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.

4. Reduce movement of an Input (People, Purchases or Capital)

Reduce movement of both people and ICDs:
Use direct shipping

No.	Industry SIC	Year	Notes
1	4513	2004	Next year, DHL's air and ocean division will begin marketing a "warehouse on the water." One of its customers is Gear for Sports, which custom monograms baseball hats and sweatshirts for American colleges. The goods will move from the firm's Guangzhou factory floor, across the ocean through U.S. Customs. Then they will be broken up into shipments of one or two cartons and sent overland to companies from Oregon to Florida, eliminating a stop at a Gear warehouse in Kansas. Gear for Sports has been flying goods on UPS planes. The ocean ground service will take longer and save the clients money and headaches.
2	3711	2004	Toyota has spent the last six years revamping its ordering, manufacturing, and distribution to make it easier for dealers and customers to make changes right before production. After the distribution change, Toyota had to overhaul certain manufacturing processes. The biggest involves painting. So Toyota installed a new set of robots that use individual cartridges of paint which don't require cleaning when a different car color is requested. Cartridges are expensive, but the change made the paint shop more efficient. It took 20 tasks out of the line and 2.1 hours out of the 22 person-hours it takes to build a vehicle. Net savings: $29 per vehicle, or $2.5 million a year.
3	5600	1993	Levi Strauss ships directly to Designs' 111 stores, so there are no warehouses or distribution centers.
4	5941	1996	Orders are automatically transmitted to suppliers, who ship to stores directly. Eliminates need for a distribution center.
5	5941	1996	Sports Authority has the highest inventory turnover and sales per store of all the superstore chains. It keeps a tight rein on inventory growth, and most of its suppliers ship their products directly to the stores, eliminating central distribution.

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