Question - Horton Manufacturing Inc. produces blinds and other window treatments for residential homes and offices. The owner is concerned about the maintenance costs for the production machinery, as maintenance costs for the previous fiscal year were higher than he expected. The owner has asked you to assist in estimating future maintenance costs to better predict the firm's profitability. Together, you have determined that the best cost driver for maintenance costs is machine hours. The data from the previous fiscal year for maintenance expense and machine hours follow:
|
Month
|
Expense
|
Hours
|
Month
|
Expense
|
Hours
|
|
1
|
$2,850
|
1,380
|
7
|
$2,680
|
1,480
|
|
2
|
2,745
|
1,638
|
8
|
2,622
|
1,414
|
|
3
|
2,780
|
1,692
|
9
|
2,620
|
1,400
|
|
4
|
2,860
|
1,840
|
10
|
2,720
|
1,591
|
|
5
|
2,810
|
1,735
|
11
|
2,710
|
1,580
|
|
6
|
2,735
|
1,646
|
12
|
2,655
|
1,495
|
Required: What is the cost equation for maintenance cost using the high-low method? (Graph the data points to check for outliers. Round "constant" to nearest whole dollar. Round "slope (unit variable cost)" to 4 decimal places.)