Improving drive-thru efficiency should be at the top of every operator's "to do" list. For years, it's been the breadwinner for quick-service restaurants, but a drive-thru line can only move so quickly. Here's a look at what a few operator/experts are doing to increase cue speed.
Preparing for the rush
Justin Haddock, a Bojangle's operator in Huntsville, Ala., said drive-thru service accounts for more than 50 percent of total sales and as much as 60 to 65 percent during breakfast.
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"Somebody is outside on the headset taking orders before customers get to the menu board," Haddock said. "We also use an order confirmation board. I think that helps cut down on mispacked orders."
Another piece of technology Haddock relies on is a drive-thru timer.
"It will create several reports that are very helpful for me to track how smoothly each order went," he said. "We even have weekly contests among the employees to reward who's the fastest."
Quality over speed
For Culver's, it's difficult to push orders through the drive-thru as rapidly as some quick-service competitors. Because the hamburger and frozen custard chain makes food to order, it takes twice as long to receive a meal there than it does at McDonald's.
"It is one of our initiatives right now to speed up drive-thru service," said Jerry Kozlowski, a Culver's operator in Greenwood, Ind. "But we are limited because we won't cook our food ahead of time; we're happy if we can get (orders) in the 2- to 3-minute range."
Kozlowski said active order screens in the kitchen help workers prepare food quickly. As soon as the order is punched into the POS, it pops up on the screen in the kitchen.
"This has helped speed up our process considerably," Kozlowski said. "The problem with this is food waste. If the customer changes his mind with an order, the order-taker knows about the change. But the back of line won't know until they've already started on the order."
Drive-thru employees
John Callaway, a multiunit Sonic Drive-In operator, believes the best way to improve drive-thru speed is to staff it with management-like employees. Callaway said drive-thru represents one-quarter of his business.
"A lot of times we just stick anybody back there," Callaway told PodcastGrill.com. "We are beginning to understand we need to have somebody of management-quality back there. If you think about it, that person is a quality-control person and have to be able to multitask."
When the drive-thru is backed up, Callaway said smaller orders take precedence over large orders. "If somebody at the back of the line only orders a drink, a runner takes the drink to the car. And the customer doesn't have to wait on the cars in front of them," he said.
Sound quality
Scott Finkle, of Business Sound & Communications, said the sound of drive-thru just got a whole lot clearer with the change from analog headsets to digital ones. Like the switch from analogue cell phones to digital, static is eliminated with digital headsets.
"With a digital system, you don't have a lot of that," Finkle said in a PodcastGrill.com interview. "And the digital systems clear a lot of noise. You can hear a person's order over a diesel engine."
Finkle said HM Electronics (HME) has the only digital drive-thru communication system on the U.S. market, though 3M has one available in Europe. HME's Smart Technology was rolled out in June 2005, and Finkle said there are many new systems soon to hit the market that will improve sound quality.
"Digital is here to stay," Finkle said. "You will see more and more changes, but the basis will still be digital."
Finkle said HME's digital system has a message repeater, which automatically greets customers at the menu board. The system also provides a two-message option that gives one greeting for operating hours, and another for after hours, which might say, "Thank you for stopping by. We are now closed. Our hours are ... ."
"A lot of times the customer thinks the store is open and drives off angry because nobody said anything to him," Finkle said. "But with this automatic greet feature, he knows the place is closed."
