Complex industrial kitchen equipment should just work without you, as the owner, having to think twice about it. Imagine the dishwasher not only washes dishes but also tells you it needs maintenance or how it can save money and the planet’s resources -all at the same time.

That is exactly what our customer, Nordisk Clean Solutions, wanted to do—they wanted to make their dishwashers smart with the help of the Internet of Things (IoT) to boost their customer service game. The key was that Nordisk Clean Solutions itself collects and keeps track of this data to help its customers be proactive and have super simple ownership and not burden the customer with lots of difficult-to-interpret information.

The joint vision: Smart dishwashers for smarter service 

The idea was to turn dishwashers into talking devices that could provide all sorts of helpful information. Instead of waiting for something to break down, these smart machines would help us be proactive, giving users and service teams a heads-up to keep things running smoothly.

More than just tech

Making a long list of features is an easy thing. Doing the right things for all stakeholders is a different story. The process that Softhouse helped Nordisk Clean Solutions with, was about change management, and identifying the needs of all stakeholders. Nordisk Clean Solutions was coached to think creatively about how their customers get the best experience from their dishwasher. The answer the process gave was quite simple:  the customer just wants it to work, seamlessly, without them having to communicate with the dishwasher themselves or having to interpret information.

Softhouse contributes as part change leaders, part technology experts, who guides the process and makes visions turn concrete and business-relevant.

Both I as the product owner and the entire team felt very safe right from the start in the project. Isabelle and Samira from Softhouse have a unique ability to create a good environment right from the start, which means you get started quickly. You helped us to be brave and dare to challenge ourselves. Johnny Josefsson, Nordic Clean Solutions

How we made dishwashers smarter with IoT:

We rolled up our sleeves and got to work, focusing on three important things:

• Keeping dishwashers happy and functioning: Dishwashers can tell you how they are doing and they are monitored by Nordisk Clean Solutions. They, and not the customer, is keeping track of the well-being of all its customers’ machines remotely and can be one step ahead. Maintenance can be done before they become major problems, making life easier for any dishwasher owner. This is now implemented.
• Saving the planet one wash at a time: Our smart dishwashers also monitor how much water, energy, and heat they use. 
• No more running out of soap: And because they are really smart, they even know when they are running low on detergent or need a new part and will in the future be able to order these all by themselves. 

Why this is just the beginning:

The project was not just about making dishwashers smarter; it was about bringing real business value to stakeholders when you mix some creativity with the latest in IoT technology. If you want to turn something ordinary into something extraordinary with technology, we are here to make it possible. Let’s make the future better together!