Chipotle Mexican Grill is testing robots at two California restaurants that help prepare avocados for guacamole and assemble burrito bowls.
The chain said Tuesday it will test the two machines for the first time in its own stores and get feedback from employees and customers before deciding whether to expand the technology to other Chipotle locations.
The guacamole-assisting robot, called Autocad, can cut, core, and peel an avocado in an average of 26 seconds, cutting the time it takes a human worker to make guacamole in half. The company’s human workers still have to mash the fruit by hand, but the technology could save them a lot of labor. Chipotle plans to use about 5.2 million cases of avocados (worth 129.5 million pounds of fruit) in its restaurants across the U.S., Canada, and Europe this year.
Chipotle said the second collaborative robot, known as a “cobot,” will use automation technology to assemble bowls and salads, which account for 65% of the chain’s digital orders. The automated assembly system dispenses a set amount of each ingredient for each order. Chipotle said in July it would train employees to make sure they can serve enough portions to customers after an investigation found that one in 10 stores couldn’t keep up with orders. Too poor and Their portions.
“these Collaborative Devices “This has the potential to help us build a stronger operational engine that delivers a great experience for our team members and guests while maintaining Chipotle’s high culinary standards,” said Kurt Garner, Chipotle’s chief customer and technology officer.
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Autocado is currently up and running at a Chipotle store in Huntington Beach, Calif., and Augmented Makeline is helping create bowls and salads for digital orders at a Chipotle restaurant in Corona del Mar, Calif. Nearly two-thirds of Chipotle’s digital orders are bowls and salads, according to the company.
Chipotle developed the robot in collaboration with technology companies Vebu and Hyphen, which operate more than 3,500 restaurants worldwide.
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