Facing rising food and labor costs, franchisees are still expected to pay out the same royalties, marketing fees, and other fixed expenses. For these reasons, franchisees—and operators in general—are more focused than ever on finding places where top-line expenditures can be slashed.
One 20-unit franchisee group from a major restaurant chain—which wished to remain anonymous—recently installed an oil management system, Restaurant Technologies Total Oil Management solution, that is saving the brand $8,000 per year, per store in insurance expenses, reducing premiums by more than 20 percent from $769,447 to $612,838.
The system takes much or all of the risk out of handling cooking oil, which, according to a Restaurant Technologies study conducted by a major insurance provider, is responsible for approximately 60 percent of worker compensation claims in the quick-service space. For the franchisee group in question, installing the solution had become necessary. It wasn’t just about saving money—the Experience MOD stemming from worker compensation claims had increased from 1.32 to 1.62. The group knew it had to make a change, so leaders reached out to Restaurant Technologies.
Total Oil Management automates the entire process of handling cooking oil. Restaurant Technologies installs two oil tanks in the back of the restaurant, one for fresh oil and the other for waste oil. The fresh oil feeds directly into deep fryers at the push of a button, traveling through a secure tube to get there. When cooking oil is no longer fresh enough to create the quality fried foods operators and diners expect and exports the oil to the waste tank, a button is pressed, and the oil is seamlessly changed out. Notably, team members never have to lift large jugs of oil or handle oil that is hot and could cause burns.
“Safety is the number one reason to install Total Oil Management,” says David Eha, director of national accounts at Restaurant Technologies. “It’s just better and safer for you and your people. The fact that it will also help you save money—I mean, 20 percent on insurance goes right to the bottom line and is the cherry on top.”
Eha says the solution is perfect for any restaurant brand of any size that has deep fryers. The company is approved to sell into the stores of franchisees who own some of the top brands in the industry: McDonald’s, Burger King, and KFC to name just a few. On top of saving on insurance costs, franchisee groups and other restaurant groups appreciate the fact that Total Oil Management has become an employee retention tool. In other words, not only does it keep employees safer, but it keeps them happier, too. With the backdrop of today’s labor climate, that’s no small thing.
To learn more, visit RTI-Inc.com
