Increasing the efficiency of your venue is achievable by installing a dumbwaiter. These lifts can transport items from one floor to another, and the advantages extend beyond simple efficiency.
in just a few days, your hospitality business could be vastly improved by hiring expert local engineers to install service lifts throughout your premises.
WHAT IS A DUMBWAITER?
A dumbwaiter or dumb waiter is a lift that carries items along a vertical shaft from one floor level to another. These small lifts work on either a traditional manual system or a modern electronic system – the manual version involving pulling a rope to move the car, and the electronic version involving pressing a button to kick-start a motorised system.
Also known as service lifts, dumbwaiters are found in both private homes and public venues. In the home, they are most often used to move laundry, groceries and other large items.
Traditionally found in large houses where household staff were present, dumbwaiters are no longer available only to the rich. Dumb waiters are different from passenger lifts, as they carry items rather than people. They’re often referred to as small goods lifts.
USING A SERVICE LIFT TO TRANSPORT FOOD AND DRINK
The main use of a service lift in hospitality venues such as bars and restaurants is to transport foods and drinks. This could be from the basement, where stock is kept, to an upper floor, or from the kitchen to the customer, if the kitchen is on a different floor.
ADVANTAGES OF USING A DUMBWAITER TO TRANSPORT FOOD AND DRINK
Transporting food and drink with a service lift system is advantageous to business owners for a number of reasons.
Using a dumbwaiter saves time and helps boost workplace efficiency, enabling staff to undertake different tasks while the dumbwaiter transports items between floors. This is especially true of electric motorised food lifts, where once the button is pressed, the dumbwaiter lift will move without needing additional work from staff.
Using a service lift for food transportation purposes is also of benefit to employers, as it reduces potential risk. Without catering lifts in the workplace, staff need to carry foods – many of which will likely be boiling hot – up and down stairs. There’s always a potential for staff to fall over when moving goods by foot – compromising both their own health and safety, and that of the customer.
Service lifts are purposefully installed at serving height. This means that the staff member situated on the arrival floor can collect the food or drink and deliver it directly to the customer with a simple twist motion. Kitchen lifts travel at speed, ensuring a swifter service and happier customers.
An add-on feature available when installing a dumbwaiter is a heated tray. This keeps food warmer for longer, ensuring that foods reach the customer at the standard intended and ultimately leading to more content diners.
Having food lifts installed also means that you can position the kitchen on a different floor. This has its own advantages as it means you can make more seating available in your dining space. By bringing in more customers at any one time, you can boost the amount of income that can be generated.
USING SERVICE LIFTS TO TRANSPORT CUTLERY
An additional use of a dumbwaiter is to move cutlery, like forks, knives, spoons, plates, bowls and glasses, between floors. In some restaurants, cutlery is stored on a different floor level to the serving area, making this a simple transportation solution.
ADVANTAGES OF USING A DUMBWAITER TO TRANSPORT CUTLERY
The ability to move forks, glasses, or dishes upstairs without the need to carry them can improve hygiene levels. It limits the amount of contact time that waiting staff have with the items that customers will eat with. This is especially important during times of pandemic, when high hygiene standards are more important than ever.
Owners of hospitality businesses are encouraged to install two lifts at minimum – one for food and one for cutlery. The lift used to transport food is at risk of contamination, so in addition to requiring regular cleaning, an even better solution is to have multiple lifts.
USING A SERVICE LIFT TO TRANSPORT EQUIPMENT
Bar and restaurant staff can also use a service lift to transport equipment and machinery. Thus may be in the form of small freight – such as a coffee grinder requiring a small goods lift. Alternatively, restaurants mag need to transport something larger in size, such as a coffee machine.
Boxes of product, such as paper cups, can also be transported in this manner. Service lifts for transporting equipment are available in different sizes, please get in touch to find out which size dumbwaiter might work for you.
ADVANTAGES OF USING A DUMBWAITER TO TRANSPORT EQUIPMENT
Most service lifts are installed at waist height, meaning that staff won’t have to lift heavier equipment or machinery above their midsections. This supports their health, and the employer’s legal and moral obligations to their staff’s safety. Commercial dumbwaiters can carry up to 250kg, meaning they’ll carry almost any item found in these environments.
A second advantage to using a lift to transport equipment is that it saves the company money. Less money will need to be spent on manual handling training, with fewer staff requiring this knowledge to complete their duties. Employers could also cut down on money spent hiring additional staff for manual handling roles. Additionally, less money would need to be spent on sickness pay for staff who are off work due to injury caused by lifting heavy items.
BUY TODAY
There’s no denying that service lifts make life easier. Making the decision to install a small service lift in your premises suits the purpose of any customer-facing business – to increase efficiency, and improve safety of both staff and customers.
Dumbwaiter pricing can vary depending on carrying capacity, number of levels served, distance between floor and the materials used on the landing door and car. There is one to suit every business type and need. With a good range of lifts available, you can be sure that your new lift will fit the aesthetic of your restaurant or bar.