A Melbourne-based startup is tackling the 250,000 tonnes of food waste generated each year in the food services industry with new monitoring technology – simply installed onto existing appliances.
Operandio is helping hospitality and retail-based businesses to digitise processes, and support their teams to access training and communications.
The new automated temperature sensors retail for around $150 and monitor equipment 24/7 with SMS alerts sent in case of any faults or issues with the equipment.
Typically hospitality ventures use manual temperature logs, so staff have to regularly interrupt their day to make those checks. The new monitors automatically log the temperature into the online Operandio platform, which can also be used to meet regulatory requirements across the hospitality industry.
Operandio’s Daniel Scoble said the new technology is already helping small and medium sized businesses reduce food waste and more efficiently use existing inventory.
“We heard feedback from our customers that they need a more sophisticated way to monitor the temperature of their stock – but said a barrier was the cost to update their current fridges and equipment,” he said.
“With Operandio you can fit sophisticated sensors to existing equipment and set up the online monitoring system in under 20 minutes.”
That means managers can closely keep an eye on their supplies, including remotely, and respond immediately if there are any issues.
“All it takes is one malfunction in the appliances and owners are faced with major losses and immense amounts of food wastage,” he said.
Scoble said the business saw significant interest in its echnology during Covid-19 lockdowns across the country due to its ability to enable remote access and monitoring.
“It has also proven to be useful for catering companies and businesses with reduced operating hours, allowing 24/7 monitoring without the need for staff to be on-site,” he said.
Current customers benefiting from Operandio include cafes, restaurants, hotels, entertainment centres, healthcare clinics, food manufacturers, catering suppliers, child care centres and cleaning service providers.
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