Static budget versus flexible budget The production supervisor of the Machining Department for Hagerstown Company agreed to the following monthly static budget for the upcoming year: Hagerstown Company Machining Department Monthly Production Budget Wages Utilities Depreciation $1,099,000 55,000 Total 92,000 $1,246,000 The actual amount spent and the actual units produced in the first three months in the Machining Department were as follows: May June July Amount Spent $1,173,000 1,119,000 1,067,000 Units Produced 112,000 102,000 92,000 The Machining Department supervisor has been very pleased with this performance because actual expenditures for May-July have been significantly less than the monthly static budget of 1,246,000. However, the plant manager believes that the budget should not remain fixed for every month but should "flex" or adjust to the volume of work that is produced in the Machining Department. Additional budget information for the Machining Department is as follows: Wages per hour $18.00 Utility cost per direct labor hour Direct labor hours per unit Planned monthly unit production $0.90 0.50 122,000 a. Prepare a flexible budget for the actual units produced for May, June, and July in the Machining Department. Assume depreciation is a fixed cost. If required, use per unit amounts carried out to two decimal places. For the Three Months Ending July 31 Line Item Description Units of production Total Supporting calculations: Units of production Hours per unit Total hours of production Wages per hour Total wages Total hours of production May 112,000 June July 102,000 92,000 $ $ 112,000 102,000 92,000 X X X X $ x $ x $ Utility costs per hour x $ x $ x $ Total utilities b. Compare the flexible budget with the actual expenditures for the first three months. Total flexible budget Actual cost Excess of actual cost over budget What does this comparison suggest? May June July $ $