(Finance) – Vodafone Business And McDonald’s Italy they have signed an agreement for the construction of a network infrastructure consisting of a dual connectivity, in fiber and 5G wireless, in all 640 McDonald’s restaurants in Italy. This is the first retail data network of its kind in the country: an expandable, resilient and future-proof network architecture that satisfies McDonald’s need for rapid change and continuous development, which foresees around 40 new openings for 2022 alone.
“It is not just a question of combining fiber and 5G but, thanks to the intelligence of SD-WAN technology, of combining them, enhancing their respective distinctive characteristics – he comments. Lorenzo Forina, director of Vodafone Business Italia. Infrastructures like this can only be built by a converging operator that continues to invest in the innovation of its network. This makes us the ideal partner in supporting large customers in their digital business evolution projects. We are the only operator in the sector with an Italian footprint and a European scale – adds Forina. This allows us to give benefits to the community, consumers, companies and the country, making our economies of scale and competence with a European dimension available, as well as our purchasing power “.
“The collaboration with Vodafone for the creation of a powerful and secure network infrastructure allows us to further improve and expand the service offered to our customers – declares Paola Pavesi, Technology Director of McDonald’s Italia. For years we have been working on an integrated development of digitalization and multi-channeling to better manage the changes related to service and consumption channels. In fact, channels such as McDrive, McDelivery, Take Away and App, like the restaurant, have entered the daily life of Italian consumers, a trend that we have immediately intercepted and in which we are continuing to invest to meet the needs of our customers “.
McDonald’s has always had aparticular attention to the digital and technological world and this propensity for innovation has led the company to new solutions and services aimed at making the customer experience in the restaurant and beyond: kiosks for self-ordering, table service, digital menus, CRM, promotions through the McDonald’s App and WiFi access for all visitors are concrete evidence of how connectivity and technology are not simply working tools for McDonald’s, but a fundamental piece of its success.
New sales channels, an advanced digital experience and restaurants that are connected and that take advantage of cutting-edge technologies such as the Internet of Things and Artificial Intelligence become central to respond effectively to the growing consumer demand.
To meet these needs and thus become the enabler of McDonald’s further digitization, Vodafone Business has designed a network infrastructure based on a double type of connectivity: fiber connectivity and 4G / 5G wireless connectivity, which makes the entire infrastructure ready to offer – with the extension of 5G coverage on a national scale – solutions and services based on the fifth generation of broadband wireless networks. The features that make 5G a revolutionary technology, including very low latency and ultra-wide bandwidth, will enable new immersive services, and, looking at the present, the new McDonald’s Mobile Order & Pay service, available from May on the entire national network. . Thanks to this service, customers of Italian restaurants can order and pay directly from their smartphone, through the McDonald’s App and then collect the order inside the restaurant (with take away or table service) or at the dedicated parking lots.
In line with this path of technological innovation, the new network infrastructure that Vodafone has developed for McDonald’s in Italy will be extremely resilient and secure precisely because it is based on differentiated technologies (fiber and cellular). The platform was in fact implemented so as to allow, if necessary and thanks to the intervention of the Software Defined Network, that the services can be based on the most performing network technology at that time, guaranteeing the business continuity of all restaurants in any condition, 24/7 and effectively. Furthermore, the possibility of counting on the wireless network allows McDonald’s to activate and make services and solutions available to its customers even if fiber is not immediately available, as can happen when opening a new store in an area not covered by the fixed ultra-broadband connectivity.
Finally, theVodafone’s commitment to protecting the environment met the same commitment by McDonald’s to sustainability and the circular economy. The Vodafone network has already been powered by 100% renewable sources since November 2020, through the purchase of energy produced exclusively with certified renewable sources both for its own network and for its offices. First among telecommunications companies in Italy, the company has brought forward the goal of zeroing its greenhouse gas emissions to 2025. Vodafone’s important milestones and ambitious objectives ensure McDonald’s will comply with its own commitments made to face some of the most urgent environmental challenges today and that the Brand faces every day thanks to the collaboration of its licensees, suppliers and partners, intervening on the entire supply chain, “from field to tray”.