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Case Study Analysis :
Bill French
Based on Break Even Point

INTRODUCTION * Bill French was a Staff Accountant in Duo-Products Group. * He used to report directly to his boss, Wes Davidson(Comptroller). * He wanted to do use Break-even analysis for the planning procedures, which was first of its kind for the Duo-Products Group. * Basically what French had done was to determine the level at which the company must operate in order to break even. * As he put it, 1. The company must be able at least to sell a sufficient volume of goods so that it will cover all the variable costs of producing and selling the goods. 2. Further, it will not make a profit unless it covers the fixed costs as well. 3. The level of operation at which total costs are just covered is the break-even volume. 4. This should be the lower limit in the planning.

ACCOUNTING RECORDS * The accounting records had provided the following information that French used in constructing his chart: 1. Plant Capacity -2 million units per year. 2. Past year’s level of operations - 1.5 million units. 3. Average unit selling price - $7.20. 4. Total fixed costs - $2,970,000. 5. Average unit variable costs - $4.50.

* From the above information, French observed that 1. Each unit contributed $2.70 to fixed costs after covering its variable costs. 2. For break even, unit sold must be 1,100,000. 3. As variable costs per unit is 62.5% of the selling price, French reasoned that 37.5% of sales left to cover fixed costs. 4. Thus, fixed costs of $2,970,000 required sales of $7,920,000 in order to break even.

(SEE BREAK EVEN CHART –EXHIBIT 1)
ASSUMPTIONS
* French has had to assume that the variability of the variable costs is constant. * Similarly, there is an assumption that the fixed costs are truly fixed over the

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