Successful restaurants and kitchens depend on hard working team players to deliver excellent service on a daily basis. When individual staff members work well together, the kitchen interior functions like a well oiled machine, meaning that top quality food can be produced with minimal wait times.
Restaurant and kitchen staff also depend on an array of specialist equipment to be able to complete their work to a top standard. Sharp knives, top quality ovens and clean countertops are all essential ingredients when it comes to producing high quality dishes.
Sometimes this equipment is also designed to make work in the kitchen more efficient. One such tool is the dumbwaiter, a type of service lift that can be used to move dishes between floors without requiring staff to carry hot plates.
Read on to find out more about these ingenious lifts, with an insight into how they can benefit hospitality businesses.
What Is A Dumbwaiter?
A dumbwaiter is a type of small service lift that has been used for hundreds of years to transport culinary dishes. Initially these systems were operated by manually pulling on ropes to lift a small platform to various heights. Initially, this was useful for the management of stately homes, where kitchens would be situated below stairs.
Following the industrial revolution, mechanical and eventually electric dumbwaiters were introduced to support the growing hospitality sector. These could move quickly between floors at the touch of a button, without depending on physical effort.
Today, these lifts are still an integral part of the hospitality industry, where they allow for hot plates to be moved between floors with ease. Often, modern dumbwaiters can function automatically, or with the help of weight sensors that can detect when the lift is fully loaded.
How A Dumbwaiter Lift Could Benefit Your Business
There are numerous ways in which a dumbwaiter can benefit your business, where these handy installations can streamline your work at all levels. Some key advantages include:
Improved Efficiency
A major benefit of installing a dumbwaiter is that these systems can make a kitchen more efficient. This is because they reduce the need for staff to make prolonged trips up and down the stairs, whether that’s to collect ingredients or serve dishes. As such, your team can spend more time and energy on preparing their food, rather than rushing around the building.
Cleaner Kitchens
In addition to transferring prepared dishes, a dumbwaiter can also be used to remove used pots from stations throughout the kitchen and restaurant. Dishes can be sent straight to the pot wash section once they have been cleared, helping to reduce backlogs and improve hygiene standards.
Minimal Injuries
Working in a kitchen can be hazardous, especially if staff have to carry hot plates up and down the stairs. A dumbwaiter system eliminates this risk by reducing the distances that hot dishes have to be carried. In addition to helping your team to conserve their energy, this also means that burns, slips and spillages are less likely.
Save Space
Dumbwaiters have always been designed with discretion in mind, where these systems are a lot more compact than an ordinary elevator. This means that you can optimise your operations without worrying about taking up vital room in your kitchen. Most dumbwaiters can also be concealed within a non load bearing wall, so you won’t have to compromise on floorspace.
Low Maintenance
A further benefit of installing a dumbwaiter is that these systems are remarkably low maintenance. Due to their small size, these lifts are easy to keep clean, especially as many are manufactured from stainless steel. This means that you won’t have to worry about ingrained stains and dirt, as your dumbwaiter should be easy to wipe clean when it’s not in use.
Reduced Costs
As dumbwaiters are more compact than standard personnel lifts, they are also cheaper to install. This means that you won’t have to worry about major upfront costs when looking to streamline your operations. Beyond this, dumbwaiters also use less energy than conventional elevators, so they can help you to reduce costs compared to transferring goods and dishes via a large personnel lift.
For some establishments, installing a dumbwaiter also means not having to hire extra staff to carry goods and dishes between floors. This is another great way to keep costs to a minimum across your enterprise.
Key Safety Precautions
As with any kitchen equipment, it is important to keep key safety procedures in mind at all times. Although dumbwaiters are relatively safe to use compared to larger lifts, staff should still be reminded to proceed with caution, especially when handling hot dishes. Some essential safety tips include:
● No personnel inside the lift - dumbwaiters are strictly for plates, food and other goods, where it can be dangerous if a person were to climb inside.
● Caution when handling hot plates - these lifts are typically used for moving hot dishes, where staff should always proceed with caution when removing plates from the platform.
● No overhanging goods - when loading the dumbwaiter, staff should ensure that nothing overhangs the edge of the platform, as this could prevent the system from moving safely.
● Cleaning only at bottom floor level - it is vital that the lift is only cleaned when the platform is resting at the bottom level, where any attempts to clean the platform when it is raised could be hazardous for staff.
● Keep fingers & clothing clear - most dumbwaiters feature a fast closing metal door that can drop down without warning, so it is important that staff are cautious about keeping clothing and hands away from the area after loading.
● Staff training - as with any specialist kitchen equipment, it is important that staff receive the right training before they’re allowed to use the dumbwaiter unsupervised.
Eternal Elevators: Dumbwaiter Lifts For Your Business
At Eternal Elevators, we provide a specialist, bespoke dumbwaiter service, so your kitchen or restaurant can benefit from this innovative technology.
Our dumbwaiters are available in two key sizes, where these can carry either 50 kg and under or 100 kg and under. This means that you can choose the installation that best suits your business needs.
Each of our systems can travel up to three floors, where you can also choose to have multiple entrances installed. In addition to this, our dumbwaiters are manufactured from galvanised steel to ensure long lasting durability, where each model comes fitted with automatic push-button landing stations and premium safety locks.
Our expert team can also provide an excellent dumbwaiter lift repair service, where this can include planned inspections and emergency maintenance. Beyond this, we can respond to unplanned callouts, helping to get your dumbwaiter back up and running as soon as possible.
Get in touch with us today to find out more about our dumbwaiter and service lift installations.
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