Robot Makes 100 Pizzas an Hour Costing $3,500 to $5,000/Month | Hiring a Line Cook for the Same Job Would Cost $2,400/Month

Urian B., Tech Times 25 August 2021, 01:08 am

A new company has just started selling its pizza-making robots to restaurants. The problem is, the company still has to convince the chefs that their machines are worth the money.

Picnic International Pizza Expo

Picnic, a Seattle-based company, has just announced that they will finally be accepting pre-orders for the company's popular pizza-assembling robot. This was announced at the International Pizza Expo in Las Vegas that had a gathering of over 13,000 pizza professionals.

The "Pizza system" reportedly consists of a number of modules that dispense cheese, sauce, and toppings onto the dough. The press release announced that the cost of leasing the machine would cost from $3,500 to $5,000 a month which includes free installation and maintenance.

Pizza System Up to 100 Pizzas an Hour

With the help of the Pizza System, one person would be able to make up to 100 pizzas in just an hour. Although the Picnic robot isn't that new as it debuted back in 2019, it is only newly made available to restaurants. The Picnic robot's capacity was able to serve 500 pizzas an hour with just less than 1% food wastage.

According to Mashable, Picnic was able to successfully run its pilot programs with T-Mobile Park as well as the Las Vegas Convention Center. Both, however, are large venues that still need to be able to produce fast food for masses. A local pizza joint, however, has different demands.

What Matters in the Kitchen

When it comes to kitchen work, what matters most to Daniel Cutler, the chef and owner of Ronan in Los Angeles, is actually versatility. Cutler noted that for those that are pigeon-holed, you can only do one particular job and this makes them less valuable compared to everyone else.

He also reportedly mentioned how his customers liked watching the pizza-making experience and even called the Pizza System "a big eyesore." According to Cutler's wife and co-owner Caitlin, Ronan would reportedly pay about $2,400/month in order to hire a line cook in order to do the exact same job. Pizza vending machines, pizza robots, and other pizza technology have been sprouting out as well.

Pizza System Costs Double

He then noted that it actually costs more to actually lease the Pizza System which meant almost double. In an email, CEO of Picnic, Clayton Wood, addressed the pricing model. He notably said that their customers have indicated that the labor-saving would reduce food waste savings, consistency of product, and even the ongoing support in order to justify the monthly fee.

Wood reportedly pointed out that due to the RaaS or robot as a service business model, there is actually not an upfront cost for the whole system. Despite what these particular chefs had to say regarding it, Wood says that interest in the robot has actually been strong. The company reportedly noted that they will reveal some of its current customers "in the coming months."

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Written by Urian B.