How Useful is It to Barcode Kitchen Equipment in a Restaurant?

Asset Tracking is an important factor for any restaurant. The restaurant should find the best way of tracking its assets, equipment, and tools according to the working criteria which suit them the best.

Today, the barcodes are not only in trend but they are very efficient and can store much of the related data to configure in tracking specifically.

When it comes to selecting a barcode system for tracking your tools and equipment, you must know about the types of barcodes you will need, including the field conditions of the working area, in order to make an informed choice.

What are Barcodes?

The Barcodes are the representation of a combination of black and white bars which speaks for different text characters that follow a set algorithm for that barcode type.

A barcode is essentially to encode information in a visual pattern that can be read by a machine.

A barcode scanner reads the alternately black and white bars in the barcode which follows a specific algorithm that apparently turns into a corresponding text string by the scanner. This information is sent to the computer & utilized by the user.

Also Read: How Restaurant Inventory Management System Simplifies Tracking and Running?

What are the uses of Barcodes?

Barcode provides incredible advantages to your restaurant. Following are some of the benefits of a barcode system that will prove to be cost-effective for your business for asset tracking:

• Increase in accountability
• Storage of most of the asset's information
• Reduction of missed maintenance schedules
• Accurate and immediate access to an asset's location
• A simplified version of record-keeping
• No time investment in employee training
• It is very economical
• Removes the possibility of human error
• Reduces training time
• Provides better control over inventory

How important are Kitchen Equipment for Tracking?

The kitchen is the heart of your restaurant and its equipment is the soul. The kitchen is the place where every dish is prepared, cooked, and plated. It is the core of a restaurant where all the action happens.

The kitchen comprises the biggest expense for any restaurant. Especially when it is new, a lot of money is required to get the kitchen ready.

List of few basic types of equipment that are required in the kitchen of a restaurant are:

• Refrigerator and Freezer
• Ice Cube Machine
• Broilers
• Griddles
• Grease Traps
• Deep Fryer
• Microwave Oven
• Dishwasher
• Chef's Knives
• Mixing Bowls
• Saucepans
• Front of House Equipment (serving utensils, napkins, salt & pepper shake)

The management of the kitchen is necessary as it is the powerhouse of the restaurant and it is directly linked with the restaurant's profitability.

Also Read: Barcode System for Asset Tracking: 5 Tips While Implementing

Important Reasons to Tag Kitchen Equipment with Barcode

1. Technology-based Equipment

Equipment used should make your kitchen well-equipped and more streamlined. Purchasing quality equipment is a big deal. Equipment nowadays made up of some innovation that involves easy and safe cooking.

It is not always possible to keep all your equipment up to date with innovations and technology. For example, nowadays cooking equipment with non-corrosive elements is in trends like aluminum and stainless steel as they are provenly long-lasting.

2. Food Safety and Hygiene

The first aim of the kitchen staff must be to keep it clean and hygienic. No one likes to work in a messy and unhygienic condition. Furthermore, no one likes to eat from an unclean place.

Therefore, to keep all the utensils, equipment, and tools clean hygienic is the priority of kitchen staff so that, food safety and hygiene can be maintained.

Equipment plays an important role in keeping the place hygienic as they are the items that need cleanliness the most. As you cannot cook in uncleaned or unwashed cooking utensils or equipment.

3. Safe Working

All the cleanliness of the workplace i.e., the kitchen or the equipment and tools used, includes providing a safe environment for food as well as the staff. There shall not spread any kind of disease from rotten food or degraded utensil.

Hence, keeping the work environment safe, healthy and hygienic can resolve half of the problems in one go.

What Are the Challenges Faced Due to the Lack of Kitchen Equipment Tracking?

There are few challenges faced by a restaurant's kitchen due to a lack of tracking of equipment. Here are a few examples.

1. Limited Space

When you know there is limited kitchen space, the disorganized equipment results in a chaotic place to work. This is very natural to have hundreds of equipment in a restaurant kitchen, but it is a challenge to manage them and keep them in a well-organized manner.

The disorganized kitchen leads to confused and constricted working of the staff which further results in unimpressive food.

2. Old Equipment

There shall be a use of right and up to the time equipment and tools. Nobody likes to work with worn-out equipment as it leaves no option for the staff to work half-heartened.

Moreover, with the concept of machines and electronics, traditional or old equipment will engulf lots of electricity and generate a big electricity bill.

3. Unsafe Kitchen Environment

The old equipment and uncleaned platforms show up as unsafe kitchen environment. The presence of constant smoke, fire, and fumes causes the kitchen walls, platforms, and ceilings to get blackened which in result choke the ventilator or exhaust fans.

This makes the kitchen environment to be unhealthy and unsafe for cooking as well as working for staff members.

4. Technology Breakdown

The presence of equipment, tools, and machines that are not updated on time can cause a technical glitch sometimes. And if not responded on time it may slow down the entire processing of the restaurant.

It becomes important to regularly update all the hardware and software present in the restaurant.

Also Read: Best Inventory & Asset Tracking Practices for Your Restaurant Business

How Tracking of Kitchen Equipment makes Restaurant Operations Easier?

Tracking of equipment makes it easy and smooth for the working of the restaurant's kitchen. Although fixed machines cannot be moved, handy equipment and tools can be shifted and arranged according to the need.

Implementing barcodes to your kitchen equipment will simplify your cooking circumstances. Barcode tagging will make it easier for you to find the equipment whenever you need them.

The use of barcodes on your kitchen equipment will help you scan and track equipment to carry out accountability and avoid misplacements.

1. Easy to Locate an Equipment

Attaching barcodes to the equipment will give you an open vision of what you have and what you don't. Knowing where your equipment exactly is, at the time of need will help in preparing a good meal without any hassle & quickly.

2. Easy Access to Equipment

With well-designed kitchen and placing every equipment in their place makes it easy to find them whenever required. For the handy tools to be ready most of the time, you place them near the main cooking counter, as you can have easy and fast access to those tools.

Barcodes will help you to make sets of these tools so that you can put them all in one place.

3. Clean and Sanitized Kitchen

With easy management and maintenance of equipment & tools, it is easier to keep the kitchen environment clean, healthy, and hygienic.

Barcode tagging will help you in differentiating cleaned, sanitized equipment and uncleaned, unhygienic equipment. Tracking of the cleanliness of equipment will help you maintain a clean and sanitized restaurant kitchen.

Also Read: Is Barcode Tracking Successful in Food Manufacturing Industry?

Conclusion

Durable barcodes will assist you in keeping track of your restaurant's kitchen equipment and tools. Whether it is to manage, maintain, or monitor them for their cleanliness, safety, smooth working, up to time, easy to locate, easy access, and synchronized platform.

Barcodes will help you to carry out easy check-in/check-out, audits, and physical asset verification as well. Hence, it is very important to tag all the kitchen equipment with barcodes so as to track them efficiently.