Picnic Works, a Seattle-based developer of kitchen automation technology, debuts its Picnic Partner Program, bringing together cutting-edge companies throughout the foodservice industry. The new partner network offers leaders in food technology, services, ingredients and more the opportunity to combine strengths and better serve kitchen operators in their efforts to automate kitchen operations to increase profitability and customer satisfaction.
"We've collaborated with Picnic for several years, working together at tradeshows and events to showcase how our pizza ingredients work with the Picnic station," Liza Larson, director of external innovation, Rich Products, said in the announcement. "Most recently, we connected Picnic with our customer Chartwells Higher Education and their contract client, Texas A&M University, where the station has been making high-quality pizza for months. We're excited to be part of this program that connects and strengthens a network of organizations that are helping operators find the right ingredients, innovation, and service to enhance their profitability and success."
The Picnic Partner Program is actively welcoming companies that are working within six categories. These include kitchen design, ingredient supply, point of sale, foodservice equipment, data and analytics, and service and logistics. Current Picnic partners already are transforming foodservice in many ways, from modular and sustainable kitchen design and self-service pickup solutions to POS integration and innovative cooking equipment.
"Picnic works with customers to understand how automation can help improve efficiency and profitability," Scott Erickson, CMO of Picnic, said in the announcement. "Our new partner program creates a network of resources to assist customers with their move to automation. From technology, equipment, and ingredient testing to co-marketing and referrals, the Picnic Partner Program is a hub for like-minded companies to connect, share, and help customers."
A sample of current Picnic Partner Program companies includes Rich Products, Ovention, Kwali, Bear Robotics, and Mukunda Foods.
Autonomously assembling up to 100 pizzas per hour, the Picnic Pizza Station improves pizza assembly efficiency. A cook loads the dough, and the station applies the sauce, cheese, fresh-cut pepperoni, and additional toppings.
Using Picnic technology results in less food waste than traditional makelines and allows for integration with a kitchen's point-of-sale (POS) equipment and mobile ordering platforms. The Picnic Pizza Station is NSF and ETL/UL certified and is supported with cloud-based software and over-the-air firmware updates.
The customer roster for the Picnic Pizza Station includes managed foodservice providers Compass, Chartwells, and Sodexo Live!, Domino's Pizza Enterprises, Texas A&M University, The Ohio State University, and numerous regional pizzerias with new customers coming online weekly. Connecting customers to partners through the program will allow these and other foodservice operators an enhanced way to automate and innovate, saving time, money, and labor.
