McDonald's orders 7,000 touchscreen kiosks to replace cashiers

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Fast food just got faster: Maccas' DIY burger
Glenda Kwek
May 17, 2011
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Fast food giant McDonald's is moving to introduce customer-operated touchscreens at its European restaurants to speed up serving times by up to four seconds.

The touchscreens - to be rolled out at some of McDonald's 7000 restaurants across Europe - will allow customers to order without the need for cashiers or cash, the Financial Times reported.

The president of McDonald's Europe, Steve Easterbrook, told the Times the changes were expected to cut the serving time for each customer by three to four seconds. The European outlets serve about 2 million customers each day, the newspaper added.

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"Ordering food has not changed for 30 or 40 years," Mr Easterbrook said about the rationale of introducing the screens.

The dates and cost of the technology roll-out were not specified.

The data collected from the touchscreens would also help McDonald's track its customers' eating habits in a similar way to that of other retailers, who use loyalty cards to keep tabs on their users' every purchase.

"f more companies shift the humans from the banal and repetitive tasks of customer service to the ones where they are adding more value, that strikes me as a good thing," the newspaper's associate editor John Gapper wrote.

But a McDonald's customer in London, Joe Surkitz, said the machines would shrink the job market, "plus you won't get service with a smile".

Touchscreen technology has already been introduced in Sydney supermarkets and restaurants.

At seven McDonald's restaurants, including Waitara, Sydney Airport Gateway and Five Dock, touchscreen kiosks were used as an alternative way for customers to place orders, spokeswoman Laura Keith said.

While the kiosks have been in place for the "past couple of years", Ms Keith said McDonald's Australia had no plans to move to a fully automated system at its outlets.

Restaurants such as Wagaya in Sydney's Haymarket use touchscreens embedded into walls that allow diners to order directly from their tables without a waiter in sight.

Other eateries have introduced iPads in place of paper menus.

The Microsoft Surface system, whereby users can move objects on a large screen with their hands as in scenes in the movie Minority Report, has already been introduced in some US casinos.

Customers can use the screens to order food and drinks, make reservations, play games, interact with people at other tables and pay their bills.



Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/restaurants-and-bars/fast-food-just-got-faster-maccas-diy-burger-20110517-1eqiz.html#ixzz1MkMiDibD

And you know what'll be next...

The_Kew_Tour

Great excuse for people drawing the dole who will never want to work it has to be said.

Guy:Incognito

Not sure if its in the story but they have them in France already. When I was in Clermont oin December I tried to use one but it didnt seem to work right. Wouldtn take my Visa Debit so I just went to the counter the old fashioned way. Very good if it works though , I had a bit of a play with it :-)

Captain_Generic

Customers can use the screens to order food and drinks, make reservations, play games, interact with people at other tables and pay their bills.

Wtf? The only game i'm there to play is "eat the burger"

CreepingDeath

Do you want microchips with that ?

Guy:Incognito

Captain_Generic wrote: »

Wtf? The only game i'm there to play is "eat the burger"

What about hide the sausage?

Captain_Generic

Are the machines covered in grease as well?

bonerm

All they need to do now is get rid of the people cooking the food and I might think about eating there.

(not really)

admiralofthefleet

weird thing is i was thinking this would happen when i was in mc donalds last week

Trevor451

does not change the fact that all food from McDonald's tastes like sh*it

hondasam

McDonald's would be nice now.

Dennis the Stone

Looks like dirty scummers are going to have to get use to showering machines with abuse.

Zaph

I used one in Paris a couple of months ago. Pretty straightforward to use, the whole process only fell down when the human part of it took ages to get my food.

KungPao

I don't know about the time saving. Have you ever been stuck behind some old dear at a luas stop? Or some junkie or drunk person?

Mashing the screen and just not getting it.

I'll miss the usual transaction too:

Regular Big Mac meal with Sprite, please.

Okay, what drink?

Sprite.

Coke?

Sprite, please.

Naikon

It will be a bit like trying to get through the automated Eircom service unscathed. It's nice to talk to an actual human being imo.

KeithM89_old

Wasnt in a McDonalds, but i used one years ago in a hotel around xmas. Pretty cool but there was still a guy behind reception. Oh and they got my ex-wifes surname wrong too. :pac:

Aoifey!

I'd rather just talk to a human. Self service in Tesco and the like I get, but this is just making it more awkward.

mikemac

Down with this and down with companies slashing jobs to be replaced by computers

I rang Meteor this evening, sweet jesus I was bounced around so many menu's I forgot where I started
I want to deal with a human, is that so hard?

My name is URL

This is the way forward. It's people that need to gtfo

Turpentine

Touch screen McDonalds?

I'd say that'll be hilarious after the pub closing-time.

KungPao

Aoifey! wrote: »

I'd rather just talk to a human. Self service in Tesco and the like I get, but this is just making it more awkward.

In the future we will input the order, pay, and then head on in and assemble our own Big Macs, pour our own watered down drinks (with 40% ice) and shovel our own fries.

Everyone's a winner bar customers and workers!

Burger King's way nicer anyway.

A very tasty Double cheeseburger, fries, and a drink for €3.50? Hell yeah.

hatrickpatrick

Ending up in an automated type of civilization would probably be a relatively good thing in the long run, BUT my massive, massive issue with this kind of thing is introducing it before it's ready.

In other words: Don't f*cking roll these machines out unless they WORK. Eircom's service is a prime example. It's sh!te. If they're going to switch everything to robots, then they'd better be A+ robots.

In other words: Society should wait until the technology is absolutely impeccable before generally moving towards replacing human service with robot service. Ever done a self checkout at tesco? There are so many glitches it's ridiculous

If this is going to be done, for the love of God do it WELL.

mikemac

My name is URL wrote: »

This is the way forward. It's people that need to gtfo

Onto dole queues?
Well aren't you so progressive

Maybe the staff in your job earn too much, maybe you need to GTFO and head to the dole queue
Hey, a machine is more competent then you

Aoifey!

KungPao wrote: »

In the future we will input the order, pay, and then head on in and assemble our own Big Macs, pour our own watered down drinks (with 40% ice) and shovel our own fries.

Everyone's a winner bar customers and workers!

Burger King's way nicer anyway.

A very tasty Double cheeseburger, fries, and a drink for €3.50? Hell yeah.

I don't like change

Naos

So just so I can get this right:

Some snotty nosed little scummer scratches his hole and orders something from the touchscreen after dicking about on it for a minute or so.

I then proceed to navigate the same touchscreen for my first time and not only am I going to be somehow 3 to 4 seconds faster than an employee who uses the same process on a day in / day out basis (and so I would think should have a better understanding of the system), but I also have to eat with my fingers (unless a knife & fork are provided) that have just touched the same screen this scummers been snotting/sneezing/etc over?

I'm not loving it, ba da da da daaa.

My name is URL

feelingstressed wrote: »

Onto dole queues?
Well aren't you so progressive

Maybe the staff in your job earn too much, maybe you need to GTFO and head to the dole queue
Hey, a machine is more competent then you

I'm already lacking employment. Maybe if there wasn't so many people to sustain there would not be such a need for automation.

Corsendonk

Its predicted by the leading guys in robotics that the real money will be in robotic sex dolls. All the latest Janpanese models are fem.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAuam8iiH3Q

Turpentine

hatrickpatrick wrote: »

Ever done a self checkout at tesco? There are so many glitches it's ridiculous

Machine: "Unexplained item in bagging area"

Me: "That's the bag you fffuuuu..."

KungPao

Naos wrote: »

So just so I can get this right:

Some snotty nosed little scummer scratches his hole and orders something from the touchscreen after dicking about on it for a minute or so.

I then proceed to navigate the same touchscreen for my first time and not only am I going to be somehow 3 to 4 seconds faster than an employee who uses the same process on a day in / day out basis (and so I would think should have a better understanding of the system), but I also have to eat with my fingers (unless a knife & fork are provided) that have just touched the same screen this scummers been snotting/sneezing/etc over?

I'm not loving it, ba da da da daaa.

You're hands were probably filthy anyway....your steering wheel or bus...touching dirty money, the door handle on the way in etc...

I always have some antibac wipes or spray (As Good As It Gets style) to remove the filth prior to feasting.

AlkalineAcid

Naos wrote: »

So just so I can get this right:

Some snotty nosed little scummer scratches his hole and orders something from the touchscreen after dicking about on it for a minute or so.

I then proceed to navigate the same touchscreen for my first time and not only am I going to be somehow 3 to 4 seconds faster than an employee who uses the same process on a day in / day out basis (and so I would think should have a better understanding of the system), but I also have to eat with my fingers (unless a knife & fork are provided) that have just touched the same screen this scummers been snotting/sneezing/etc over?

I'm not loving it, ba da da da daaa.

I suppose you refuse change from the cashier and get your money straight from the mint, right?

Terry

The took our jobs and so forth.
I don't like this. I'd rather hand my money over to a human being, and not a machine.

If you are put out by waiting an extra 3 or 4 seconds for your food, then you really have a problem with patience.

The you have the drive through. They always leave something out. This involves you going back in.
These machines are a waste of time.

mikemac

My name is URL wrote: »

I'm already lacking employment. Maybe if there wasn't so many people to sustain there would not be such a need for automation.

And less employment overall

When did it become it such a task to ask for a human to deal with you?
When did it become normal to become lost in a maze of options on a phonecall and all you want is to speak to a human?

We're going backwards, not forwards.
And this move to order by machine will backfire

ringadingding

I used one of these recently in Vienna, you put your card in, touch the pictures of what you want, got a ticket number and went to a guy who passed you a bag.

I'm not sure if i gained any extra time or whatever they're trying to achieve with this, but the system worked.

ArtyM

Corsendonk wrote: »

Its predicted by the leading guys in robotics that the real money will be in robotic sex dolls. All the latest Janpanese models are fem.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAuam8iiH3Q

I would!

KungPao

feelingstressed wrote: »

..This move to order by machine will backfire

http://worldsofimagination.com/T-1000.gif

Naos

AlkalineAcid wrote: »

I suppose you refuse change from the cashier and get your money straight from the mint, right?

No, don't be ridiculous.

WindSock

Any job that is easily replaced with a machine is pretty soul destroying. All the freed up people can now take to learning the sitar or some such other instrument.

pragmatic1

Was only a matter of time. Crazy how fast the world is changing due to technology. Great time to be alive.

Terry

pragmatic1 wrote: »

Was only a matter of time. Crazy how fast the world is changing due to technology. Great time to be alive.

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Cookie_Monster

Trevor451 wrote: »

does not change the fact that all food from McDonald's tastes like sh*it

except the large quarter pounder meal with coke

Overheal

The president of McDonald's Europe, Steve Easterbrook, told the Times the changes were expected to cut the serving time for each customer by three to four seconds.

Only if you expect people know how to use the ****ing thing. There are people out there that still are trying to process the death of video tape, never mind wireless internet, internet, Electronic Mail, touch screens and the like.

The only way that could possibly average out to 3 to 4 seconds saved is if 1 guy 'gets it' and 3 others don't. They'll spend 5+ minutes on the thing and he'll spend 30 seconds, instead of each of them spending 4 minutes with some kid behind the counter which (sorry, but going on the average) lacks basic comprehension skills. Somehow I ordered a sausage egg biscuit the other week and got handed chicken, and then the second try the forgot the sausage. That may seem trivial, but when your job is ensuring a biscuit has the correct combination of meat and egg, and you can't even get that right, how can you feel good about that at all? Had to just ask for the refund and walk away silenty before I made them want to kill themselves with a reality check.

zuroph

Article sucks, no photos.

I need the photos to choose.

Overheal

Terry wrote:

The you have the drive through. They always leave something out. This involves you going back in.
These machines are a waste of time.

In fairness though they've said the same thing about the industrial revolution. Computers. Calculators even. The reality is though each of these new thing gives us heaps of opportunity cost in the manner that these things boost our productivity and free us to do other pursuits. They probably made the same arguments against mechanical advances in Coal mining, that it took jobs away from kids. But kids still get jobs, it's just now they flip burgers and get grease stains instead of dying early in a mineshaft in west virginia. Theres always going to be something for humans to do, but that something will constantly change and adapt as our ability to automate the mundane changes and adapts as well. Now that kid will be more inclined to find work doing something else, perhaps less tedious and more rewarding.

df1985

All this to save 3 or 4 seconds?? Also judging by Irish people in tesco, itll more likely add 3 or 4 minutes!

Chuck Stone

Lol at how it saves the customer 4 secs - it'll probably save McD's... (I'm not very good at estimating so i''l err on the conservative side)... BILLIONS OF DOLLAR$ every day.

Just be honest with us ffs.

franklyon

We have had them here (France) for ages, saves a hell of a lot more than 3 or 4 seconds I can tell you.

Usually I waltz in, smirk a the huge queue of saps wanting to pay with cash, use the touchscreen to select whatever it is I want to eat and by the time I have finished paying the food is waiting on the counter for me.
Very good system and saves a lot of time, plus it saves me having to pronounce burger in a French accent so that they will understand me

January

franklyon wrote: »

We have had them here (France) for ages, saves a hell of a lot more than 3 or 4 seconds I can tell you.

Usually I waltz in, smirk a the huge queue of saps wanting to pay with cash, use the touchscreen to select whatever it is I want to eat and by the time I have finished paying the food is waiting on the counter for me.
Very good system and saves a lot of time, plus it saves me having to pronounce burger in a French accent so that they will understand me

Why would you pronounce burger in a French accent?! Just say Le Big Mac!

GalwayKiefer

So this will allow McDonald's to fire thousands of staff and replace them with machines... I can't see how this benefits the customer in any way whatsoever, all it does is save them an absolute fortune in wages so please cut the bulls**t McDonald's. And good luck to the person stuck behind the individual who has trouble using an atm never mind a system like this. Tesco is a great example of how useless a set-up it is.

WindSock

Sausage and egg biscuit?

busyliving

GalKiefer wrote: »

So this will allow McDonald's to fire thousands of staff and replace them with machines... I can't see how this benefits the customer in any way whatsoever, all it does is save them an absolute fortune in wages so please cut the bulls**t McDonald's. And good luck to the person stuck behind the individual who has trouble using an atm never mind a system like this. Tesco is a great example of how useless a set-up it is.

I think from a customer and business stand point its great, firstly it totally standardizes the service by removing the person taking your order. Normally the people taking the orders in McDonalds don't give a toss and can get the orders wrong.

Also when you go to pay and receive your change, they can sometimes fumble around to get you the correct coins etc...

The reason the Tesco system isn't great is because you have to scan things, and because some of what they sell has age restrictions and security tags.

syklops

feelingstressed wrote: »

Down with this and down with companies slashing jobs to be replaced by computers

I rang Meteor this evening, sweet jesus I was bounced around so many menu's I forgot where I started
I want to deal with a human, is that so hard?

Press 9.