1-18.13 Process Improvement Process improvement is a formal process for the Postal Service and its suppliers to understand support processes, monitor execution, and identify opportunities to reduce the TCO. While this may appear to be counter to a supplier’s maximization of profit, performance improvement goals and incentives should be considered to provide opportunities for shared benefits. Some examples of where improvements can be found are: Failure analysis — examining why failures occur and under what circumstances. Reduction or elimination of failure will increase the availability of product, reduce usage, and reduce the maintenance and replenishment costs. Cycle-time analysis — documenting the time processes in the supply chain and the wait time between processes. Reduction in cycle times can reduce the time in production, time to the customer, and the amount of inventory required. Cost analysis — understanding what drives the costs or the use of the products. Cost drivers can arise at any point in the supply chain, from raw materials through manufacture to use by the ultimate customer.