Which steps make the changeover long?
Every checklist logs how long each step took, so the Kaizen module shows which steps to attack.
Changeover Acceleration (SMED): Cut Changeover Time and Win Back Lost Capacity.
SMED software for faster changeovers: run each changeover as a digital checklist, get missing tools to the line fast, use step times to cut every setup, and let AI split a filmed changeover into internal and external tasks.
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What it answers
Four questions about your changeovers
Film one changeover on a phone, or run it from a checklist on a tablet. Either way you end up with step times to work from.
What can be done while the machine still runs?
The AI marks each task in a filmed changeover as internal or external and flags tasks that can run in parallel.
How do we get operators to run it the same way?
The shorter sequence becomes the changeover checklist that operators follow on a tablet at the line.
What is a faster setup worth?
Enter the hourly cost of downtime and the minutes saved, and the Kaizen module works out the annual savings.
The Capacity Drain
The true cost of inconsistent changeovers
Every idle minute during a changeover is lost output.
The chaos of paper
Tribal Knowledge
Setup times vary by shift because know-how lives in people's heads.
The Missing Tool Search
Fifteen minutes spent looking for a wrench while the line stands idle.
First-Run Scrap
Wrong settings scrap the first parts of every run.
The LeanSuite solution
Standardized Execution
Visual steps mean every operator runs the changeover the same way.
Instant Escalation
Alert tooling and materials teams from the tablet so the changeover doesn't stall.
Data-Driven Improvement
Baseline every setup, aim Kaizen events at the slow steps and prove the annual savings.
HOW IT WORKS
Three modules, one SMED workflow
Lean Creator runs the changeover checklist, Issue Management flags missing items, and Kaizen & Projects turns step times into improvement projects.
Lean Creator
Issue Management
Kaizen & Projects
LEAN CREATOR
Digitize & Standardize
Digital step-by-step checklists
Operators follow visual changeover steps on a tablet, and prep work moves from "internal" to "external" setup.
Drag-and-drop checklist builder with photo & video attachments per step
Pre-changeover trigger: auto-assign prep tasks 30 min before line stops
Role-based views: operators see simple steps, supervisors see the full audit trail
LeanAI converts existing PDF/Excel checklists into digital forms automatically
ISSUE MANAGEMENT
Escalate & Resolve
Tag missing tools mid-changeover
Missing a die or a 10mm wrench? Operators tag it from the tablet and the right team is alerted.
One-tap issue from the active checklist, without switching apps
Instant push notification to the right team: maintenance, tooling, or materials
Built-in severity (Critical, High, Medium) with routing by rule
Unresolved issues flow into the Kaizen backlog for root-cause work
KAIZEN & PROJECTS
Analyze & Improve
Data-driven time reduction
Every checklist logs how long each step took, so the Kaizen module shows which steps to attack.
Per-step timing shows which tasks make the changeover long
Financial validation: enter machine cost per hour and get the annual savings
Spaghetti diagram builder: map operator motion to redesign workstation layout
One-click before/after reports for leadership review
AI SMED analysis from video
Film one changeover and let AI sort every task
Vision AI splits a filmed changeover into tasks, marks each internal or external, and proposes a shorter sequence.
Film the changeover
Record from the last good part of the old run to the first good part of the new one, on a phone.
Upload and tag
Drop the video into LeanSuite, pick SMED and tag the machine.
Get the internal/external split
The AI tags each task internal or external, keeps the clip behind every call and flags tasks that can run in parallel.
Publish the target sequence
Take the proposed shorter sequence into the Lean Creator changeover checklist that operators run at the line.
What you get back
- Automatic internal/external classification
- Parallelization opportunities flagged
- Target vs. baseline changeover time
- A clip behind every call
- The new sequence as the changeover checklist
- Time and motion data from the same footage
THE LEAN SCIENCE
Moving Internal to External Setup
SMED converts tasks done with the machine stopped into tasks done while it runs.
Pre-Staging Workflows
A "Pre-Changeover Checklist" starts 30 minutes before the run ends, so tools are staged while it runs.
Spaghetti Diagrams
Map operator motion during a changeover in the Kaizen module and redesign the workstation on data.
From video to checklist
Who does what, in order
The AI does the sorting and the first draft. Your team decides what is right and runs it.
You
Film the changeover
A phone on the real changeover, from the last good part of the old run to the first good part of the new one.
You
Upload and tag
Drop the video into LeanSuite, pick SMED and tag the machine.
The AI
Drafts the split
Each task marked internal or external, with the clip behind every call and a shorter sequence proposed.
You
Check, publish, run
Correct the draft, publish the sequence as the changeover checklist, then run it at the line and watch the step times.
Who it is for
What each role gets
Operators
Simple visual steps on a tablet, and a one-tap way to tag a missing tool without leaving the checklist.
Supervisors
The full audit trail of each changeover and the step times, so slow shifts and slow steps show up.
Continuous improvement and industrial engineers
A drafted internal/external split from video, per-step timing and Kaizen projects aimed at the slow steps.
Plant and operations leaders
The annual savings of a faster setup, and before/after reports for review.
Honest limits
What it can and cannot do
What it does
- Splits a changeover video you record and upload into tasks, marked internal or external, with the clip behind every call.
- Runs the changeover as a timed digital checklist and logs how long each step took.
- Sends missing-tool issues from the tablet to the right team.
What it does not
- It does not watch a live camera or send alerts at the machine: the video analysis works on files you upload.
- It does not decide for you: your team reviews the AI split before it becomes the checklist.
- It does not change the setup itself. People still do the work; the software shows where the time goes.
PROVEN ON THE FACTORY FLOOR
Built on the factory floor. Ready for every plant.
We built LeanSuite for the problems plants face running production lines every day, from the first shift huddle to multi-site rollouts.
SOC 2 Type 1 report
First module live in under a week
Unlimited users per facility
99.5% monthly uptime commitment
FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions
SMED (single-minute exchange of die) cuts changeover time by moving setup tasks outside the machine stop and streamlining the rest, aiming for under ten minutes.
Operators run a timed digital checklist and tag missing tools from the same screen; Kaizen projects then target the slowest steps.
Yes. LeanSuite's AI SMED changeover analysis splits a filmed changeover into internal and external tasks and proposes a shorter sequence.
No. You record the changeover and upload the video, and the AI analyses that file. The checklist side runs on a tablet at the line.
No. You can start with the digital checklist and its step times. Film a changeover when you want the AI to sort the tasks into internal and external.
Yes. Upload an existing Excel or PDF checklist and Lean AI converts it into an interactive digital form.
Yes. Daily Standard Work can schedule a checklist to an asset, so whoever runs that machine sees it.
Changeover time hits OEE Availability; LeanSuite records exact start and end times for your KPI dashboards.
Enter the hourly cost of downtime and the minutes saved in the Kaizen module, and it calculates annualized savings.
FREE RESOURCES
Free templates and tools
Not ready for software yet? Start with these free resources.
- SMED changeover worksheetChangeover steps with times, internal or external, what can move, ideas and before/after totals.
- Changeover checklist25 checks for every changeover, a record of planned and actual times, and a log of changeover time against target.
- EPEI and batch size calculatorHow often each part can come round on a shared machine (EPEI) and how big each batch must be, from demand, cycle times and changeovers, now and after SMED.
- Changeover matrix templateA from-to matrix of changeover minutes with the clean each transition needs (allergen, colour, format), and a weekly planner that totals the order and suggests a shorter one.
- SMED changeover calculatorTime saved by moving changeover steps from internal to external, capacity freed per week and the smaller batch it allows.
Film your slowest changeover first
Book a demo and see the internal/external split built from a changeover video, then run as a checklist. Vision AI is priced separately.