With some 11,000 employees and a turnover of 9.6 billion euros in Germany alone, Vodafone GmbH is one of the biggest companies in the German telecommunications arena and one of Europe's leading telecommunications providers. Some 5,000 people work on Vodafone's mobile, fixed line, Internet and broadband businesses at its German headquarters in Düsseldorf, creating services which reinforce the company's innovation leadership in the telecommunications market. Since moving to its new head office on the Vodafone campus, the company has introduced a new staff catering concept.
With 1,200 square metres of floor space and five themed pavilions offering a range of cuisines for up to 1,200 people at a time, Vodafone's staff restaurant provides a varied and memorable eating experience. One of the biggest logistical challenges in the planning process was deciding how to collect dirty dishware and get it clean.
The most complex part was the conveyor technology used to transport dirty dishware from the tray return point in the ground floor restaurant to the wash-up area in the basement. The three dish return conveyor belts in the restaurant run at full capacity during opening hours. The conveyor technology is highly sophisticated, using both horizontal and vertical conveyors to take the ware straight to the wash-up area. And the dishwashers are no less impressive: the five M-iQ flight type dishwashing machinesfrom MEIKO make light work of the dirty dishware from the restaurant areas as well as the ware used in food production.
