The Quality Manager of Bright (USA) Inc., Sarah McMahon, is unsure on how to analyze the cost of quality and its performance. Bright (USA) Inc. has measured its quality costs for the past two years. After the company gathers its quality cost data, it summarizes those costs using the four categories shown below:

Help Sarah McMahon, the Quality Manager of Bright (USA) Inc., to: (a) Calculate the total cost of quality last year and this year. (b) Calculate the cost in each of the four categories as a percent of the total cost of quality, for last year. (c) Calculate the cost in each of the four categories as a percent of the total cost of quality, for this year. (d) Assess the company's efforts to manage its costs of quality over the two-year period which will include suggesting whether or not the performance is trending in a favorable or unfavorable direction by providing the relevant explanation.

Table 2: Quality costs \begin{tabular}{|l|c|c|} \hline & Last Year (\$) & This Year (\$) \\ \hline Prevention costs & 462,100 & 730,500 \\ \hline Internal failure costs & 823,560 & 557,600 \\ \hline Appraisal costs & 537,200 & 612,400 \\ \hline External failure costs & 1,118,000 & 792,300 \\ \hline \end{tabular}