A Look at McDonald's New "Dual Point" Ordering System

Earlier in April, the Wallstreet Journal reported that McDonald's would soon be rolling out a new "dual point" ordering setup nationally, as part of a larger plan to improve customer service. Basically, instead of picking up your order at/next to the same register where you ordered it, everyone picks up their order from the same area.

I recently came across the new ordering setup and snapped some pictures to share. Here's how it works:

As you can see here, most McDonald's have at least three registers (where most other fast food chains tend to have only one or two).:

Typically, the same person that takes your order is the one who hands it to you when it's ready. In the new system, the order taker just takes orders and there's a dedicated area for picking up your order with a screen that can project everyone's order number (far left). The number system lets customers mill about or sit down rather than huddle around the pick up station.

Here's a closer look at the screen and dedicated pick up area:

Basically, what it comes down to is that McDonald's set up is going to be more like most of the other fast food chains, where you order at the register and pick up your order in another area. The end result should be faster and friendly service.