Thalassines kataskeves, S.A., of Greece makes marine equipment. The company has been experiencing losses on its bilge pump product line for several years. The most recent quarterly contribution format income statement for the bilge pump product line follows: Thalassines kataskeves, S.A. Income Statement-Bilge Pump For the Quarter Ended March 31 Sales $ 470,000 $ 137,000 54,000 22,000 213,000 257,000 Variable expenses: Variable manufacturing expenses Sales commissions Shipping Total variable expenses Contribution margin Fixed expenses: Advertising (for the bilge pump product line) Depreciation of equipment (no resale value) General factory overhead Salary of product-line manager Insurance on inventories Purchasing department Total fixed expenses Net operating loss 25,000 105,000 42,000* 114,000 11,000 42,000+ 339,000 $ (82,000) *Common costs allocated on the basis of machine-hours. Common costs allocated on the basis of sales dollars. Discontinuing the bilge pump product line would not affect sales of other product lines and would have no effect on the company's total general factory overhead or total Purchasing Department expenses. Required: What is the financial advantage (disadvantage) of discontinuing the bilge pump product line? (Prepared from a situation suggested by Professor John W. Hardy.) Lone Star Meat Packers is a major processor of beef and other meat products. The company has a large amount of T-bone steak on hand, and it is trying to decide whether to sell the T-bone steaks as they are initially cut or to process them further into filet mignon and the New York cut. If the T-bone steaks are sold as initially cut, the company figures that a 1-pound T-bone steak would yield the following profit: $ 2.40 Selling price ($2.40 per pound) Less joint costs incurred up to the split-off point where T- bone steak can be identified as a separate product Profit per pound 1.55 $ 0.85 If the company were to further process the T-bone steaks, then cutting one side of a T-bone steak provides the filet mignon and cutting the other side provides the New York cut. One 16-ounce T-bone steak cut in this way will yield one 6-ounce filet mignon and one 8-ounce New York cut; the remaining ounces are waste. It costs $0.14 to further process one T-bone steak into the filet mignon and New York cuts. The filet mignon can be sold for $3.60 per pound, and the New York cut can be sold for $3.70 per pound. Required: 1. What is the financial advantage (disadvantage) of further processing one T-bone steak into filet mignon and New York cut steaks? 2. Would you recommend that the T-bone steaks be sold as initially cut or processed further