What counts as the current changeover time?

Time from the last good part of the previous run to the first good part of the next, as the lean definition puts it. Count the whole window, not only the tool swap.

Is recovered time real savings?

It is capacity first. It becomes money when the freed machine hours are sold or used, so treat the dollar figure as the value of the recovered time.

Do I include machine time as well as labor?

Yes. A stopped machine still carries ownership and overhead cost, and the burden rate prices it. Add the machine rate to the loaded labor rate.

What if the change is already flat?

The minutes saved are zero, so recovered hours and annual savings are zero. The page reports the flat result rather than blocking, which shows the change buys nothing on time.

Tooling calculator

Changeover Reduction Calculator

Turn a shorter changeover into hours and dollars across a production year. Enter the current and future changeover minutes, the changeover count, the hourly rates, and the production weeks.

What this calculator does

Savings in labor and machine time from shortening a changeover, across a year of production.

Formula used

Minutes saved per changeover = current changeover − future changeover
Recovered hours per year = minutes saved / 60 x changeovers per week x production weeks
Annual savings = recovered hours x (labor rate + machine rate)
Changeover burden rate = labor rate + machine rate

Inputs explained

Current Changeover: Minutes from last good piece to first good piece today.
Future Changeover: Minutes the improved changeover should take.
Changeovers per Week: Changeovers scheduled in a production week.
Loaded Labor Rate: Loaded labor rate for the changeover crew.
Machine Rate: Machine burden rate while the changeover runs.
Production Weeks: Production weeks in the year, after shutdowns and holidays.

How to use the result

Best suited to justifying a quick-change fixture project, pricing a setup reduction workshop, scheduling more changeovers per week.
Recovered hours are capacity, not guaranteed output or revenue. Excludes training, tooling, and one-time costs of the changeover project.

Current U.S. benchmarks

As of Sep 2026, average hourly earnings in U.S. manufacturing are $30.21 (BLS), up 3.4% from a year earlier. Burdened shop rates typically run 1.3 to 1.8 times earnings once benefits and overhead are loaded.
The producer price index for steel mill products stands at 381.162 (BLS, Aug 2026), up 23.4% from a year earlier. Quotes priced off last quarter's material cost miss this move.
The U.S. has 17,154 machine shops establishments employing about 223,303 workers (Census County Business Patterns, 2023).

Common questions

What counts as the current changeover time? Time from the last good part of the previous run to the first good part of the next, as the lean definition puts it. Count the whole window, not only the tool swap.
Is recovered time real savings? It is capacity first. It becomes money when the freed machine hours are sold or used, so treat the dollar figure as the value of the recovered time.
Do I include machine time as well as labor? Yes. A stopped machine still carries ownership and overhead cost, and the burden rate prices it. Add the machine rate to the loaded labor rate.
What if the change is already flat? The minutes saved are zero, so recovered hours and annual savings are zero. The page reports the flat result rather than blocking, which shows the change buys nothing on time.

Related guides

Running a Changeover Reduction Program That Pays

Last reviewed 2026-10-02.