Robotics, AI answer dishwasher shortage in restaurants

ASK A RESTAURAteur what position can be the biggest headache to fill, and you’re likely to be surprised by the response. The answer is often not a high-skilled job like manager or chef, but that of lowly dishwasher.

The traditional first rung on the restaurant industry’s career ladder, dishwasher has, thanks to the decadelong decline in the teenage workforce population, become a chronic staffing headache for sit-down dining operations. The work of dishwasher is hot, messy, and decidedly unglamorous; in a tight labor market those seeking entry level jobs have more attractive options.

A restaurant can operate “one-man-down” if a waiter or line cook doesn’t show, but unfilled dishwasher positions can make it nearly impossible for a table service eatery to do business.

Now, however, a combination of robotics and artificial intelligence promises a technology-based solution to the dishwasher shortage. Nala Robotics, an Arlington, Illinois-based company that specializes in the automation of culinary systems, has introduced Spotless, the robot dishwasher.

Designed for high-volume operations, Spotless is, according to its designers, able to process dirty dishware from cleaning to storage, ready for reuse, with a speed that will eventually rival or exceed that of the most productive of human dishwasher operatives.

Spotless begins the dishwashing process by giving an item of tableware a quick rinse or scrape to remove food waste. The system then uses a camera to recognize the item and accesses a library of algorithms that direct how its robotic arm further handles that plate, glass, or utensil.

Spotless requires a relatively compact operational foot print; the technology, which has already been deployed in several non-commercial kitchens, is leased from Nala on a monthly basis. Current Spotless prototype installations operate in conjunction with a human

“collaborator,” but Nala is confident the technology, thanks to machine learning,

Champney’s Restaurant & Tavern, at the Deerfield Inn, 81 Old Main St. in Deerfield, will be host to an Adult Cider and Food Pairing event Feb. 4 from 6 to 9 p.m. The evening will feature fermented ciders of West County Cider, a Colrain-based operation (DON TREEGER / THE REPUBLICAN)