9. Reduce Acquisition Lead Times: For either manufactured or purchased product, any reduction in lead time, whether supplier lead time, transportation time or receiving cycle time, provides a one-time, permanent reduction in cycle stock inventory proportional to the throughput level of the SKU and the degree of lead time reduction. In a similar manner, reducing lead time variability and increasing inbound unit-, SKU-, or order-fill rates both increase supply reliability and reduce safety stock inventory for a given customer service level.