Nearly half of restaurant operators in the USA have lost revenue due to equipment downtime, according to a MachineQ report.

MachineQ, a Comcast company, has announced the findings from its 2026 Restaurant Readiness: Ops Meets Tech Report, conducted by independent research firm Censuswide. The survey of more than 400 US fast-food restaurants reveals that nearly half (49%) of respondents experienced downtime due to equipment failure or unplanned maintenance. And 24% of respondents estimate revenue loss between $1000 and $5000 per hour of disruption.

With rising food and labour costs continuing to strain profits, restaurants are prioritising technology investments, including the IoT, which are paying dividends to improve front-of-house experiences. The report also shows that automating back-of-house functions, such as equipment monitoring, food safety tracking and inventory management, are helping operators reduce waste and downtime, thereby helping deliver a better experience.

More than half of the respondents (58%) said they saw the opportunity to benefit from technology and automation, with that number climbing to nearly 70% among those operating 50 or more restaurant locations.

“Restaurants today are operating in one of the toughest cost environments we’ve seen with the average annual spend for labour and perishable food per restaurant location alone exceeding one million,” said Tom Woodbury, restaurant technology lead at Philadelphia-based MachineQ (www.machineq.com). “Back-of-house automation is proving to be a critical lever, not just to help operators prevent costly downtime, but to help improve food safety, reduce waste and give staff more time to focus on customers.”

The research highlights how technology adoption is transforming day-to-day restaurant operations:

• Operators identified food safety, supply chain reliability and waste reduction as the top back-of-house improvements that most directly enhance front-of-house performance.
• 63% of respondents believe real-time visibility into energy and equipment use would help reduce costs and support sustainability initiatives.
• Nearly nine in ten (86%) are already investing or plan to invest in IoT-based systems within the next two years to improve monitoring, automate compliance and streamline multi-location management.
• 46% plan to increase technology budgets in the year ahead, outpacing planned spending increases for staffing, equipment and menu expansion.

As restaurants adapt to inflation, staffing shortages, and tighter margins, the report underscores a growing focus on futureproofing operations. From predictive maintenance and temperature monitoring to waste reduction and sustainability tracking, operators see technology as key to maintaining safety, efficiency and profitability in a competitive industry.

For a deeper look at the findings, read the report at www.machineq.com/content/lp-foodservice-report-2026-restaurant-readiness-ops-meets-tech.