This work aims to implement and analyze the effect of the Single Minute Exchange of Die (SMED) implementation in the bean packaging operation in a company in east Minas Gerais, Brazil. Design/Methodology/Approach: The research methodology used was action research. Two cycles of action research were conducted; the first to carry out phase one of SMED, and the second to execute phases two and three. Originality/Research gap: There are few studies on the application of Lean Manufacturing tools in agroindustry. Some works present case studies, mainly in the food supply chain aiming to fill this gap. Regarding SMED applied in agribusiness, no work was found. Key statistical results: The implementation of this methodology allowed the reduction of setup time by around 58%, the distance travelled by operators in the process by approximately 50%, in addition to gains in a production capacity of 14%. Practical Implications: It is concluded that the application of the methodology caused an increase in the company’s productivity, as it was possible to obtain gains in productive capacity without changing the amount of hours worked or the number of employees involved in the production process. Limitations of the investigation: This methodology was applied only once and the challenges encountered were not documented.

This paper aims the planning, construction and modeling of a low-cost multivariable level plant for didactic purposes. The developed model has two pumps that feed four tanks coupled to each other. Between the tanks and the pumps, there are inlet and outlet valves that can change the system dynamics according to its opening configuration. To automate the pumps and read the instrumentation used, the Arduino microcontroller was chosen because it is a model of great use in the academic environment and of easy parameterization. For sensing, the HC-SR04 ultrasonic sensor was chosen, which already has native compatibility with the microcontroller. In order to validate the constructed plant, it was necessary to identify its model, using the empirical step response method for this purpose. In this way, this work has both qualitative and quantitative characteristics, since the planning and construction of the didactic plant involved an exploratory research of the problem, and then the modeling and simulation method was applied to obtain the mathematical model of the plant. Finally, an experimental research was conducted, comparing the data obtained in the real plant with the model data for validation. Having completed all research stages, the work result is a didactic plant with good linearity, able to provide implementation of level control strategies of coupled tanks and to assist in teaching and learning subjects that involve concepts of dynamic systems, besides multivariable systems identification and control.

Most of innovation studies and researches are not related to innovation measurement and, in general, it only addresses some innovative actions in terms of products, services or processes. This paper addresses the difficulties in researching innovation and Open Innovation (OI) performance metrics through an exploratory literature research followed by a survey conducted with small technology-based enterprises incubated at important Brazilian industrial and technological centers. It is well known that for many small business entrepreneurs and managers, the idea of OI practices are still restricted to large corporations. Against this idea, this work proposes an understanding of these OI practices, besides an analysis of its measurement. The indicators proposed by this work developed with the support of the statistical technique of factorial analysis, has been proved to be the most significant to measure OI at this kind of company and, with them, it has been possible to understand that small companies can successfully use OI and, although it is not common today, it should be encouraged. This study’s conclusions can be useful for researchers and Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) interested in joining or increasing their OI practices.