Question

AirComp Corporation produces component parts for the aircraftindustry. In prior years, they maintained a job-costing systemconsisting of direct materials and direct labor cost andmanufacturing overhead. Manufacturing overhead was allocated toproduction jobs using a single-indirect cost allocation rate, whichwas $115 per direct labor hour.

For 20x1, the Company decided to change the method of allocatingmanufacturing overhead to production jobs from the single-indirectcost allocation approach to the activity-based costing (“ABC”)indirect cost allocation approach. For purposes of developing theABC allocation rates, AirComp’s cost accounting team prepared thefollowing analysis:

Activity	Cost Driver	Allocation Rate
Material handling	Parts handled	$0.40
Lathe work	No. of lathe turns	$0.20
Milling	Machine hours	$20.00
Grinding	No. of parts ground	$0.80
Testing	No. of units tested	$15.00

For 20x1, AirComp’s cost accountant team prepared the followinganalysis of the direct costs and indirect cost activities for Job100 and Job 200, the only production jobs in process for theperiod:

	Job 100	Job 200
Direct materials cost	$9,700	$59,900
Direct labor cost	$750	$11,250
No. of direct manufacturing labor hours	25	375
No. of parts ground	500	2,000
No. of lathe turns	20,000	60,000
Machine hours	150	1,050
No. of units produced during period (all are tested)	10	200

Required

1.For each job, determine total per unit cost using direct laborhours to allocate manufacturing overhead to each job.

2.For each job, determine total per unit cost using anactivity-based costing approach to allocate manufacturing overheadcost to job.

3.Compare the per unit cost figures for each job computed instep a. and step b., above. Why do the new ABC approach differ fromthe single-indirect cost allocation systems differ in the amount ofthe per unit indirect cost allocated to each job (i.e. what was theimplications of the cost allocation method change on the amount ofper unit cost allocated to each job and what factors caused theobserved changes).

4.How might AirComp Corporation use the information from ABCallocation approach to better manage its business, i.e. what arethe advantages of using an activity-based costing approach?