In: Accounting
Halo Inc. manufactures several different products including product A and product B. Halo uses activity-based costing, such that the total manufacturing overhead for the month, of $750,000, is assigned to the following cost pools with the corresponding activity levels:
| Cost Pool | Activity Cost Driver | |
|---|---|---|
| Setup | $100,000 | 100 no. of setups | 
| Maintenance | $250,000 | 1,250 machine hours | 
| Packing & Shipping | $400,000 | 200 no. of deliveries | 
The following information for products A and B for the current month is available:
| A | B | |
|---|---|---|
| No. of units produced | 100 | 
 100  | 
| Sales prices per unit | $3,300 | 
 $3,400  | 
| Direct material cost | $200,000 | 
 $200,000  | 
| Direct labor cost (at $10 per hr) | $20,000 | $30,000 | 
| No. of setups | 8 | 4 | 
| Machine hours | 350 | 250 | 
| Deliveries | 20 | 25 | 
a. If Halo were to use a single, predetermined overhead rate of $40 per labor hour, how much would each product cost?
b. Using activity-based costing, how much does each product cost?
c. If there is a difference between your answers to (a) and (b), why is this? And what costs are driving the difference?
d. Which answer (a) or (b) should Halo use in decision-making? And why is it better for decision-making?
e. So, based upon your answers to (d), which product is most profitable?
f. What might the managers do to increase the profits of Halo? What should they focus on first?