Case Study: Kraft Heinz REMIX

Developing a complex, customer-facing product is a formidable challenge, even for a global brand with deep resources. Now add a hard launch deadline tied to a major trade show reveal, and the stakes rise dramatically. Unforeseen delays can derail the best laid plans. That’s where Catalyst comes in—providing project acceleration, engineering precision, and cross-functional coordination needed to meet ambitious timelines without sacrificing quality.

One such success? The Heinz REMIX.

Reimagining Flavor, One Touchscreen at a Time

Heinz is one of the most recognized and trusted names in food- from diners and food trucks to upscale restaurants. But tradition alone doesn’t keep a brand relevant. Heinz continually looks for ways to modernize the consumer experience, and the Heinz ReMix is a prime example of innovation done right.

The Launching of the Heinz ReMix at the NRA Trade Show.

The Original Idea

For more than five years, Kraft Heinz envisioned a self-serve, touchscreen-based sauce dispenser that would allow customers to personalize their dipping sauces after purchase. It was an opportunity to bring digital customization into the real-world dining experience; one that hadn’t been seen before in the foodservice industry.

But the idea was shelved. The technological and engineering challenges proved too complex for a company whose core strengths lie in food, not hardware development.

A Stalled Concept Finds Its Momentum

Years later, the Heinz REMIX concept is revisited with a bold new goal- launch a fully functioning product in just six months for debut at the National Restaurant Association (NRA) Show.

Challenge accepted.

Project Objectives and Risks

The Customer-Focused Goal

Deliver a custom sauce experience with over 200+ flavor combinations using four base sauces and four flavor enhancers.
Prevent cross-contamination between sessions and ensure a seamless, intuitive user interface.
Compress the selection, mixing and dispensing time to align with retail requirements.

The Strategic Value for Heinz

Collect user data by geography to identify trending flavors and guide future retail product launches—without the traditional cost of market testing.
Provide a unique business value to retailers providing incentive to offer Heinz products over competitors offerings.

Project Objectives and Risks

Brand Impact

Position Heinz as a category innovator and leader in food tech to both retailers and consumers.
Ensure the final product experience reflects the same reliability and quality customers associate with Heinz.
Add brand awareness and loyalty by providing personal exploration of new flavor combinations.

Major Risk

Equipment malfunction, possible unpalatable combinations, or user confusion could harm the brand, similar to consumer frustrations seen with unreliable fast-food machines. The system had to work—and work well—every time.

Three-Way Collaboration: Engineering Meets Flavor Innovation

Catalyst led industrial design and mechanical engineering, UI/UX design, prototype development, tooling, plastic injection molding, final assembly and distribution. Bringing 26 years of experience in developing enclosures to house complex tech in a clean, user-friendly format.
MESH Systems brought the digital backbone with IoT expertise for cloud connectivity, user input programming of internal electronics, and real-time analytics delivery to a secure online dashboard. meshsystems.com
JPG Resources crafted bold flavor enhancements to bring Heinz’s legendary sauces into the next lip-smacking era of customization. jpgresources.com

Catalyst partnered with jpg resources and mesh systems to develop the Heinz Remix

Catalyst’s role was pivotal: A multi-disciplinary approach was required in creating a fully integrated product that was not only reliable, intuitive, and efficient—but also manufacturable in time for show-ready deployment.

Comprehensive Services for Project Acceleration

Aggressive project schedule kept on track with concurrent specialized efforts:

Catalyst built a preliminary rig, dubbed ‘The Mule’, to serve as a proving ground for concepts as they became available for testing. Multiple iterations of internal layout, prevention of cross-contamination of ingredients, cleaning methods, mixing technique and specific hardware specifications were explored.

The Design and Engineering teams worked closely at every stage gate to ensure interoperability of individual, complex systems. 3D printed components served as temporary placeholders while the Catalyst Tooling department built molds for the final injection molded parts.

The process was streamlined to accommodate the compressed project schedule due in no small part to Catalyst’s comprehensive, in-house capabilities. All phases of the development, from design and engineering to tooling, molding and assembly were conducted in our ISO 9001:2015 facility.

Beyond the delivery of a single trade show example, Catalyst built additional field test units to be used at retail locations. Catalyst and MESH associates were on hand at each pilot retail location to ensure a smooth launch.

Launching a new, complex product for Heinz.

National Debut: See the REMIX in action in this Today with Hoda & Jenna segment!

The World Takes Notice

Further national media coverage of the REMIX confirmed that Heinz succeeded in making waves in the food service industry, further cementing their reputation as an American icon, with an eye on innovation.

The Heinz ReMix wasn’t just a product launch—it was proof that bold ideas can come to life with the right team. Catalyst helped transform a complex vision into an intuitive, functional experience that redefines customer interaction in foodservice.

Imagine what we can build together next.

National media covered the Launching of this complex product on a hard deadline.