I took my afternoon coffee break Monday in a most unlikely spot, surrounded by aisles of glass enclosed handguns and other firearms. The cup of cappuccino I enjoyed was served up at the café at the massive H&H Shooting Sports complex in far western Oklahoma City.

So, what drew me to a gun range for my afternoon cup of java?

H&H has become the first Oklahoma beta test site for a software controlled, automatic dispensing espresso machine developed by an i2E client called Perk Dynamics.

Co-founded by Jerry Leeman, John Sharpley and Dillon Sharpley, Shawnee-based Perk Dynamics has married point-of-sale, touch screen software with the latest espresso brewing technology to create a stand-alone device that can brew a cup of coffee, latte, cappuccino, mocha, espresso shot or hot chocolate to the customer’s order and process his credit card information.

Leeman rolled a portable espresso machine into the i2E offices for a demonstration a few weeks ago and was swarmed by my colleagues lining up for a free coffee.  I stopped by for a mocha and demonstration of the software and came away intrigued by the possibilities.

So, when I heard that the first stand-alone Perk Dynamics espresso machine was operating at H&H, I had to stop in for a cup.  Zack Wynn, who works in the H&H café, told me the machine had been operating only for about a week or so and had been well received.

Since the H&H café operates with employees behind the counter, the Perk Dynamics machine operates a little differently than it might if it were a stand-alone unit at, say, a hospital waiting room, like it is in Lake Charles, La. I placed my order with Zack’s co-worker, paid for it and received a receipt with a bar code on it.

Zack directed me to the Perk Dynamics machine where an attached scanner  read the bar code. The software read my order and asked me to confirm it by touching a button on the screen.

Within seconds the cup was filled with mocha goodness.  Bottom line, the experience was painless and the coffee was delicious.

As I stood there drinking the coffee, I envisioned Perk Dynamics-operated espresso machines in other places as unlikely as H&H Shooting Sports. Libraries, for instance.  Church lobbies. Convenience stores.  Automotive dealers. Student centers at universities. How about a high quality espresso while waiting in line to renew your driver’s license?

It could happen.