Automatic drink dispensers offer food service operators greater service speed, consistency and beverage quality by reducing service bottlenecks and eliminating waste. From independent specialty coffee shops to multinational quick-service restaurants, food service operators should consider introducing automated beverage dispensing into their workflow.
Euromonitor International, a market research firm, recently identified convenience as a global consumer megatrend; shoppers are more discerning than ever in where and how they spend their time. Younger generations, especially, are willing to pay a premium for faster service to match their increasingly busy lives, and automation is positioned to assist food service operators in keeping up with demand.
We spoke with Denes Biro, UK sales director at Heylo Coffee, to hear more about automatic beverage dispensers in a practical context.
Subscribe to our weekly newsletter
Sign up
What are automatic drink dispensers?
Automation is increasing across multiple industries, including food service. As technology and equipment have improved and become more affordable over the last decade, sophisticated automatic serving systems of all types have been cropping up in quick-service restaurants, fine dining establishments, and cafes and coffee shops.
“Automated coffee solutions are visibly gaining momentum,” says Denes.
“We have seen them spread across multiple stages in the coffee industry, including roasting, tamping, grinding, brewing, ordering and serving. Like everything, they have pros and cons, but what we may see going forward is these solutions being implemented in coffee shops and other environments where automation has traditionally played less of a role.”
The term automatic drink dispenser refers to food service equipment that automates the process of pouring beverages in a restaurant, cafe or other hospitality setting – a process that has been largely manual until recently. Technology and equipment vary greatly across automated beverage solutions – some are more advanced or sophisticated than others – but each’s primary goal is to improve workflow by freeing up staff and speeding up service.
As an example, the Flo-Smart automatic drink dispenser automates the dosing and pouring of up to four different beverage types (depending on the option you choose) with fully automated refrigerated lines that run directly from an under-counter fridge to the countertop. Automated beverage dispensers also help businesses offer a more varied menu without introducing service complexity.
In the fast food industry, fountain soda vending machines let operators offer multiple beverage types from one unit without requiring extra labour or slowing existing staff down. As operators add more variety to their offerings, the risk of waste increases – every beverage introduced has specific measurement and dosing requirements.
With more technologically advanced dispensing systems like Flo-Smart, managers and business owners can pre-set and save measurements across multiple machines, dramatically reducing waste, which improves their sustainability credentials and saves costs.
How do automatic drink dispensers help in practice?
“The right equipment can help coffee businesses in many ways,” Denes says.
“They can increase the speed of service, beverage consistency and even cup quality while reducing coffee and milk waste. These factors allow staff to spend more time engaging with customers, saving on staff costs and training.
As Denes alludes to, service speed and efficiency are key benefits for food service operators installing automatic drink dispensers in their stores or restaurants. By upgrading and improving operational workflow, a cascade of further business benefits occurs, from reducing waste to greater customer satisfaction.
During a service period in a typical coffee shop, manually retrieving, pouring, and replacing various beverages takes up a significant amount of time. Customers demand more variety than ever before, which means baristas use more ingredients to prepare the raft of options expected – especially by younger generations.
With a Flo-Smart system installed, this laborious process is optimised: staff simply need to place a receptacle, such as a jug or glass, under one of the countertop unit’s four taps and press a button to accurately and hygienically dispense beverages. Our customers use Flo-Smart to dispense their highest-volume beverages quickly and accurately, such as different milk types commonly paired with coffee, such as dairy or dairy-alternative plant-based milk.
As coffee options have swelled to include plant-based lattes, cold brew and nitro coffee, for example, service complexity has similarly increased.
Countertops littered with half-empty cartons and improperly stored liquids are a by-product of busy morning rushes and staff struggling to keep up – with Flo-Smart, your bench top can remain clean, hygienic and uncluttered; your staff spend more quality time interacting with your customers.
Trickle-down improvements in quality, waste, and safety
As mentioned, increased service speed from automatic drink dispensers has positive knock-on effects on other business-critical elements. With a smoother and more efficient workflow, food service businesses will also serve higher-quality beverages, significantly reduce their waste, and have safer working conditions.
“In the UK, we know that most coffees – 70% to 80% – will be served with milk, so it’s an even more decisive factor than in other markets,” says Denes.
“Great quality milk or non-dairy milk influences customer perception and will reflect positively on your business.”
The rise of dairy alternatives is starkly evident in the coffee shop sector and is largely driven by younger consumers who place an increased emphasis on more considered or stricter dietary choices. Automated beverage dispensers with individual taps for different liquid types reduce the chance of cross-contamination while simultaneously assisting food service employees in preparing more accurate and higher-quality plant-based beverages.
Different milk types perform differently under the steam wand for drinks like cappuccinos or lattes. With Flo-Smart, you can preset your quantities ahead of service, ensuring every pour is consistent across your operation, regardless of order variation or quantity. Plus, storage is simpler, safer and more sustainable. The large reservoirs in fridges that feed directly to the Flo-Smart unit on the countertop mean beverages can be correctly stored without the continued temperature fluctuation consistent with manual retrieving and replacing.
Sustainability is a global consumer mega-trend, and customers expect the companies and brands they choose to support to emphasise environmentally-friendly business practices. Through accurate dosing and smoother workflow, your business will dramatically reduce the amount of waste it produces, be it from discarded excess liquid or plastic milk cartons and bottles.
Choose Flo-Smart for your automatic drink dispensing
By boosting your working efficiencies, Flo-Smart automatic drink dispensers catalyse a wave of visible and valuable business improvements. We have built our system in tandem with two of Australia’s leading engineering firms, ensuring the highest quality materials to create a robust, reliable, and elegant piece of equipment that will be a positive addition to your workbench.
Once installed, you will immediately experience the benefits of automated drink dispensing: you will keep up with increased foot traffic, maintain and exceed the beverage quality your customers expect and deserve, and slash your costs and environmental impact.
Visit our website or contact us directly to learn more about the savings you can expect to make by installing a Flo-Smart system.
Automatic drink dispensers
