How Carl’s Jr. uses immersive tech to reinvent facility operations

Manual checklists and paper spreadsheets are a thing of the past at many restaurant chains, airports, factories, and other high-volume sites. Organizations are increasingly turning to immersive technology to transform how they handle work orders, train staff, oversee security management, and manage equipment.

Using Unity’s real-time 3D technology and digital twins solutions, routine tasks such as training and maintenance can be digitized, enabling facilities to:

• Remotely train and manage thousands of staff
• Collect real-time data for insurance and better decision-making
• Reduce unplanned shutdowns through predictive maintenance

Franchisees of large brands such as Carl’s Jr. are already taking the lead in embracing digital twin technology to reduce costs, improve quality, and better manage energy consumption.

Read on to learn more about how Carl’s Jr. franchisees and their agency partner, Visionaries 777, used Unity’s digital twin solutions and augmented reality (AR) to reduce training costs by 73% and increase customer satisfaction by 43%.

Source: Inspekly - Client Case Study 2023

Digital twin in action: Carl’s Jr.

Seeking effective cost control in food, operations, and labor, along with achieving annual sales projections, Carl’s Jr. franchisees partnered with Visionaries 777 to leverage the agency’s made with Unity app, Inspekly.

How does Inspekly work?

Inspekly uses Unity’s real-time 3D solutions and AR tools to enable facility operations management in one platform.

1. Scan: Using any light detection and ranging (Lidar) enabled device, facilities can be scanned to capture precise depth data.
2. Deploy: Built with Unity’s create once, deploy anywhere capability, Inspekly can be used instantly on any AR or mixed reality (MR) enabled device like smartphones and tablets, eliminating the need for hardware retrofitting in thousands of facility sites.
3. Review: Manage hundreds of franchise operations from a single point and keep track of thousands of asset inspection operations, work logs, and staff performance information from any web-enabled device.

Inspekly was implemented to address challenges in four key areas of Carl’s Jr. operations:

• Employee training
• Quality assurance
• Delivery verification
• Energy consumption control

The app emerged as a transformative solution, empowering franchisees to overcome operational inefficiencies seamlessly.

1. Employee training

Challenge

Operational departments often experience frequent staff turnover, making consistent training for new hires essential. This is to ensure they’re properly equipped with the adequate knowledge in safety, hygiene, customer service, and proper equipment and ingredient handling.

Solution

Carl’s Jr. franchisees embraced AR for self-guided learning programs through the Inspekly app. This approach not only empowered trainees to learn at their own pace, but also provided managers with the ability to monitor real-time learning progress and promptly address any learning concerns.

Outcome

The implementation of AR training resulted in a 73% reduction in training costs for Carl’s Jr. franchisees.

2. Quality assurance

Challenge

In each restaurant, Carl’s Jr. conducts official surprise audits biannually. These visits are designed to ensure that each franchise location adheres to the company’s operational protocols and quality standards. However, onsite staff often feel unprepared for these unannounced visits.

Solution

To help staff feel prepared for audits, Carl’s Jr. franchisees used real-time 3D to visualize workflows in the physical world. These interactive visualizations include all the areas that are examined during the audits and provide staff with evaluations similar to those given by the quality auditors.

Outcome

Using interactive visualization ensured staff’s constant preparedness for audits and assisted these franchisees in achieving the highest possible score given during a Carl’s Jr. audit – a double platinum.

3. Delivery process

Challenge

With the rise of third-party food delivery apps such as Uber Eats, DoorDash, and Postmates, restaurant staff not only have to manage in-person customers but also ensure accuracy and verification of orders being handed out to delivery drivers.

Solution

To navigate this challenge, restaurant staff confirm with the delivery person that all ordered items are present and then, using the Inspekly app, they capture evidence to register that all items were handed out and delivered in a timely manner. This creates a digital trail in the case of a dispute or complaint from the customer to the third-party delivery platform.

Outcome
Using this approach for improved delivery management, Carl’s Jr. franchisees saw customer satisfaction increase by 43%.

Source: Inspekly - Client Case Study 2023

4. Energy consumption and preventative maintenance

Challenge

Energy-intensive equipment like ventilation systems, ovens, fryers, and freezers, significantly inflates restaurant energy consumption, accounting for 3-5% of total operating costs and up to 5-7 times more energy per square foot than other commercial buildings. Additionally, unplanned equipment failures and shutdowns can lead to revenue loss.

Solution

Carl’s Jr. franchisees can now integrate historical, real-time, and forecast equipment data into their digital twin to monitor energy consumption and drive preventative maintenance.

Outcome
Using their digital twin to better monitor equipment usage and energy output enabled the restaurants to cut energy costs and decrease equipment failure.