Determining cost relationships
Midst ate Containers Inc. manufactures cans for the canned food industry. The operations manager of a can manufacturing operation wants to conduct a cost study investigating the relationship of tin content in the material (can stock) to the energy cost for enameling the cans. The enameling was necessary to prepare the cans for labeling. A higher percentage of tin content in the can stock increases the cost of material. The operations manager believed that a higher tin content in the can stock would reduce the amount of energy used in enameling. During the analysis period, the amount of tin content in the steel can stock was increased for every month, from April to September. The following operating reports were available from the controller:
Differences in materials unit costs were entirely related to the amount of tin content. In addition, inventory changes are negligible and are ignored in the analysis.
Interpret this information and report to the operations manager your recommendations with respect to tin content.
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Managerial Accounting
- The Chocolate Baker specializes in chocolate baked goods. The firm has long assessed the profitability of a product line by comparing revenues to the cost of goods sold. However, Barry White, the firms new accountant, wants to use an activity-based costing system that takes into consideration the cost of the delivery person. Following are activity and cost information relating to two of Chocolate Bakers major products: Using activity-based costing, which of the following statements is correct? a. The muffins are 2,000 more profitable. b. The cheesecakes are 75 more profitable. c. The muffins are 1,925 more profitable. d. The muffins have a higher profitability as a percentage of sales and, therefore, are more advantageous.arrow_forwardAnalyzing process cost elements across product types Mystic Bottling Company bottles popular beverages in the Bottling Department. The beverages are produced by blending concentrate with water and sugar. The concentrate is purchased from a concentrate producer. The concentrate producer sets higher prices for the more popular concentrate flavors. A simplified Bottling Department cost of production report separating the cost of bottling the four flavors follows: Beginning and ending work in process inventories are negligible, so they are omitted from the cost of production report. The flavor changeover cost represents the cost of cleaning the bottling machines between production runs of different flavors. A production ran of a new flavor is produced after a flavor changeover from the previous flavor. Higher-demand flavors are produced in larger production runs, while smaller-demand flavors are produced in smaller production runs. Prepare a memo to the production manager, analyzing this comparative cost information. In your memo, provide recommendations for further action, along with supporting schedules showing the total cost per case and cost per case by cost element. Round supporting calculations to the nearest cent.arrow_forwardQuincy Farms is a producer of items made from farm products that are distributed to supermarkets. For many years, Quincys products have had strong regional sales on the basis of brand recognition. However, other companies have been marketing similar products in the area, and price competition has become increasingly important. Doug Gilbert, the companys controller, is planning to implement a standard costing system for Quincy and has gathered considerable information from his coworkers on production and direct materials requirements for Quincys products. Doug believes that the use of standard costing will allow Quincy to improve cost control and make better operating decisions. Quincys most popular product is strawberry jam. The jam is produced in 10-gallon batches, and each batch requires six quarts of good strawberries. The fresh strawberries are sorted by hand before entering the production process. Because of imperfections in the strawberries and spoilage, one quart of strawberries is discarded for every four quarts of acceptable berries. Three minutes is the standard direct labor time required for sorting strawberries in order to obtain one quart of strawberries. The acceptable strawberries are then processed with the other ingredients: processing requires 12 minutes of direct labor time per batch. After processing, the jam is packaged in quart containers. Doug has gathered the following information from Joe Adams, Quincys cost accountant, relative to processing the strawberry jam. a. Quincy purchases strawberries at a cost of 0.80 per quart. All other ingredients cost a total of 0.45 per gallon. b. Direct labor is paid at the rate of 9.00 per hour. c. The total cost of direct material and direct labor required to package the jam is 0.38 per quart. Joe has a friend who owns a strawberry farm that has been losing money in recent years. Because of good crops, there has been an oversupply of strawberries, and prices have dropped to 0.50 per quart. Joe has arranged for Quincy to purchase strawberries from his friends farm in hopes that the 0.80 per quart will put his friends farm in the black. Required: 1. Discuss which coworkers Doug probably consulted to set standards. What factors should Doug consider in establishing the standards for direct materials and direct labor? 2. Develop the standard cost sheet for the prime costs of a 10-gallon batch of strawberry jam. 3. Citing the specific standards of the IMA Statement of Ethical Professional Practice described in Chapter 1, explain why Joes behavior regarding the cost information provided to Doug is unethical. (CMA adapted)arrow_forward
- Communication The controller of New Wave Sounds Inc. prepared the following product profitability report for management, using activity-based costing methods for allocating both the factory overhead and the marketing expenses. As such, the controller has confidence in the accuracy of this report. In addition, the controller interviewed the vice president of marketing, who provided the following insight into the companys three products: The home theater speakers are an older product that is highly recognized in the marketplace. The wireless speakers are a new product that was just recently launched. The wireless headphones are a new technology that has no competition in the marketplace, and it is hoped that they will become an important future addition to the companys product portfolio. Initial indications are that the product is well received by customers. The controller believes that the manufacturing costs for all three products are in line with expectations. Based on the information provided: 1. Calculate the ratio of gross profit to sales and the ratio of operating income to sales for each product. 2. Write a brief (one-page) memo using the product profitability report and the calculations in (a) to make recommendations to management with respect to strategies for the three products.arrow_forwardChocolate Bars, Inc. (CBI), manufactures creamy deluxe chocolate candy bars. The firm has developed three distinct products: Almond Dream, Krispy Krackle, and Creamy Crunch. CBI is profitable, but management is quite concerned about the profitability of each product and the product costing methods currently employed. In particular, management questions whether the overhead allocation base of direct labor-hours accurately reflects the costs incurred during the production process of each product. In reviewing cost reports with the marketing manager, Steve Hoffman, who is the cost accountant, notices that Creamy Crunch appears exceptionally profitable and that Almond Dream appears to be produced at a loss. This surprises both him and the manager, and after much discussion, they are convinced that the cost accounting system is at fault and that Almond Dream is performing very well at the current market price. Steve decides to hire Jean Sharpe, a management consultant, to study the…arrow_forwardChocolate Bars, Inc. (CBI), manufactures creamy deluxe chocolate candy bars. The firm has developed three distinct products: Almond Dream, Krispy Krackle, and Creamy Crunch. CBI is profitable, but management is quite concerned about the profitability of each product and the product costing methods currently employed. In particular, management questions whether the overhead allocation base of direct labor-hours accurately reflects the costs incurred during the production process of each product. In reviewing cost reports with the marketing manager, Steve Hoffman, who is the cost accountant, notices that Creamy Crunch appears exceptionally profitable and that Almond Dream appears to be produced at a loss. This surprises both him and the manager, and after much discussion, they are convinced that the cost accounting system is at fault and that Almond Dream is performing very well at the current market price. Steve decides to hire Jean Sharpe, a management consultant, to study the…arrow_forward
- Engineering LLC is facing a cost issues in their production department. The Production manager of Al Maha Engineering LLC wants to adopt standard costing in their company to tackle cost issues. He wants know the meaning of standard cost of a product. Which of the following statement is the meaning of standard cost of a product? a. The average unit cost of products produced during a particular period. b. The average unit cost of products produced in the previous period. c. The unit cost of products incurred at the start of a particular period. d. The planned unit cost of products produced during a particular period.arrow_forwardDecision Making Pix Paper Inc. produces photographic paper for printing digital images. One of the processes for this operation is a coating (solvent spreading) operation, where chemicals are coated onto paper stock. There has been some concern about the cost performance of this operation. As a result, you have begun an investigation. You first discover that all materials and conversion prices have been stable for the last six months. Thus, increases in prices for inputs are not an explanation for increasing costs. However, you have discovered three possible problems from some of the operating personnel whose quotes follow: Operator 1: "I've been keeping an eye on my operating room instruments. I feel as though our energy consumption is becoming less efficient." Operator 2: "Every time the coating machine goes down, we produce waste on shutdown and subsequent startup. It seems as though during the last half year, we have had more unscheduled machine shutdowns than in the past. Thus, I…arrow_forwardDecision Making Pix Paper Inc. produces photographic paper for printing digital images. One of the processes for this operation is a coating (solvent spreading) operation, where chemicals are coated onto paper stock. There has been some concern about the cost performance of this operation. As a result, you have begun an investigation. You first discover that all materials and conversion prices have been stable for the last six months. Thus, increases in prices for inputs are not an explanation for increasing costs. However, you have discovered three possible problems from some of the operating personnel whose quotes follow: Operator 1: "I've been keeping an eye on my operating room instruments. I feel as though our energy consumption is becoming less efficient."Operator 2: "Every time the coating machine goes down, we produce waste on shutdown and subsequent startup. It seems as though during the last half year, we have had more unscheduled machine shutdowns than in the past. Thus, I…arrow_forward
- Cost Estimation; Machine Replacement; Ethics Hardison Inc. manufactures glass for officebuildings in Florida. As a result of age and wear, a critical machine in the production process hasbegun to produce quality defects. Hardison is considering replacing the old machine with a newmachine, either brand A or brand B. The manufacturer has provided Hardison with the following dataon the costs of operation of each machine brand at various levels of output:Output(square yards)Brand AEstimated Total CostsBrand BEstimated Total Costs2,000 $ 97,000 $ 120,0004,000 125,000 160,0008,000 180,000 200,00016,000 225,000 260,00032,000 280,000 300,00064,000 438,000 368,000Required1. Graph the data for the two brands of machines.2. Use the high-low method to determine the cost equation for each brand of machine and use the results tocalculate the costs of operating each machine if Hardison’s output is expected to be 25,000 square yardsarrow_forwardCost Classification Match each cost to the appropriate cost behavior pattern shown in graphs (a) through (l). Any graph can fit two or more patterns. The cost of lumber used to manufacture wooden kitchen tables. The cost of order fillers in a warehouse. When demand increases significantly, the number of order fillers is increased, and when demand falls off significantly, the number is decreased. The salary of the plant’s quality control inspector, who inspects each batch of products. The cost of water and sewer service to the manufacturing plant. The local municipality charges a fixed rate per gallon for usage up to 10,000 gallons and a higher charge per gallon for usage above that point. The cost of an internet connection of $23 per month. The cost of an internet connection of $10 per month plus $2 per hour of usage above 10 hours. The cost to make copies of a given document at a printing shop, where the per-copy charge is reduced for customers who make more than…arrow_forwardPlease answer the 2 questions below: Chocolate Bars, Inc. (CBI), manufactures creamy deluxe chocolate candy bars. The firm has developed three distinct products: Almond Dream, Krispy Krackle, and Creamy Crunch. CBI is profitable, but management is quite concerned about the profitability of each product and the product costing methods currently employed. In particular, management questions whether the overhead allocation base of direct labor-hours accurately reflects the costs incurred during the production process of each product. In reviewing cost reports with the marketing manager, Steve Hoffman, who is the cost accountant, notices that Creamy Crunch appears exceptionally profitable and that Almond Dream appears to be produced at a loss. This surprises both him and the manager, and after much discussion, they are convinced that the cost accounting system is at fault and that Almond Dream is performing very well at the current market price. Steve decides to hire Jean Sharpe, a…arrow_forward
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