Chipotle may have lost its CEO to Starbucks but it has something the coffee giant doesn’t: an avocado-processing robot.
It announced this week that its Autocado robot, which can cut, core, and peel avocados before they are hand-mashed into guacamole, is being used in a restaurant for the first time. The robot is part of the brand’s commitment to automating its back-of-house operations, which includes its Augmented Makeline, built in collaboration with Hyphen, which is also debuting in a store for the first time.
Chipotle has been pointing toward this progress for a while now. The Autocado is in use at a location in Huntington Beach and the Augmented Makeline is being tried in Corona Del Mar.
The Autocado is slick. You can load it up with 25 pounds of avocados. One at a time, the fruit is vertically oriented and transferred to the processing device. They are then sliced in half, their cores and skins removed and waste discarded before being collected in a stainless-steel bowl at the bottom of the device. It takes Autocado around 26 seconds to flesh out the fruit inside an avocado. When you consider that the company is expected to use approximately 5.18 million cases of avocados this year, the time savings can be profound.
The Augmented Makeline is equally impressive. It uses automated technology to build bowls and salads while employees operate the top makeline to make burritos, tacos, quesadillas, and kid’s meals. Sixty-five percent of all digital orders are bowls or salads and the Augmented Makeline has been designed to improve employee efficiency and order accuracy.
“These devices could help us build a stronger operational engine that delivers a great experience for our team members and our guests while maintaining Chipotle’s high culinary standards,” said Curt Garner, chief customer and technology officer, in a statement. “Optimizing our use of these systems and incorporating crew and customer feedback are the next steps in the stage-gate process before determining their broader pilot plans.”
