Robot-made pizzas are coming. Picnic announced at the International Pizza Expo and Conference yesterday that it is accepting pre-orders from U.S. customers for its Picnic Pizza System. The Seattle-based company also said it has completed successful pilots and deployments with customers in the hospitality, entertainment, theme park, and restaurant industries.
“This is a huge milestone for Picnic, and we couldn’t be more excited to announce commercial availability,” stated Clayton Wood, CEO of Picnic. “The team has been working tirelessly with customers and strategic partners over the past year to fine-tune the Picnic Pizza System. We’re very proud of the solution that we have created. The validation we’ve received from industry partners and customers reaffirms the need for kitchen automation solutions like ours, and we are looking forward to an excellent year ahead.”
Founded in 2016, Picnic's team of food and technology industry veterans has developed technology for the food-service and hospitality industries. The startup's food-asssembly platform integrates robotics, software, the cloud, and deep learning technology and is available in a robotics-as-a-service (RaaS) model. Wood recently announced that Picnic's Series A funding surpassed $20.5 million, further enhancing company growth and commercial operations.
Picnic Pizza System works with existing menus
The Picnic Pizza System is the only modular and configurable pizza-assembly system commercially available in the market today, claimed Picnic. The company said its system can use any restaurant’s existing menu and help operators make up to 100 pizzas per hour with consistent results.
Picnic said its automation technology can help businesses same time, money, and labor. Segments that can benefit include convenicence and grocery stores, university and corporate campuses, casinos, hospital cafeterias, and military bases, according to the company.
Picnic has received industry recognition including the National Restaurant Association Kitchen Innovations 2021 Award and inclusion in The FoodTech 500 2020. The company said it offers solutions to real-world challenges such as staffing shortages, food waste, and elevated hygiene standards.
The food automation market could experience a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.5% between 2020 and 2027, reaching $29.4 billion by 2027, predicted Meticulous Market Research Pvt. Ltd. Although Zume Pizza shut down in January 2020, other companies developing pizza-making robots include Basil Street, L2F, Piestro, and X Robotics.
RaaS and the road to shipments
Picnic said its RaaS pricing model is cost-effective, with no upfront costs. It includes free delivery and installation, requires minimal training, and is ideal for businesses of any size, from large corporations to individual-owned pizzerias, said the company.
In addition, Picnic added that its subscription model includes free on-site maintenance checks and is monitored around the clock for maximum uptime.
Picnic said the monthly subscription for its pizza system ranges from $3,500 to $5,000, depending on the configuration and production volumes.
Attendees at the International Pizza Expo and Conference in Las Vegas this week are eligible for special show pricing on a limited number of units priced at $2,500 per month. Any interested customers not attending the event can request a consultation and pre-order request at Picnic's Web site.
Picnic said it will manufacture and install existing customer orders through 2021 and begin shipping new orders in 2022.
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