Chipotle employees share workload with robot co-worker

Chipotle is testing a collaborative robot that will work alongside human employees to raise worker efficiency and capacity for digital orders, the restaurant chain announced Tuesday.

Using automated technology, the digital makeline prototype builds bowls and salads while Chipotle employees operate the top makeline to make burritos, tacos and quesadillas. Roughly 65% of all Chipotle digital orders are bowls or salads, according to the company. 

The cobotic employee moves the entrees through the bottom makeline where the order’s ingredients are dispensed automatically. 

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Chipotle collaborated with Hyphen on the technology, a company the fast-casual restaurant invested in through its Cultivate Next venture fund. The companies are testing the cobot at the Chipotle Cultivate Center in Irvine, California.

“Chipotle’s new digital makeline built by Hyphen embodies our commitment to leveraging robotics to unlock the human potential of our workforce, ensuring an elevated dining experience for our guests,” said Curt Garner, Chipotle’s chief customer and technology officer. “Our goal is to have the automated digital makeline be the centerpiece of all our restaurants’ digital kitchens.”

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Digital orders can now be placed via the Chipotle app, the company’s website or third-party platforms, and if the order includes a burrito bowl or salad, those entrees are automatically routed to the Hyphen system, the restaurant said. 

The completed burrito bowl or salad is raised from the bottom makeline and revealed through an opening at the end of the top makeline, followed by a Chipotle employee placing a lid on the entree while adding the final items like chips, side salsas and guacamole.

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Completed orders are then placed in their designated pick-up area: in-restaurant pickup shelves, walk-up window or Chipotlane.

In July, Chipotle unveiled a new robot to help make its signature guacamole faster. The restaurant created the collaborative robot prototype – called Autocado – with Vebu, a product development firm that works with companies in the food industry to provide automated solutions for the entire food supply chain. 

The robot can cut, core and peel avocados before they are hand mashed.

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