The mapping of C programs into files introduces inefficiencies in the build process. Three quantifiable inefficiencies are: compile times too long, too many builds triggered, and, ironically, too few builds triggered. Mincpp solves these problems by replacing the C preprocessor in the compiler driver. Mincpp uses a C parser to minimize its output to just that needed, with all spurious source code omitted. The result is faster compile times, semantically unnecessary builds short circuited, and "correct by construction" file dependency generation. The result is a new development tool that leverages developer productivity by speeding up the edit-compile-link-debug cycle. Mincpp is portable to any system and works with any C compiler.