Today’s special: Edge computing in multi-unit restaurants with extra digital transformation on top
The fast-casual and quick-service restaurant industry is rapidly evolving, and digital transformation is playing a crucial role in the industry’s progress. Restaurants are adopting new technologies, such as mobile ordering, digital menus, and self-service kiosks, to improve the customer experience and stay ahead of the competition. However, managing the applications behind such technologies across multiple restaurant units can be challenging, and this is where edge computing and orchestration come into play.
Edge computing for multi-unit restaurants, a perfect combo
Edge computing is a decentralized computing infrastructure that brings computing resources closer to the data source, which in this case translates to the restaurant location. By moving data processing and storage closer to the source, edge computing reduces the latency and bandwidth needed to send data to the cloud for processing. This makes edge computing an ideal solution for multi-unit restaurants, as it provides a cost-effective way to manage applications and data locally while still maintaining centralized control.
Another key benefit of pursuing an edge computing strategy for multi-unit restaurants is the significantly improved application resilience. Internet connectivity outages or disturbances are to be expected from time to time in each restaurant location. This, however, should not affect the on-site staff’s ability to continue their operations (prepare and sell food to hungry customers). Edge computing allows for the bar to be set high when it comes to application resiliency, which should be at the core when shaping the requirements for a purpose-built edge orchestration solution. Additionally, the security posture needs to be adapted to the reality of the restaurant environment, where computing resources lack the perimeter security typically seen for centralized data centers.
The diverse application stack of restaurants
As restaurant locations can be in the tens, hundreds, or even thousands, the management of those applications risks causing complexity. In fact, no less than 53% of restaurants state that high operational costs are their single biggest challenge. In-restaurant applications typically include a combination of legacy Windows applications running in VMs as well as innovative container applications. This calls for restaurant operators to design an in-restaurant IT infrastructure that can provide support for managing both business-critical legacy windows applications, as well as modern container applications in a secure, robust, and remote fashion. Here, efficient edge orchestration is key. Edge orchestration enables restaurant operators to allow application teams, the central cloud, and a competitive advantage set the pace of innovation and digital transformation restaurants, without creating siloed hardware and software stacks for each application.
Boost digital experiences in restaurants with edge
In conclusion, edge computing and orchestration is an essential parts of digital transformation in multi-unit restaurants. It enables restaurant operators to manage applications and data locally, reduce operational costs, and improve efficiency. By bringing computing resources closer to the data source, edge computing provides a cost-effective and scalable solution for managing multiple applications across multiple locations. And with an edge computing strategy that takes diverse applications stacks into consideration, restaurants can meet the needs of today and tomorrow respectively. With the adoption of edge computing, multi-unit restaurants can stay ahead of the competition and continue to provide a seamless and innovative customer experience.
About Avassa
Avassa empowers companies to bridge the gap between modern containerized applications development and operations and distributed edge infrastructure. With their application orchestration platform for the edge, Avassa enables businesses to manage the lifecycle of edge applications efficiently, securely, and at the speed of software. Founded in 2020 and based in Stockholm, Sweden, Avassa aims to unlock the cloud operating model for edge applications everywhere and was named a Gartner® Cool Vendor in Edge Computing 2022. Learn more and request a free trial at avassa.io.
