Au Naturel Incorporated is feeling growing pains. After a successful first two years of operations, Au...
Fantastic news! We've Found the answer you've been seeking!
Question:
Transcribed Image Text:
Au Naturel Incorporated is feeling growing pains. After a successful first two years of operations, Au Naturel management is, for the first time, concerned about the potential of their business. The company began operations in 20X2 when the owner and founder, Jason Petrov, decided to enter the organic foods market. In early 20X1, after watching a documentary on food additives, Jason began purchasing organic foods for his family. Over the years, he noticed substantial growth in the organic section at the grocery store. Considering this opportunity, Jason thought he could use his background in food preparation and production to start his own organic foods company. Jason decided to open his business with a product that wasn't well represented on store shelves: organic peanut butter. He developed an organic peanut butter to be marketed under the Au Naturel brand and started manufacturing in February 20X2. In the beginning, manufacturing peanut butter at the Au Naturel factory was a highly labour-intensive process. The factory used an assembly-line production model and each jar of peanut butter was handcrafted by six factory employees. By 20X3, Au Naturel was producing over 300 jars of peanut butter per day. Produc- tion schedules were based on demand volumes and employee hours varied from employee to employee each week. As a result, the company had high direct costs, which varied with the level of production. Direct costs included peanuts, packaging materials, manufacturing labour costs, and variable overhead costs. Indirect fixed costs were less substantial and mainly included production supervision, depreciation on equipment, < warehouse rent, and property taxes. With increasing demand levels (see Exhibit 1) and a capacity of only 100,000 jars of peanut butter per year using the existing process, Au Naturel management decided it was time to automate the factory. At the beginning of 20X4, the company invested $2 million in new automation equipment that would be depreciated over a 10-year period. This enabled the plant to reduce its staffing from six to one factory worker and increase annual capacity to 180,000 jars of peanut butter. With the new automation process, one factory employee was retrained to be a plant supervisor with a salary of $63,000 per year. Although the product would no longer be handcrafted, the company believed that the high-quality ingredients and the company's attention to standards, cleanliness, and exceptional taste would maintain its image as a specialty food product. Jason was hoping, if this expansion was successful, to complete a further expansion in 20X6 of $2.5 million to increase plant capacity to 400,000 jars per year. At the end of 20X4, however, Jason was shocked by the financial results of the automation implementa- tion. Profits had fallen from the previous year even though sales increased by 20,000 units. Exhibit 2 provides a comparison of the incomes for 20X3 and 20X4. Jason was worried! The automation of his factory seemed to have had a detrimental effect on profits. Jason calculated that, with total costs of $8.89 per unit ($4.15 + $3.96 + $0.20 + $0.58), he will only achieve a net income of $130,500 ($0.90 x 145,000 units) in 20X5 if Au Naturel meets the expected demand levels. This is less than what he was earning in 20X3 using the labour-intensive process. Jason is now wondering if automation was worth it. In the past, he could promote his peanut butter as a "handcrafted" product. Now he is wondering what advantage, if any, automation brings to his factory. Jason has asked Anna Chui, an old friend and cost accountant, to help him assess further how the automation of the Au Naturel factory has impacted the company's bottom line. Required Assume the role of Anna and prepare a report for Jason looking at the following: (a) Is Jason correct in stating that his income for 20X5 will be approximately $130,500? What flaws, if any, are there in Jason's assumptions regarding cost behaviour? (b) If the revenues and cost rates remain at the same level as in 20X4, what should Au Naturel's net income be estimated at for 20X5? 20X6? (c) Since the capacity of the new automated factory is only 180,000 jars of peanut butter (a level that will be reached in 20X6), should the company consider a further expansion of the plant? Assume the additional plant expansion cost will be depreciated over 10 years. For simplicity, assume all revenue and cost rates will remain the same as 20X4 levels and additional supervision of $68,000 would be required each year. What level of sales would be required to support this investment? If demand levels cap at 230,000 jars, would the further expansion be justified? Provide supporting calculations. EXHIBIT 1 - DEMAND LEVELS FOR AU NATUREL ORGANIC PEANUT BUTTER Demand Level (Jars) 80,000 (actual demand) 100,000 (actual demand) 145,000 (expected) 180,000 (expected) Year 20X3 20X4 20X5 20X6 28 Units sold Canadian Managerial Accounting Cases EXHIBIT 2- COMPARATIVE INCOME STATEMENT Rent Sales Variable manufacturing costs: Direct materials (including peanuts, salt, and packaging materials) Direct labour Variable overhead Total variable manufacturing costs Fixed manufacturing overhead Production supervision Property taxes Depreciation AU NATUREL PEANUT BUTTER Income Statement Total fixed manufacturing costs Gross margin Variable selling costs General administrative costs Net income before taxes 20X3 Labour-Intensive Process Total 80,000 $766,400.00 278,320.04 96,860.16 51,425.28 426,605.48 48,000.00 52,500.00 7,850.00 6,800.00 115,150.00 224,644.52 16,000.00 58,000.00 $150,644.52 Per Unit $9.58 $3.48 $1.21 $0.64 $5.33 $0.60 $0.66 $0.10 $0.09 $1.45 $2.80 $0.20 $0.73 $1.87 20X4 Automated Factory Total 100,000 $979,000.00 364,651.98 20,179.20 29,721.60 414,552.78 52,500.00 127,800.00 7,850.00 206,800.00 394,950.00 169,497.22 20,000.00 58,000.00 $ 91,497.22 Per Unit $9.79 $3.65 $0.20 $0.30 $4.15 $0.53 $1.28 $0.08 $2.07 $3.96 $1.68 $0.20 $0.58 $0.90 Au Naturel Incorporated is feeling growing pains. After a successful first two years of operations, Au Naturel management is, for the first time, concerned about the potential of their business. The company began operations in 20X2 when the owner and founder, Jason Petrov, decided to enter the organic foods market. In early 20X1, after watching a documentary on food additives, Jason began purchasing organic foods for his family. Over the years, he noticed substantial growth in the organic section at the grocery store. Considering this opportunity, Jason thought he could use his background in food preparation and production to start his own organic foods company. Jason decided to open his business with a product that wasn't well represented on store shelves: organic peanut butter. He developed an organic peanut butter to be marketed under the Au Naturel brand and started manufacturing in February 20X2. In the beginning, manufacturing peanut butter at the Au Naturel factory was a highly labour-intensive process. The factory used an assembly-line production model and each jar of peanut butter was handcrafted by six factory employees. By 20X3, Au Naturel was producing over 300 jars of peanut butter per day. Produc- tion schedules were based on demand volumes and employee hours varied from employee to employee each week. As a result, the company had high direct costs, which varied with the level of production. Direct costs included peanuts, packaging materials, manufacturing labour costs, and variable overhead costs. Indirect fixed costs were less substantial and mainly included production supervision, depreciation on equipment, < warehouse rent, and property taxes. With increasing demand levels (see Exhibit 1) and a capacity of only 100,000 jars of peanut butter per year using the existing process, Au Naturel management decided it was time to automate the factory. At the beginning of 20X4, the company invested $2 million in new automation equipment that would be depreciated over a 10-year period. This enabled the plant to reduce its staffing from six to one factory worker and increase annual capacity to 180,000 jars of peanut butter. With the new automation process, one factory employee was retrained to be a plant supervisor with a salary of $63,000 per year. Although the product would no longer be handcrafted, the company believed that the high-quality ingredients and the company's attention to standards, cleanliness, and exceptional taste would maintain its image as a specialty food product. Jason was hoping, if this expansion was successful, to complete a further expansion in 20X6 of $2.5 million to increase plant capacity to 400,000 jars per year. At the end of 20X4, however, Jason was shocked by the financial results of the automation implementa- tion. Profits had fallen from the previous year even though sales increased by 20,000 units. Exhibit 2 provides a comparison of the incomes for 20X3 and 20X4. Jason was worried! The automation of his factory seemed to have had a detrimental effect on profits. Jason calculated that, with total costs of $8.89 per unit ($4.15 + $3.96 + $0.20 + $0.58), he will only achieve a net income of $130,500 ($0.90 x 145,000 units) in 20X5 if Au Naturel meets the expected demand levels. This is less than what he was earning in 20X3 using the labour-intensive process. Jason is now wondering if automation was worth it. In the past, he could promote his peanut butter as a "handcrafted" product. Now he is wondering what advantage, if any, automation brings to his factory. Jason has asked Anna Chui, an old friend and cost accountant, to help him assess further how the automation of the Au Naturel factory has impacted the company's bottom line. Required Assume the role of Anna and prepare a report for Jason looking at the following: (a) Is Jason correct in stating that his income for 20X5 will be approximately $130,500? What flaws, if any, are there in Jason's assumptions regarding cost behaviour? (b) If the revenues and cost rates remain at the same level as in 20X4, what should Au Naturel's net income be estimated at for 20X5? 20X6? (c) Since the capacity of the new automated factory is only 180,000 jars of peanut butter (a level that will be reached in 20X6), should the company consider a further expansion of the plant? Assume the additional plant expansion cost will be depreciated over 10 years. For simplicity, assume all revenue and cost rates will remain the same as 20X4 levels and additional supervision of $68,000 would be required each year. What level of sales would be required to support this investment? If demand levels cap at 230,000 jars, would the further expansion be justified? Provide supporting calculations. EXHIBIT 1 - DEMAND LEVELS FOR AU NATUREL ORGANIC PEANUT BUTTER Demand Level (Jars) 80,000 (actual demand) 100,000 (actual demand) 145,000 (expected) 180,000 (expected) Year 20X3 20X4 20X5 20X6 28 Units sold Canadian Managerial Accounting Cases EXHIBIT 2- COMPARATIVE INCOME STATEMENT Rent Sales Variable manufacturing costs: Direct materials (including peanuts, salt, and packaging materials) Direct labour Variable overhead Total variable manufacturing costs Fixed manufacturing overhead Production supervision Property taxes Depreciation AU NATUREL PEANUT BUTTER Income Statement Total fixed manufacturing costs Gross margin Variable selling costs General administrative costs Net income before taxes 20X3 Labour-Intensive Process Total 80,000 $766,400.00 278,320.04 96,860.16 51,425.28 426,605.48 48,000.00 52,500.00 7,850.00 6,800.00 115,150.00 224,644.52 16,000.00 58,000.00 $150,644.52 Per Unit $9.58 $3.48 $1.21 $0.64 $5.33 $0.60 $0.66 $0.10 $0.09 $1.45 $2.80 $0.20 $0.73 $1.87 20X4 Automated Factory Total 100,000 $979,000.00 364,651.98 20,179.20 29,721.60 414,552.78 52,500.00 127,800.00 7,850.00 206,800.00 394,950.00 169,497.22 20,000.00 58,000.00 $ 91,497.22 Per Unit $9.79 $3.65 $0.20 $0.30 $4.15 $0.53 $1.28 $0.08 $2.07 $3.96 $1.68 $0.20 $0.58 $0.90
Expert Answer:
Answer rating: 100% (QA)
Part a No Jasons reported earnings for 20X5 are incorrect Jasons flawed assumptions are that fixed manufacturing overheads at 396 per unit and variable overheads at 58 per unit will stay constant Gene... View the full answer
Related Book For
Financial Accounting
ISBN: 978-0132889711
1st Canadian Edition
Authors: Jeffrey Waybright, Liang Hsuan Chen, Rhonda Pyper
Posted Date:
Students also viewed these marketing questions
-
The Crazy Eddie fraud may appear smaller and gentler than the massive billion-dollar frauds exposed in recent times, such as Bernie Madoffs Ponzi scheme, frauds in the subprime mortgage market, the...
-
Read the case study and answer the question below with a one page response. What does a SWOT analysis reveal about the overall attractiveness of Under Armours situation? Founded in 1996 by former...
-
Planning is one of the most important management functions in any business. A front office managers first step in planning should involve determine the departments goals. Planning also includes...
-
Heights Academy, a private school, serves 500 students: 200 in the middle school (Grades 6 to 8) and 300 in the high school (Grades 9 to 12). Each school group has its own assistant principal, and...
-
Describe briefly the procedures followed by the lessee to account for a capital lease.
-
Suppose the price of tomatoes falls, ceteris paribus. Describe the impact the substitution effect and the real income effect would have on the quantity demanded of tomatoes.
-
On November 30, the end of the current fiscal year, the following information is available to assist Pinder Corporations accountants in making adjusting entries: a. Pinder Corporations Supplies...
-
Rodent Corporation produces two types of computer mice, wired and wireless. The wired mice are designed as low-cost, reliable input devices. The company only recently began producing the...
-
Precalculus Write an equation for the function graphed below. The y intercept is at (0, -0.4) 5+ 4 3 2 -7 -6 -5 -4 -3 -2 -1 1 2 4 5 6 715
-
The financial statements for CAP Inc. and SAP Company for the year ended December 31, Year 5, follow: On December 31, Year 5, after the above figures were prepared, CAP issued $300,000 in debt and...
-
At the end of the year, overhead applied was $ 3 , 5 0 0 , 0 0 0 . Actual overhead was $ 1 , 7 0 0 , 0 0 0 . Closing over / underapplied overhead into Cost of Goods Sold would cause net income to
-
discuss the implications of the zero lower bound (ZLB) on traditional monetary policy tools, and what alternative measures do central banks employ to stimulate economic activity when nominal interest...
-
How do changes in the federal funds rate set by central banks influence the term structure of interest rates, and what does the yield curve reveal about market expectations for future economic...
-
Water might seem ordinary, but it's anything but! Share your awe for the unique molecular structure of water and its significance in shaping its properties. Dive into the concept of polarity and...
-
1). In your own words, what is the Accural basis of Accounting? Is it different than the Cash basis - if so, how? 2). Describe the two main types of adjusting entries (deferrals and accruals). If a...
-
What does a welfare and progressive tax system do to the effects of luck and distribution of disposable income and happiness ? Explain the potential positive and negative effects of a welfare...
-
f 7x 8y x 2y 19 3x 2y 29 Find both the maximum and minimum values of the function if they exist and the point at which each occurs If an answer does not exist enter D The maximum value of the...
-
Suppose that you are part of a virtual team and must persuade other team members on an important matter (such as switching suppliers or altering the project deadline). Assuming that you cannot visit...
-
Gupta Ltd. has four assets. You are an accounting assistant who is in charge of identifying the recoverable amount and determining whether each of the assets is impaired. If so, what is the amount...
-
This exercise shows the similarity and the difference between two ways to acquire plant assets. Case AIssue shares and buy the assets in separate transactions: Atar, Inc. issued 10,000 common shares...
-
Financial statement data of ABC Fencing, Inc. include the following items: Cash .................... $ 21,000 Short-Term Investments .......... 25,000 Accounts Receivable, Net .......... 102,000...
-
In chronological order, the inventory, purchases, and sales of a single product for a recent month are as follows: Using the periodic inventory system, compute the cost of ending inventory, cost of...
-
Referring to the data provided in E 9 and using the perpetual inventory system, compute the cost of ending inventory, cost of goods sold, and gross margin. Use the average-cost, FIFO, and LIFO...
-
Hart Products, Inc., sold 120,000 cases of glue at $20 per case during 20x7. Its beginning inventory consisted of 20,000 cases at a cost of $12 per case. During 20x7, it purchased 60,000 cases at $14...
Study smarter with the SolutionInn App