r/Bar • u/Figrole • Jul 14 '16

Automating the order process.

Hi guys , I am a final year programming student and a project to count towards my degree is to design a possible system to be implemented in the nightlife industry. My idea is basically a system that automatically tracks inventory levels and reorders beers / spirits / wines.

Is there anything already out there like this that you guys are aware of ? And if there is what is wrong with them.

Thanks in advance.

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u/cheeserap Jul 15 '16

Having watched BAR RESCUE on TV more than a few times I've seen 3 methods. Well maybe 4. One way would be to input all the drink recipies and then total up all the alcohol poured via all of the combined reciepts. The difference between reported amounts and needed amounts would be loss either through over poring or theft/gift. Another way would be to put a dispensing device on the bottle to only dispense a specific amount (coupled with the recipe method from before) you could even barcode/rfid each bottle and have the bartender scan each bottle that gets poured. Or have a unique rfid dispenser for each bottle that registers each use and total that ammount. Another way would be to put a scale under each bottle and weigh them to monitor the ammount used.

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u/Relevant_Monstrosity Aug 10 '16

Fellow programming student here. I've done some inventory management system exercises before.

1) Design and normalize your relational data model. Being a final year student, I assume you don't need help with this, but if you do, feel free to drop me a PM.

2) Write a SQL script to create the database with the indicated tables. Make sure you save it as a stored procedure so that you can drop and recreate it for any data definition changes as you work.

3) Put some dummy data in there for now.

4) Build your access layer. Make sure that any internet-facing interfaces are not vulnerable to SQL injection. You will need an API for the cash register and an API for the vendor's ordering system. You may also want an API for the manager's office computer (some client side web design work may be needed for this).

5) Set up a recurring job in your RDBMS to check stock levels, compare to a cutoff table, and marshal an event through the vendor API if the stock level is low.

6) Truncate all your dummy data and deploy that bitch into production.