Business
Seeing dollar signs
84
of KDS users believe it yields a strong ROI
Only the best
of KDS users are impressed with the technology
%
72
%
67
%
of non-KDS users are impressed with the technology
stacking up
Big Business Impact
Many Hefty returns
Up—and down
of restaurants seeing a marked return
94
%
69
%
KDS users reduced their ticket time by
83
%
KDS users increased order accuracy by
Adding It Up
a+ for order accuracy
ending the 'paper chase'
emphasis on excellence
Putting priorities in order
speeding up service
controlling capacity
94
%
94
%
58
%
vs.
84
%
61
%
vs.
88
%
58
%
vs.
66
%
39
%
Improvements everywhere
Operational efficiency
Company culture
Guest experience
Order accuracy
Speed of service
Reducing staff stress levels
Waste reduction
considerable
substantial
22%
66%
25%
63%
22%
63%
31%
63%
50%
44%
31%
44%
25%
41%
Maximize Productivity, Eliminate Chaos
Harness “order ready” capability.
Easily integrate their kitchen automation solution with point-of-sale systems.
Restaurant operators that have implemented ConnectSmart® Kitchen have reported an average 10% improvement in kitchen staff productivity and a support team satisfaction rate of
99
%
Payoff,
Big
Benefits
Cooking Up a Smarter Kitchen
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Learn more about its ConnectSmart® products, including ConnectSmart® Kitchen.
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Like other ConnectSmart® products, ConnectSmart® Kitchen can be easily integrated with point-of-sale systems from more than 70 QSR Automations point-of-sale partners. The end-result: a supercharged restaurant automation infrastructure that creates a seamless experience for customers.
Under this umbrella, data can be customized to show guests’ name, transaction status, order number, or any combination of these. Operators can also send an SMS message to customers when their food is ready to be picked up.
3
2
KDS ranks among the most common types of restaurant automation, with 49% of study participants having already implemented it and 14% planning to do so in the next 12 months. More than two-thirds (69%) of restaurant operators that have invested in a KDS consider it a high priority for their business, as do 42% of those that have not yet taken such a step.
1
top choice
of KDS users consider it a high priority for their business
69
%
QSR Automations’ ConnectSmart® solutions pave the way for operators to reap all the benefits of automation in the front and back of the house alike. Just ask some of our customers.
A Homerun Since Day One…and More…with QSR Automations
Manager empowerment from the start
“It’s been a home run since day one. We were able to eliminate the wheelman position. Our managers can now do budgets and they can hire and fire with confidence because they are well-rounded in their skillset. They don’t have to have that one skill that used to be so highly important to our success.”
—A. Stenner, 54th Street Grill & Bar
Rich data…when and where it’s needed
“For us, it’s all about the metrics. Data is very important. With the data we have access to through both QSR Automations’ ConnectSmart® Host and ConnectSmart® Kitchen, we know we can shape the guest experience.”
—A. Stenner, 54th Street Grill & Bar
Right on time for speedier service
”Moving to QSR has had a five-minute improvement on speed of service, generally. If you equate that out, it’s in the millions, really.”
—V. Badhwar, KFC UK & Ireland
”We look at how backed up the kitchen is with live metrics from QSR. Historically, we’re under three minutes now. Before, our average variances were 12 minutes. We’ve been able to do that by really diving in on live KDS metrics, and we’re able to give high-quality food at very accurate timing to our guests.
—J. East, Lazy Dog
”The order is going to take two minutes; here it is in two—rather than some person forgetting to add whichever ingredient and the food then having to be recooked.”
—S. Tiley, Theravada
”We looked at our cook times and noticed they were going up, so we decided to add new equipment to bring those cook times down. We went from a 48-inch broiler to a 60-inch broiler—and ConnectSmart Kitchen® was the tool we used to identify this.”
—A. Stenner, 54th Street Grill & Bar
Make no mistakes
”Because fries always get missed, we’re highlighting them in a different color (on orders) to bring attention to it. We’ve seen a 12% accuracy improvement for delivery off the back of making that change. We’re still unlocking the value (of the solution) after all these years.”
—V. Badhwar, KFC UK and Ireland
”Order accuracy is obviously huge. With QSR, there are no lost tickets. Everything’s there.”
—D. Olson, Pizza Ranch
Better overall service=better customer experience
”A lot of time managers spent opening the window of the oven looking for food and wondering where it was, was because the guest was there and waiting or the delivery driver needed to take two orders—and how long it was that going to be? You just look up at the screen—and that’s done for you now. You can tell if an order is paid for through color-coding. You can tell just a ton of stuff that frankly was missed before. (No more) guests who have paid and are sitting in the dining room, with nobody telling them their order is ready because they forgot or were distracted.”
—D. Olson, Pizza Ranch
”It’s the timing part. All of the meals come out together, all hot, all delivered to the table at the same time. But for me, it’s more about the customer experience, and that’s where my company focuses. If you remove all of the (positive) customer experience, all you’re left with is the food and the price. It just becomes a bot of a bland experience.”
—S. Tiley, Theravada
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