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

Write software to automate a repetative task:
Translate

No.	Industry SIC	Year	Notes
1	0	2007	Voice recognition technology, like that provided by Naturally Speaking, is frequently used by those in the legal and medical fields. Users can record using the technology without having it transcribed, which saves time and money.
2	7300	2007	Call centers are employing speech recognition technology to help process customer requests without human operators. Customers can purchase tickets without ever speaking to a human being. This can reduce the need for staff.
3	7372	2003	The VA medical center in Memphis has invested $277,000 in Dragon software to allow its doctors and nurses to dictate medical records into the computer network.
4	7379	2004	To stay competitive, companies are finding new ways to automate operations, reuse technology, and streamline processes. Wipro Technologies is automating the software-writing process and has even created programs to translate six European languages into English with 99% accuracy. No need for the army of translators.

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