(1.) John Fleming, chief administrator for Valley View Hospital, is concerned about the costs for tests in the hospitals lab. Charges for lab tests are consistently higher at Valley View than at other hospitals and have resulted in many complaints. Also, because of strict regulations on amounts reimbursed for lab tests, payments received from insurance companies and governmental units have not been high enough to cover lab costs.

Mr. Fleming has asked you to evaluate costs in the hospitals lab for the past month. The following information is available:

1. Two types of tests are performed in the labblood tests and smears. During the past month, 750 blood tests and 3,000 smears were performed in the lab.

2. Small glass plates are used in both types of tests. During the past month, the hospital purchased 15,000 plates at a cost of $48,450. 2,000 of these plates were unused at the end of the month; no plates were on hand at the beginning of the month.

3. During the past month, 2,000 hours of labor time were recorded in the lab at a cost of $21,600.

4. The labs variable overhead cost last month totaled $15,200.

Valley View Hospital has never used standard costs. By searching industry literature, however, you have determined the following nationwide averages for hospital labs:

Plates: Three plates are required per lab test. These plates cost $3.40 each and are disposed of after the test is completed.

Labor: Each blood test should require 0.8 hours to complete, and each smear should require 0.40 hours to complete. The average cost of this lab time is $11.20 per hour.

Overhead: Overhead cost is based on direct labor-hours. The average rate for variable overhead is $7.10 per hour.

Required:

1. Compute a materials price variance for the plates purchased last month and a materials quantity variance for the plates used last month.

2. For labor cost in the lab:

a. Compute a labor rate variance and a labor efficiency variance.

b. In most hospitals, one-half of the workers in the lab are senior technicians and one-half are assistants. In an effort to reduce costs, Valley View Hospital employs only one-fourth senior technicians and three-fourths assistants. Would you recommend that this policy be continued?

3-a. Compute the variable overhead rate and efficiency variances.

3-b. Is there any relation between the variable overhead efficiency variance and the labor efficiency variance?

(2.)

Dawson Toys, Ltd., produces a toy called the Maze. The company has recently created a standard cost system to help control costs and has established the following standards for the Maze toy:

Direct materials: 6 microns per toy at $0.33 per micron

Direct labor: 1.2 hours per toy at $6.90 per hour

During July, the company produced 4,500 Maze toys. The toy's production data for the month are as follows:

Direct materials: 79,000 microns were purchased at a cost of $0.32 per micron. 45,250 of these microns were still in inventory at the end of the month.

Direct labor: 5,900 direct labor-hours were worked at a cost of $44,250.

Required:

1. Compute the following variances for July: (Indicate the effect of each variance by selecting "F" for favorable, "U" for unfavorable, and "None" for no effect (i.e., zero variance). Input all amounts as positive values. Do not round intermediate calculations. Round final answers to the nearest whole dollar amount.)

a. The materials price and quantity variances.

b. The labor rate and efficiency variances.