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.

5.
Reduce errors in process

No.	Industry SIC	Year	Notes
1	0	1987	The typical factory invests a staggering 20-25% of its operating budget in finding and fixing mistakes. As many as 1/4 of all factory hands in the average factory don't produce anything–they just rework things that weren't done right the first time.
2	2844	2004	Avon expanded its cosmetics business globally by rebuilding its manufacturing and transportation infrastructure from top to bottom. Education and training was another critical piece to Avon's transformation. The company quickly saw that the employees' skills needed to be upgraded and teamed up with Britain's Cranfield University to create a curriculum that taught the employees the competencies needed for the jobs. To introduce new thinking, the program brought in experienced supply chain managers from leading companies in a range of industries. Avon plans to repeat the program every year with new groups of people to ensure that everyone in the organization understands what a world-class supply chain looks like.
3	3751	1998	Graphite bikes had high prices, in part, because of carbon fiber's tendency to break apart, leaving manufacturers exposed to expensive liability suits. But computer design systems capable of predicting failures have resulted in more durable bikes.
4	5511	2006	Used-car specialist CarMax has been adding stores at a steady pace. CarMax's biggest advantage over rivals is its database. Circuit City Stores started CarMax in 1993. It now has 12 years worth of data telling it which vehicles in which colors and with which options sells best in which markets. That's one key to its success. In order to have a no-haggle model, you need to have a lot of information so you can generate a lot of inventory turns.
5	6324	2008	Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and other private insurers are starting to refuse payment for hospital errors. Hospital Tenet Healthcare recently signed contracts with United Health and WellPoint to get bonus payments for better patient outcomes.
6	7372	2004	In order to test a market, Sony would produce a small batch of 5,000 copies and test it in the market because they had the ability to manufacture in small batches and ramp up this manufacturing should it be necessary to do so. This was important since some hits in Japan would fail in the US or Europe and vice versa. A successful title could sell two million copies at $50 each so the cost of testing was small compared to the same cost in cartridge technology. This CD approach allowed Sony to have a more intelligent estimate of demand and shipping requirements.
7	8051	2001	In order to update its services, American Healthways has invested $40 million in high-tech gear like clinical information systems that give nurses guidelines to follow when calling patients.

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