The NAFEM Data Protocol is a set of standard rules and message formats that allows commercial kitchen equipment to communicate with a foodservice manager's or service technician's computer. It provides real-time informational tools to address five critical areas:

• Product/Inventory Management
• Asset Management
• Labor Management
• Food Safety
• Energy Management

A fryer, for example, can communicate with the manager's personal computer to relay information such as energy usage, cook cycles and shortening temperature. The fryer can also receive information from the computer to spur adjustments in temperature, cook cycles and other operating essentials.

In addition, when the fryer's heating element is nearing the end of its lifecycle or operating below specified levels, the piece of equipment would issue an alert directly to the manufacturer's service center. The result is one-call servicing - facilitated by the manufacturer's ability to access exact information on the model and replacement part needed - before the element fails.

The Protocol could ultimately permit every piece of kitchen equipment to communicate. This will give the operator the power and flexibility to select from various manufacturers the equipment, software, and support that best suit his or her needs. Manufacturers will then gain the ability to differentiate their products with leading edge features, total operations integration, and/or the ability to offer the restaurant enhancement that ideally meet the operator's needs.

Major U.S. restaurant chains recognized the potential efficiencies associated by linking individual pieces of commercial kitchen equipment and began working with NAFEM to develop an industry-wide set of rules, or protocol, to allow the exchange of data between independent pieces of commercial kitchen equipment and a personal computer.

Working together for an all-industry solution, NAFEM and chain representatives created the NAFEM Data Protocol (NDP), a standard based on existing, commonly used Internet Protocols. The NAFEM Data Protocol is a non-proprietary technology protocol that enables bi-directional communication of data between a PC-based workstation and foodservice equipment.

The NAFEM Data Protocol automates management processes and benefits operators, employees and manufacturers.

Operators and Employees may

• Automate maintenance and service schedules
• Create troubleshooting and diagnostic capabilities
• Reduce equipment downtime
• Improve utility management and costs
• Maximize product quality
• Increase food safety
• Gain the ability to monitor trends and collect historical and real-time information
• Reduce frustration due to unscheduled equipment downtime

Manufacturers gain

• Ready-made, proven equipment technology that meets an industry standard for increased connectivity and saves company resources
• Ongoing training and updates through NAFEM's committee structure and Web site resources
• Flexibility to apply the protocol through integrated controls, bolt-on appliances or gateway adapters
• Intelligent products that offer increased operational efficiency
• Opportunity to take advantage of service diagnostics and gather data for future product introductions
• Opportunity to compete on a level playing field

Manufacturers may declare their products as NAFEM Data Protocol Compliant on the NAFEM Web site: www.nafem.org. The certification process requires four simple steps:

1. Register as a user.
2. Select the appropriate company from the provided list of NAFEM members or add a company profile.
3. Satisfy the "Declaration of Conformity" which certifies that the products a company is registering are in compliance with the NAFEM Data Protocol Standard.
4. Register individual compliant products by supplying NAFEM with the model number, product and specific standard elements with which it complies and any supporting documentation that demonstrates compliance.

Once the certification process is complete, NAFEM reviews the product information and, once the submission is approved, posts it on the NAFEM Web site.

Manufacturers who plan to use the protocol in their products should review a few key documents found on the NAFEM Web site:

• The NAFEM Data Protocol Standard, a six-layer "stack" of documents conforming to IEEE standards methodology, that uses existing and open communication protocols;
  
  
• A Users Manual, containing basic information, instruction, technical application examples and sample Management Information Bases (MIBs), which standardize the data streams for transmission; and
  
  
• A set of Management Information Bases (MIBs), formatted for downloading directly to a programming compiler.