Show stoppers
The Technology Centre will be a specialised section within the equipment and business services hall at Hospitality Week '95.
Most of the exhibitors in the centre, which is open to all types of computer and electronic technology, will offer point-of-sale and stock control systems for foodservice operations. Some hotel management systems will also be on show.
Alcatel Business Systems will display the latest infra-red technology, a compact touch-screen EPoS terminal, along with the Alcatel 7800 Touch, a touch-screen system designed to control large volumes of food and drink.
Also on show will be the Alcatel 7700 and Caterflex stock management system and the Guestflex hotel management and accounting system.
Alcatel 7800 Touch can handle any number of food and drink permutations, it is claimed. Visual prompts show even the least-experienced staff how to enter an order. Individual staff can be given different levels of access - which can be programed into Alcatel 7800 Touch - for security. Alcatel 7700 offers many of the features of Alcatel 7800 Touch, but uses a keyboard.
Fretwell-Downing has recently struck a business partnership with Sharp, and will show the Sharp smart card system on its stand in the Technology Centre.
The Sharp smart card system has just been installed in Highland Contract Services for school meal catering, interfaced to the Fretwell-Downing MICa Catering system.
Smart cards can provide a cashless payment system for environments such as school meals and staff catering, and clubs such as golf clubs and private associations. Fretwell-Downing will have a working system on show.
Following the launch of its StockLink software package, Intelligent Business Systems is offering StockLink for Windows. Both versions link to Uniwell and Sharp point-of-sale terminals, and other links are available on request.
StockLink utilities include: date-defined sales reports; fully-costed purchase orders, ready to post or fax; stock deliveries; recipe costing; stock reports; and stocktake.
MCR EPoS Systems will show the Uniwell range of point-of-sale equipment and supporting stock control software.
Other companies in the Technology Centre include XI Data Systems, with both catering and hotel management systems, and Data Systems Terminals, with the Comtrex point-of-sale system.
Alongside the equipment suppliers, on stand E215, will be FSD (CADD Services), with three new products.
AutoCAD R13, the computer-aided design package, will be presented with applications specific for the foodservice industry.
FSD Enquirer? is an electronic catalogue of products and services used in the hospitality industry.
And Tragastro enables restaurateurs and caterers to translate and print the same menu in up to seven languages.
Technology Centre exhibitors
Company, Stand
Alcatel Business Systems, TC5
Data Systems Terminals, TC7
Fretwell-Downing, TC1
Intelligent Business Systems, TC8
MCR EPoS Systems, TC14
XI Data Systems, TC6
FSD (CADD Services), E215
