Reduce the Units of Input Not Producing Output
Reduce units of Input (I) available but not producing Intermediate Cost Drivers (ICDs). This action makes Input levels more directly variable with the quantity of the ICD by reducing the amount of the available Input that is wasted or idle. For example, an employee (I) might produce one subassembly (ICD) per day. During that day, the employee spends a total of one hour waiting for parts for the subassembly. If the Company could eliminate that one lost hour of the employee's work day by providing parts in a more timely manner, the Company could reduce the number of employees (I) needed to produce the same subassembly (ICD) by 1/8th.
F. Speed the Process
5.
Centralize planning for product to reduce communication delays
| No. | Industry SIC | Year | Notes |
| 1 | 2844 | 2004 | Avon expanded its cosmetics business globally by rebuilding its manufacturing and transportation infrastructure from top to bottom. The company recently conducted a collaborative design workshop that included suppliers, a design firm, and representatives from marketing and the supply chain – 40 people in a room working to design a product. Within 3 days, the team created a stunning package that was appealing and minimized costs at each step of the supply chain – for instance, optimizing the number of bottles in each pallet and the number of bottles in each box, increasing the number of bottle boxes in each truck and saving the company hundreds of thousands of dollars in transportation costs each year. |
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