Reduce Unique ICDs by Redesigning the Product or the Process

The objective of this activity is to reduce the number of ICDs by reducing the occurrence of an ICD in producing a unit of Output, or by reducing the number of separate ICDs used in the Output. A unique ICD is one of the key activities in the work center's contribution to the final product (O). It is separate and distinct from any other activity in the work center. For example, the fastening of a part onto a subassembly and a quality control check of the subassembly would be unique ICDs.

B. Redesign the process of producing the ICD or Output

Change the process used to produce the ICD or Output to eliminate activities.

3. Automate an ICD

Warnings and advice

No.	Industry SIC	Year	Notes
1	0	1986	Author says changes in manufacturing structure and technology are far more powerful than focusing on the efficiency of factory workers.
2	0	1996	Electronic commerce can eliminate paper, and eliminate time spent re-keying info into different computers & correcting the resulting errors. E-commerce can slash the cost of processing a purchase order from $150 to as little as $25.
3	0	2002	U.S. companies are now spending more and more to improve their automated customer service. Now more than ever, it's harder for customers to reach real people. U.S. companies spent $150 billion to maintain call centers and are starting to hide the "zero" option (allows customers to reach reps) because labor costs more than robots.
4	0	2004	In today's cut-throat world, companies are fighting to say ahead by cutting costs. Even getting new technology is only half a step. Executives soon learned that they also had to completely rethink how they went about doing work to get the most use out of that technology. It also takes loads of additional investment in worker training and in reorganizing practices like sharing information with suppliers or tracking inventories. For every dollar that companies invest in technology, they have to invest an additional $5 to $10 in this kind of reorganization to get a longer-term cost-cutting payoff from technology. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Dell Inc. some of the most effective cost cutters.
5	2000	2004	In studying the trade off between service quality and costs, seven of the companies surveyed succeeded in holding down costs and maintaining high customer service levels but almost a dozen failed in both categories. Information technology had no direct effect on the manufacturers' performance and the outsourcing of logistics operations or a company's size didn't either.
6	2844	2004	Avon expanded its cosmetics business globally by rebuilding its manufacturing and transportation infrastructure from top to bottom. The company installed a supply chain and scheduling system to support planning and coordination across the region. To manage the growing complexity of the business, it put into place a regional planning group to make decisions about service levels, inventory, and costs based on a bird's-eye view of the whole supply chain.
7	3523	1986	Deere has become somewhat disillusioned with its flexible manufacturing system. It found itself paying for the ability to produce many different parts when all it needed was a few. Now, Deere is building simpler and less costly manufacturing cells–a series of machines committed not to endless diversity, but to families of similar parts.
8	3571	2003	A supply chain includes distribution and logistics in its broadest sense, in its grandest aspirations it contemplates having a customer's order trigger an instantaneous response in every ingredient.
9	3577	2004	A rigorous statistics-based method known as Lean Six Sigma enabled Xerox to find and fix myriad quality problems, reducing operating costs for Xerox and its customers. Software for translating technical manuals into foreign languages couldn't cope with some of the engineering jargon. Spotting and eradicating problem phrases led to faster translations, fewer errors, and savings of up to $1 million.
10	4512	2004	Serving customers over the internet has saved airlines roughly $10-$15 per booking. Nonetheless, Web-based channels facilitate the price transparency that at some airlines, makes the average online fare an estimated $50-$100 lower than that of a ticket purchased through other channels.
11	5331	2007	As rivals began to close the operating cost gap, Wal-Mart planned to use sophisticated radio-activated tags to reduce labor and inventory costs. However, the move has failed to save money and has irritated suppliers who are stuck with the cost of buying, programming and applying the tags. The product is designed to allow stores and warehouses to scan and track products quickly.
12	6021	2004	Cash incentives for internet bill pay are being offered by banks to build their online businesses. Online operations are viewed as key to cutting costs and retaining customers. Online bankers tend to make fewer calls to call centers and opt out of paper statements, saving in administrative costs. Citigroup's Citibank offered as much as $200 to new online bill-paying customers. Wells Fargo customers who are new to the service can receive $10 if they pay one bill by January while E*Trade Financial is paying $25 to customers who pay at least two bills online.
13	6300	2003	The lean team also identified other JPF operations that could benefit from the new system, based on each operation's significance to advisers, the magnitude of the new system's impact, and the unit's strategic importance. JPF will not introduce automation in an area until lean principles have been applied and the new process has stabilized.

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