Chapter 3
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Job-Order Costing
Solutions to Questions
3-1 By definition, manufacturing overhead consists of costs that cannot be practically traced to jobs. Therefore, if these costs are to be assigned to jobs, they must be allocated rather than traced.
3-2 The first step is to estimate the total amount of the allocation base (the denominator) that will be required for next period’s estimated level of production. The second step is to estimate the total fixed manufacturing overhead cost for the coming period and the variable manufacturing overhead cost per unit of the allocation base. The third step is to use the cost formula Y = a + bX to estimate the total manufacturing overhead cost (the numerator) for the coming period. The fourth step is to compute the predetermined overhead rate.
3-3 The job cost sheet is used to record all costs that are assigned to a particular job. These costs include direct materials costs traced to the job, direct labor costs traced to the job, and manufacturing overhead costs applied to the job. When a job is completed, the job cost sheet is used to compute the unit product cost.
3-4 A sales order is issued after an agreement has been reached with a customer on quantities, prices, and shipment dates for goods. The sales order forms the basis for the production order. The production order specifies what is to be produced and forms the basis for the job cost sheet. The job cost sheet, in turn, is used to summarize the various production costs incurred to complete the job. These costs are entered on the job cost sheet from materials requisition forms, direct labor time tickets, and by applying overhead.
3-5 Some production costs such as a factory manager’s salary cannot be traced to a particular product or job, but rather are incurred as a result of overall production activities. In