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 repetitive task:
Reach decisions based on rules

No.	Industry SIC	Year	Notes
1	0	2007	Products from Accurent can help retailers manage their real estate. Partnered with MapInfo, they can identify optimal store sites in optimal markets, reducing costs.
2	3312	2004	Posco has plenty of slick information technology at work too. The company has spent $179 million to network its 80 Korean plants so that it can take orders online and coordinate production. This mill-level customization helps push steel out the door faster, which enabled Posco to halve delivery times and slash inventories by 60%.
3	3663	1994	Motorola's orders come in from salesmen, and the data are digitized and flow to the assembly line. "Pick-and-place" robots select the right parts, then humans assemble the pagers. Often the order is complete within 80 minutes, and customers can often receive pagers that same day.
4	3674	1991	Killer software enhances productivity by automatically shutting off when problems emerge. For example, they scan purchase orders for delivery dates that haven't been met, then shut off until the problem is solved.
5	3724	1993	To speed communications, Derco installed a computer system that sends electronic memos to employees, faxes to customers, and notices to suppliers that miss deadlines.
6	5600	1993	Designs' cash registers are tied into an automated inventory system, LeviLink, by which core items are automatically replenished.
7	6021	2006	JPMorgan is making huge investments in information technology. Retail customers can already see the improvements. JPMorgan launched the Blink credit card, which lets users hold the card in front of the reader instead of swiping, signing, entering a PIN, or handing the card to a store employee. And approval for a home equity loan now takes two hours, vs. two days a few years ago. JP Morgan is getting a $1 billion annual budget for technology. Investments in the past two years have focused on building sophisticated trading platforms for institutional investors and hedge fund clients that require high-end trading analysis and risk modeling. JP Morgan has also hired quantum physicists to create algorithmic models that speed up trading.
8	6021	2007	In order to prevent foreclosure, many banks are approaching customers who are at risk of default on their home loans before they miss a payment. Bank of America uses computer models to predict which borrowers may run into trouble. This increases the opportunity to solve problems. Borrowers who miss a payment because of illness or job loss may be able to add the unpaid debt to their loan balance and borrowers with high interest rates may be able to refinance for several more years.
9	6141	1996	Capital One’s customer database calculates the present net value of a customer’s future business, given changes in price. This allows Customer Service Reps to know how low they can go in changing a price for a customer.
10	6211	2005	E*Trade uses a sophisticated proprietary transaction enabling technology to automate traditionally labor intensive transactions.
11	6300	2005	The personal insurance lines led the industry in creating automated decision-making. Now this approach is moving into the more complex small commercial lines. Automated decision-making requires that risk guidelines be standardized. The result is a business rule engine technology that allows carriers to translate the expert judgment of underwriters in the algorithms that can be modified without rewriting core systems. Allstate and Progressive are among the carriers leading this trend. They process up to 95% of their applications using automated decision-making.
12	6512	1999	Electronic kiosks are popping up in mini-malls. Taubman Centers, Inc., a mall developer, launched Center Linq in six of its 28 upscale properties. The customer answers a questionnaire and then receives targeted information on mall sales.
13	7370	2000	QuickBooks users spend $500 billion annually, but are expensive to reach through traditional marketing channels. Intelisys will get around that by using the Internet. The Intelisys software automates the purchase-approval process freeing up the purchasing area.
14	7372	2002	For years most production machines on factory floors have had sensors that sound alarms when excessive temperatures, pressures, and speeds are reached. Now there's a clever system that warns when machines are losing money for the company. Beeps and flashing lights alert an operator when he mixes a batch of chemicals in an improper proportion, say, or uses too much energy in a process.
15	7372	2004	Product life-cycle management (PLM) software is being embraced as a way of using software to manage a product from dawn to dusk of its life: from creation through development, manufacturing, testing, and then maintenance in the field. PLM lets product modifications be converted automatically from business goals into design specifications. For instance, and aircraft's mission requirement, such as its maximum flight time, can be linked to specific design specifications. PLM software can update wingspan dimensions, the number of ribs and stringers, and their geometry. This new capability allows aircraft engine builders like Pratt & Whitney Canada to collaborate much more closely with their customers over design specifications.
16	7379	2004	To stay competitive, companies are finding new ways to automate operations, reuse technology, and streamline processes. Inflow Inc. is responding to labor-cost pressures by dramatically reducing the work required to host Web sites and other applications for more than 800 corporate customers. The company uses software designed to automatically set up servers and patch program glitches in a fraction of the time it would take to do so manually. At any given time: only two or three people are running 20,000 sq. ft facilities packed to the rafters with humming equipment

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