diff --git a/docling_serve/app.py b/docling_serve/app.py
index ff8b1a5..1ea5170 100644
--- a/docling_serve/app.py
+++ b/docling_serve/app.py
@@ -99,7 +99,8 @@ async def lifespan(app: FastAPI):
     scratch_dir = get_scratch()
 
     # Warm up processing cache
-    await orchestrator.warm_up_caches()
+    if docling_serve_settings.load_models_at_boot:
+        await orchestrator.warm_up_caches()
 
     # Start the background queue processor
     queue_task = asyncio.create_task(orchestrator.process_queue())
diff --git a/docling_serve/engines/async_local/orchestrator.py b/docling_serve/engines/async_local/orchestrator.py
index 51a8892..63417ed 100644
--- a/docling_serve/engines/async_local/orchestrator.py
+++ b/docling_serve/engines/async_local/orchestrator.py
@@ -3,6 +3,8 @@ import logging
 import uuid
 from typing import Optional
 
+from docling.datamodel.base_models import InputFormat
+
 from docling_serve.datamodel.convert import ConvertDocumentsOptions
 from docling_serve.datamodel.task import Task, TaskSource
 from docling_serve.docling_conversion import get_converter, get_pdf_pipeline_opts
@@ -54,4 +56,5 @@ class AsyncLocalOrchestrator(BaseAsyncOrchestrator):
     async def warm_up_caches(self):
         # Converter with default options
         pdf_format_option = get_pdf_pipeline_opts(ConvertDocumentsOptions())
-        get_converter(pdf_format_option)
+        converter = get_converter(pdf_format_option)
+        converter.initialize_pipeline(InputFormat.PDF)
diff --git a/docling_serve/settings.py b/docling_serve/settings.py
index 13ce96c..6811c70 100644
--- a/docling_serve/settings.py
+++ b/docling_serve/settings.py
@@ -41,6 +41,7 @@ class DoclingServeSettings(BaseSettings):
     scratch_path: Optional[Path] = None
     single_use_results: bool = True
     result_removal_delay: float = 300  # 5 minutes
+    load_models_at_boot: bool = True
     options_cache_size: int = 2
     enable_remote_services: bool = False
     allow_external_plugins: bool = False
diff --git a/docs/configuration.md b/docs/configuration.md
index 487c8c1..3129230 100644
--- a/docs/configuration.md
+++ b/docs/configuration.md
@@ -47,6 +47,7 @@ THe following table describes the options to configure the Docling Serve app.
 |  | `DOCLING_SERVE_MAX_NUM_PAGES` |  | The maximum number of pages for a document to be processed. |
 |  | `DOCLING_SERVE_MAX_FILE_SIZE` |  | The maximum file size for a document to be processed. |
 |  | `DOCLING_SERVE_MAX_SYNC_WAIT` | `120` | Max number of seconds a synchronous endpoint is waiting for the task completion. |
+|  | `DOCLING_SERVE_LOAD_MODELS_AT_BOOT` | `True` | If enabled, the models for the default options will be loaded at boot. |
 |  | `DOCLING_SERVE_OPTIONS_CACHE_SIZE` | `2` | How many DocumentConveter objects (including their loaded models) to keep in the cache. |
 |  | `DOCLING_SERVE_CORS_ORIGINS` | `["*"]` | A list of origins that should be permitted to make cross-origin requests. |
 |  | `DOCLING_SERVE_CORS_METHODS` | `["*"]` | A list of HTTP methods that should be allowed for cross-origin requests. |