HYGIENE
can also be easily added to, to include any additional tasks a café might have. The digital handset prompts staff when a task is due and provides instructions on how to perform the check. Once complete, the results are automatically time-stamped and recorded in the cloud, providing tamper-free records and a complete audit trail of work carried out. By removing the possibility to forget or falsify records, the digital system effectively protects the business from not only poor hygiene, but also from poor record keeping, which can contribute towards a low hygiene rating even if there are no actual food safety failings. Multiple sites Checkit’s cloud-based system enables managers to monitor the status of multiple sites in real-time and check that staff
have completed the required hygiene and cleaning tasks on schedule. If a scheduled task is missed, managers are instantly alerted and correct the issue before customers or the business are at risk. It also helps ensure consistency between shifts, or if a staff member is off sick, as managers can see which tasks are about to be missed and can make sure another staff member will take over to complete the job. In an industry employing many part-time staff, ensuring that all employees have sufficient training to carry out and record the daily hygiene tasks can be difficult. A self-guiding system, such as Checkit, makes it easy even for the most junior staff members to complete the required checks with only minimal training. Overall, eliminating compliance paper work from daily routines contributes to productivity. As staff no longer need to
spend time filling in and storing the paper records, they can spend more time on their core tasks such as serving customers, which can result in a better level of service. It also means that managers no longer need to trawl through piles of paperwork to keep on top of things, enabling them to focus limited resources where they are most needed. It is clear to see that food hygiene is an area that no food business can afford to neglect. Luckily the right technology can help streamline the way these crucial practices are maintained. By making a digital food safety management system part of the core catering equipment, café owners can gain peace of mind that every step has been taken to protect the business’s profitability and reputation from the often irreversible damage of poor food safety practices.
Background Checkit is a provider of cloud-based automated monitoring and work management solutions for the food service, food manufacturing and contract catering sectors. Its range of intuitive handsets, wireless sensors and probes simplify and automate a multitude of routine tasks that are required to ensure quality standards and regulatory compliance, improving efficiency and reducing risk and costs. In food service and manufacturing, Checkit is currently helping organisations from a single pub to a multi-site restaurant group transform the way they manage food safety by replacing manual, paper-based records with a digital solution. This helps to ensure regulatory compliance, high quality standards, improved management visibility, greater efficiency, good reputation and cost savings. Customers include the Ritz, Claridge’s, Inamo, Abel & Cole, Ginsters, Quorn Foods, Integrated Pathology Partnerships, East Surrey Hospital, the Glasgow Academy, Wymondham College and Nanna Mexico. In 2016, Checkit announced a partnership with Cambridge City Council, which approved the use of Checkit as a food safety management system. Based in Cambridge, UK, Checkit is an independent business within Elektron Technology Group PLC (http://www.checkit.net/).
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SEPTEMBER 2017 CAFÉ LIFE 63