Pubs and restaurants chain Mitchells & Butlers has signed a deal with Fujitsu to swap out its core infrastructure for a hosted pay-per-use service. The infrastructure Fujitsu is providing for the company, which runs the Harvester and O’Niell’s pub chains, will support Lan and Wan capabilities in 1,600 outlets. The service will also replace an IBM datacentre offering by the end of March, according to M&B operations director Robin Young. Young told CIO UK that the deal is part of an 18 month project, he initiated to bring the company’s technology into the 21st Century. Prior to this, the M&B sites had been supported by a till network installed between 15 and 20 years ago. One of the biggest impacts the network will have in the company’s outlets is for customer to pay using wireless mobile handheld units at their tables. The network supports Wifi in outlets for customers to use and Young hopes to be able to take advantage of mobile marketing initiatives, such as mobile vouchers, which can be redeemed on site. “It says to our customers that we are a 21st Century company now,” said Young. “It means the customer experience our staff work so hard to produce isn’t affected by having to wait when it comes time for them to pay.” Young also hopes that the network will help the company make full use of workforce and stock management systems it procured from Red Prairy around two years ago. The knock on effect of this software upgrade is that supplier partners, such as Brake Brothers are integrated with M&B’s stock replenishment systems, automating what was previously a manual process. Related content brandpost Sponsored by FPT Software Time for New Partnership Paradigms to Be Future-fit By Veronica Lew Dec 06, 2023 5 mins Vendors and Providers brandpost Sponsored by BMC Why CIOs should prioritize AIOps in 2024 AIOps empowers IT to manage services by incorporating AI/ML into operations. By Jeff Miller Dec 06, 2023 3 mins IT Leadership opinion Generative AI in enterprises: LLM orchestration holds the key to success In the dynamic landscape of AI, LLMs represent a pivotal breakthrough. Unlike traditional AI, which demands frequent data updates, LLMs possess the ability to learn and adapt in real-time. This mirrors human learning and positions LLMs as essential f By Shail Khiyara Dec 06, 2023 10 mins Generative AI Artificial Intelligence brandpost Sponsored by Freshworks How gen AI is joining the holiday shopping season One year after the launch of ChatGPT, the retail industry is embracing generative AI to deliver a variety of benefits By Elliot Markowitz Dec 06, 2023 4 mins Generative AI Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe