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.

A. Redesign the product

Reduce ICDs by redesigning the product or the components of the product. Any redesign of the product or its components implies that the resulting product, after the redesign, would be acceptable to customers.

3. Reduce or change components

Improve quality to reduce later spending

No.	Industry SIC	Year	Notes
1	3572	1993	Quantum and MKE collaborated on a new design that gives its disk drive a lower price and better reliability. In most drives the circuitboard holds about 18 semiconductors inserted front and back. By packing more power into each semiconductor, they reduced the number by half and can fit all the chips on a single side of the board. The new practice has cut the number of components by 30% and halved production time. With fewer parts, the drives break down less often.
2	3600	1987	Long-life bulbs cost 30% more and burn less brightly than standard bulbs, but last 50% longer.
3	3630	1997	Currently only 3% of the materials purchased for appliances are electronics, but that will rise as manufacturers use electronic components to replace mechanical parts, resulting in lower cost and more efficient appliances.
4	3639	1987	By automating extensively and adopting a new design featuring a tough plastic tub with a 10-year warranty against chipping, GE slashed its reject rate by 80%.
5	3639	1991	A European electric appliance manufacturer reduced its manufacturing workforce by 35% by standardizing some materials to the highest necessary standards of the product range and automating the processes that use them. The additional material costs were more than offset by increased productivity.
6	5200	2007	Researchers have found that in-person training is more effective, especially for sales. Home Depot relies on online training for cashiers as it is faster and cheaper. However, training for the sales floor has proven less successful. As a result, Home Depot has begun recruiting experienced home repair professionals to train new employees. Columbia Sportswear and Qwest also rely heavily on in-person training.

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