Optimising central production units for contract catering

Streamline all your central production processes with our food management software to guarantee quality, standards and maximise profitability across all sites.

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Central production plan

Create your production plan with automated deviation rules, shift planning, real-time needs update and set quantities for all sites.

Accurate nutritional information

Easilys f&b stores nutritional information for each ingredient so you can communicate it accurately on your menus.

Smart packaging

Create communication channels with company news, external links, internal vacancies, team-building initiatives, suggestion box, and more.

Visibility

Our easy-to-use customer portal gives all sites easy access to all sites to input and update the quantities they need in real time.

Reporting

Easy-to-use dashboard helps you generate reports and export real-time data for all sites in your restaurant chain or catering business.

Capabilities

Inventory and supplier management

A digital interface displays a meal planning dashboard with days, dishes, and portions listed. A pop-up window shows options to change the production date for salad mix batches.

A digital price list shows items like cos lettuce, tomato, and red onion with prices and details. Below, a photo of fresh produce displays baskets of vegetables. Supplier contact information is also shown.

Two overlapping UI panels show a school canteen packing planner. One panel lists packaging criteria and options; the other details Greek salad with packaging types, portion counts, and total weight and portions.

A digital interface for composing a new communication displays options for type, allowed site types, date range, and a message about updated kitchen hygiene protocols. A preview of the message is shown below.

Centralised procurement and purchasing

End-to-end supplier management

All your supplier data, invoices, purchase orders and receipts digitised in one place.

Easy purchase tracking

Know the exact status of each stage of your purchase flows and get a clear overview of purchase data analysis through a clear dashboard

Complete inventory management

Track stock transfers, removals and withdrawals in real time and wrap up stock-takes with our dedicated app

Menu engineering

Cross-business insights help you better anticipate needs and plan resources for all departments, including finance, marketing, operations and purchasing.

Traceability

Track the origin of recipe ingredients at every stage of the process using their batch number.

FAQs

Frequently asked questions

Get answers to questions about our platform, solutions and support.

What are the benefits of running a CPU?

There are lots of reasons why a multi-site restaurant group or catering business may operate a central kitchen. One important advantage is that it ensures brand standards and quality are maintained across all sites and that customers will receive the same meal whichever location they choose to visit. Another advantage comes with the economies of scale with central food purchasing management systems and the cost reductions achieved when certain menu items are prepared centrally in bulk.

What is a central production kitchen?

A (central production unit) CPU is also known as a central kitchen is a kitchen space used to produce some of ingredients or all of the meals served at individual sites of a restaurant chain or the different locations where catering companies operate. Some or all of the elements are prepared in advance at this central location and transported to the different location before being finished, or plated up and served to customers.

Why should you use a central kitchen management system?

The objective of running a central production unit is to gain efficiency in your operations and optimise costs. Central kitchen management software for chefs goes hand-in-hand with this as it optimises, automates and tracks many lines of operation, communications and data. So, it makes perfect sense to make your central kitchen as efficient as possible and reduce costs and manage food waste by using software to optimise your production processes.

What kind of businesses benefit from using kitchen management software?

This kind of software is highly beneficial to catering companies who cater for numerous external locations such as schools, hospitals, workplaces, large events and venues, clinics, etc. The specific needs of end consumers in these locations and public sector policy means that food served on their premises must often meet a strict set of criteria. It’s therefore vital to use technology to ensure these criteria are met.

In addition, more and more large restaurant chains with multiple sites are now adopting central kitchen systems to support their operations. Producing some or all of the ingredients centrally saves on labour costs, which on average account for around 30% of total costs in a restaurant business, but also helps ensure food standards and quality are kept high everywhere the brand operates. A central kitchen frees up site-based employees from the more mundane kitchen tasks and gives them more time to dedicate to serving customers. This has a positive effect on guest satisfaction and customer loyalty, as consistently high stands of food and service will lead to more repeat business and a positive online reputation.