Skip to content
‹ Back to IndustriesFood & Beverage

Around the Table: Automation in Quick-Service Restaurants

In the age of technology, convenience reigns king. In the quick-service restaurant (QSR) industry, where convenience and speed are part of the product, technology is a natural business partner. “Around the Table,” explores how automation has made its way into franchises all over the country, with the full extent of its capabilities still untapped….

This story was produced through MarketScale. See how Food & Beverage teams put it to work with Customer Stories & Case Studies.

Share
Around the Table: Automation in Quick-Service Restaurants

Free workspace

Turn your Food & Beverage expertise into content.

Record interviews, organize footage, and write with AI on a free trial of the MarketScale platform for qualifying companies. No demo required, no credit card.

Try it Free

In the age of technology, convenience reigns king. In the quick-service restaurant (QSR) industry, where convenience and speed are part of the product, technology is a natural business partner. “Around the Table,” explores how automation has made its way into franchises all over the country, with the full extent of its capabilities still untapped. Antunes guests Steve Gauger, Senior Vice President of Advanced Development & Automation, and Dan Hartlein, President, speak decisively about automation’s potential to improve quick-service system, customer satisfaction, and profits.

The term “automation,” often brings to mind visions of intricate machines roving around autonomously. But Hartlein and Gauger assure that automation doesn’t have to be that complicated, or wildly futuristic. In fact, Antunes designs automated programs that integrate into a QSR’s already established kitchen space, resulting in little disruption to established processes.

Whatsmore, automating need not be a giant change. In fact, small, granular changes can have major ripple effects in efficiency and profits. From cutting slices of cheese, to fishing out pickle spears, automating these small tasks in the assembly line can produce drastic changes in QSR performance.

As the COVID-19 sits heavy in everyone’s thoughts, Hartlein and Gauger point out the hygienic benefits of automated processes, emphasizing the consumer’s growing habits of ordering-in or delivery. But will automation steal jobs from people? Gauger and Hartlein assure that’s not the case.

With automation still breaking ground in the quick-service industry, the possibilities are endless and processes are ripe for improvement.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Food & Beverage Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @MarketScale

Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale

LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Your experts belong here

Every story in MarketScale Food & Beverage starts with a company putting its plant managers, quality leads, and R&D teams on the record. Buyers are already reading this topic. The only question is whose experts they find.

Processors and grocery buyers vet suppliers hard, and your operations people are the ones who can satisfy them.

Book DemoSee how it works15 minutes, straight to a calendar.
B2B Weekly

The week in Food & Beverage, and sixteen other industries, every Monday.

Ten stories, one-line takes, five minutes. Free.

Food & Beverage: are you visible to AI?

Before they reach out, Food & Beverage buyers ask AI engines which vendors to trust. Explore how your experts, customers, and partners can become useful content for buyers and AI search.

Free Trial

You just read one Food & Beverage expert. Your company is full of them.

This article was produced through MarketScale. The same platform turns your plant managers, quality leads, and R&D teams into the articles, video, and social content Food & Beverage buyers are searching for. Start a free trial and see it with your own people. For qualifying companies, no credit card, no demo required.

NPS +73 · 1,000+ creators · 38+ countries

What your free trial includes

Hands-on access to the MarketScale platform
Media requests to your crowd, remote recording, AI writing tools
No demo required. No credit card.
For qualifying companies. Company confirmation required.

More Food & Beverage Insights

McDonald's pilots ads on drive-thru order boards in 450 company-owned US restaurants

McDonald's pilots ads on drive-thru order boards in 450 company-owned US restaurants

McDonald's is targeting a media business worth $1 billion over time. The program has not yet rolled out to the franchisees who operate the rest of its roughly 14,000 U.S. locations.

  • 01The 450-restaurant pilot has not yet rolled out to the franchisees who operate the rest of McDonald's roughly 14,000 U.S. locations, so reaching a $1 billion media business could depend on them joining.
  • 02McDonald’s is targeting a media network business that could grow to $1 billion over time, CNBC reported, with the current pilot running ads on digital drive‑thru order boards.
  • 03invidis says ads are widely expected to spread beyond drive-thru screens to digital menu boards, self-order kiosks and the mobile app.

Sep 27, 2026

Trend-driven supplement formulas often don’t earn repeat orders, Licata says

Trend-driven supplement formulas often don’t earn repeat orders, Licata says

Contract manufacturer Paul Licata says some quick-trend supplement formulas have brought few repeat orders at his shop. SIRIO Europe’s Alexej Dens points to longevity as a structural trend and is offering Aeion, ready-to-launch concepts built around daily habits across areas like cellular energy, mobility and heart health. The article argues reorder history is a key question to ask a manufacturer.

  • 01Licata's shop has seen few trend-driven formulas earn a repeat order, so the reorder rate is the number worth asking a contract manufacturer about.

Sep 27, 2026

MetaNovas says Orphic can generate a CPG project proposal package in about an hour

MetaNovas says Orphic can generate a CPG project proposal package in about an hour

MetaNovas says Orphic can turn a product brief into a complete proposal package quickly; in an internal test it produced one in about an hour versus roughly two weeks of cross-team work (Business Insider).

  • 01Orphic’s most concrete claim is cycle time: MetaNovas says a multi-function proposal package went from roughly two weeks to about an hour on a real ingestible beauty brief (Business Insider).
  • 02A Veeva QualityOne-sponsored report published via PR Newswire said 82% of respondents are consolidating older systems or moving from best-of-breed solutions into unified platforms to standardize data and processes for AI readiness (PR Newswire).

Sep 22, 2026

Explore More Food & Beverage Insights

Read more expert perspectives from across Food & Beverage.

Browse Food & Beverage Hub

For B2B teams

Your experts could be publishing here

Stories like this one run on content MarketScale captures from real practitioners. See how your team's expertise becomes coverage in Food & Beverage and beyond.

Book a Demo

Or call us. No forms required. We pick up. 214-945-2512