A new food technology partnership is bringing 24/7 made-to-order pizza to automated drive-thru restaurant units around the country.
Seattle-based food automation technology company Speedy Eats has signed a first wave of commitment with Picnic Works to begin incorporating Picnic’s robotic pizza assembly stations into their automated “restaurants in a box.” With a projected order volume of 5,000 units over the next five years, the partnership is estimated to be worth $800 million.
The Concept
Speedy Eats’ automated dining and pickup concept places fully contained drive-thru operations in easily accessible locations, such as parking lots, where customers can purchase hot and cold food items at any time of day or night.
As QSR Magazine reports, the company’s patent-pending 16 x 8.5 x 8.5 feet units include a TurboChef oven and storage compartment for up to 240 entrées, along with a customer-facing fridge and warmer for side items, beverages, and desserts. The company plans to place these automated stations in more than 40,000 parking lots across the U.S.
“Our goal is to bring fresh food to people whenever and wherever they want it and we’re ambitious in our plans,” said F. Speed Bancroft, CEO and President of BARS Inc, in a press release. “We’re partnering with Picnic for their expertise in automation and proven market success.”
The Pizza Station
The agreement allows Speedy Eats to integrate the Picnic Pizza Station technology into its standalone and commissary locations.
The autonomous Picnic station can assemble up to 100 pizzas each hour and create fully customizable orders The station loads dough and applies the sauce, cheese, fresh-cut pepperoni, and additional toppings before placing the pies into the kitchen’s ovens for cooking.
The company is also looking to sell other items, including barbecue, wings, tenders, and breakfast out of its automated kitchens, and open regional production centers to supply the locations.
