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Data Driven Cooking

2019 — 2020 | Unox | Manufacturing Appliances

Unox is known in the industry for innovation. Their state of the art ovens feature capabilities like fix–it and forget–it presets and self–cleaning cycles to free chefs to focus on what matters most: cooking. Unox contacted Accurat to build a platform that would make even the most tech-averse chef want to take full advantage of smart functionalities.

Challenge

Unify Unox's fleet of IoT–connected ovens within a single platform to increase adoption.

Solution

Software that streamlines kitchen operations and incentivizes chefs to connect

Services

Product/service & data strategy; User research; UX, UI, and data visualization design; Front–end development

Deliverables

IoT analytics software

Outcome

We designed and developed a new environment for Data Driven Cooking (DDC): an oven–connected platform that automates rote aspects of food preparation. Within DDC, smart features generate data that can be analyzed to optimize production. For example: a chef can save tried and true settings (e.g. 40 minutes at 425° for roast chicken) as "recipes" to standardize fare and make it available for analysis. Observing trends over time on DDC—say, the popularity of chicken dinners on Sundays—users can plan ahead for demand.

For overseers of complex and/or large scale operations, the benefits of DDC are manifold. In addition to monitoring the performance of menu items, managers can deduce areas of overlap and suggest cooking schedules that make the most of oven space and reduce energy costs. They can provide failsafe guidance (and effectively operate units remotely) by sending recipes straight to ovens. Beyond cooking, supervisors can keep track of bigger picture considerations—such as the age of units and time between cleanings—to keep business running smoothly.

Results

In 2019, Unox won a Kitchen Innovation Award for Data Driven Cooking from the National Restaurant Association. Speaking to CATERING INSIGHTS↗ the same year, Unox North America President Mark Klindera praised DDC as “very innovative" and "unique to the industry."

“[Data Driven Cooking] is very new—we have seen where a couple of competitors have tried to do something similar and were not able to satisfy some very high profile customers here in the US in particular and those customers are now coming to us... We are going to continue to innovate on our ChefTop ovens here in the US because it is a very solid platform for us to continue to innovate and bring new ideas.