Project Management for McDonald’s Net-Zero Energy Restaurant

Integrated approach ensured restaurant opened on-time during pandemic

The Challenge

The largest global restaurant chain in the world, McDonald’s, embarked on a first-of-its-kind project with the goal to open a net-zero energy flagship location. Located near Disney’s All-Star Resorts in Orlando, Florida, the restaurant was designed to create enough renewable energy on-site to cover 100% of its energy needs annually. The eco-friendly building would help McDonald’s reach its goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 36% in restaurants and offices by 2030 compared to a 2015 base year.

Set to open mid-2020, McDonald’s needed a reliable FF&E restaurant logistics partner to manage the preparation, vendor coordination and project management for this premier restaurant within a tight timeframe.

The Solution

After successfully helping to manage nationwide technology rollouts and the new construction of a restaurant in Times Square, McDonald’s knew NXTPoint Logistics had the resources, capacity, and experience to handle this prominent project, as well as the flexibility to overcome any challenges that may arise.

NXTPoint Logistics used an integrated approach, delivering services through its asset-based warehouse and its extended network partners to provide a complete solution. Our dedicated furniture, fixtures, and equipment logistics team managed communications between McDonald’s and vendors to streamline the process. Our team managed over 100 items, including oversized crates of solar panels, digital kiosks, menu boards, décor pieces, and signage, and coordinated 16 deliveries from our Orlando warehouse.

Our cutting-edge warehouse management system, Körber, offered real-time visibility and control over inventory to ensure everything was tightly managed. Our team handled each item with the highest level of care, including cumbersome pieces such as heavy outdoor concrete furniture and oversized solar panels.

The project was complicated by the COVID-19 pandemic impacting Florida in March 2020 until the July opening of the restaurant. Throughout the pandemic, NXTPoint Logistics’ experts kept vendors and their own contributions to the project on time to ensure the 8,024 square foot restaurant could open on time, including a soft opening in May of its drive-through and open-air seating so patrons could have a safer option to dine at the quick-serve restaurant during the pandemic.

The Results

• Managed vendors, warehousing and final-mile delivery for 8,024
• Tightly managed project with real-time visibility and control through cutting-edge technology
• Opened on-time and on budget during global pandemic

Key Services

• Project management
• Vendor management
• Warehousing and consolidation
• Final mile delivery

Key Items Managed

• 2 double outdoor menu boards
• 6 double sided kiosks
• 10 oversized crates of solar panels