[Ukv]

To be fair, up until recently copyright/DMCA prevented them from repairing the ice cream machines - I'd give it some time to see if things start to improve. Other kitchen equipment does seem to generally be fixed/replaced promptly enough to not typically cause major impact.

Sensors on the equipment seems reasonable to me. Predicting failure in advance can avoid downtime or more costly damage. Machines with degrading performance and some underlying issue can also be a food safety issue, if it isn't addressed until they entirely fail.

[crooked-v]

> up until recently copyright/DMCA prevented them from repairing the ice cream machines

That's a red herring. The actual thing preventing them is the franchise contracts that require all ice cream machine maintenance be performed by a specific company, because McD's corporate knows that otherwise franchisees will cut corners and leave the brand associated with listeria outbreaks.

[ccnjfkggkkcj]

Isn't that Apple's argument for not allowing you to get your battery replaced by a 3rd party, because customers might buy a cheap off brand battery and it could cause their phone to catch fire?

[crooked-v]

Yes. The difference is that, unlike possible phone fires, we know franchises will cause listeria outbreaks if left to their own devices because they have done so. It was a whole thing in the 90s and the obvious reason why McD's implemented the current policy in the first place.

[pessimizer]

> To be fair, up until recently copyright/DMCA prevented them from repairing the ice cream machines

Was that the story, or was the story that McDonald's was using copyright/DMCA in order to prevent their franchisees from repairing the ice cream machines?

[nedrylandJP]

I've just picked up a fault in the AE-35 unit. It's going to go 100% failure within 72 hours.

[k12sosse]

This is how the F-35 works.

[smegsicle]

why don't you explain how the f-35 works then smart guy