1) Identify which of the following costs are fixed and which are variable:
a) Electricity for machinery in a plant
b) Sales commission
c) Property taxes on a factory building
d) Property taxes on an administrative building
e) Factory fire insurance
f) Regular maintenance on machinery and equipment
g) Wages paid to temporary or seasonal workers
h) Salaries paid to design engineers
i) Heat and air conditioning in a plant
j) Basic raw materials used in production
2) A machine costing $80,000 to buy and $6,000 per year to operate will save mainly labor expenses in packaging over five years. The anticipated salvage value of the machine at the end of five years is $4,000.
a) If a 12% return of investment (rate of return) is desired, what is the minimum required annual savings in labor from this machine?
b) If the service life is four years instead of five, what is the minimum required annual savings in labor for the firm to realize a 12% return on investment?
c) If the annual operating cost increases 10%, say from $6,000 to $6,600, what will happen to the answer in (a)?