Less obvious is the impact on the cost side. Manufacturing must be aware of the impact of newness on costs.Any time a new product is introduced,there are learning effects.In other words, as a company makes more of the product, the employees become better at making it.Purchasing locates and becomes familiar with suppliers of the needed materials. Manufacturing learns to set up more quickly and efficiently the equipment for a new batch. The industrial engineers are able to "work the bugs out" of the process. The whole production process smooths out and becomes faster and more efficient and less expensive. However, that is not the whole story.As we can see in Exhibit 18-6, the maturity phase is marked by extensive product differentiation as line extensions proliferate.
Mattel's Barbie is over 50 years old but we're not just talking basic Barbie anymore. Barbie has changed. Her arms and legs are bendable, and her hair is any number of lengths and colors. She has a dizzying array of outfits and accessories. Each version requires different materials and setups. In addition, Barbie has lots of friends each with different production requirements. In 200, Barbie, her friends, and various vehicles, houses, and so on , brought in over $1.2 billion in revenue for Mattel. With each decade;s new cohort of little girls,Barbie and friends may be in the maturity phase for quite some time to come.
The product life cycle has implications for activity- based costing. Recall that ABC categories are unit level, batch level, product level, and facility level.Unit- level costs are highest in the introduction phase, as new materials are sought in small order quantities.In addition,direct labor is higher per unit as labor learns how to manufacture the new item.Unit- level costs begin to fall in the growth phase as learning takes effect and quantity discounts on materials may occur. Similarly, the maturity phase should lead to stable unit-level costs. The decline phase, with fewer units produced,does not enjoy quantity discounts,but unit costs may remain low due to the liquidation of existing inventories and the avoidance of increasing prices.
Batch-level costs follow a similar pattern.Purchasing, receiving, setups, and inspection are high in the introductory phase due to unfamiliarity. In the growth phase, batch-level costs should decrease as the positive impact of learning occurs.Workers are better able to execute setups,for example. In the maturity phase, batch-level costs may increase as product differentiation occurs.Setup number and complexity increase, purchasing orders rise, and inspection costs may increase.Finally,in the decline stage, batch-level costs again fall as product lines are streamlined to just a few best-selling lines and batches decrease in number and complexity.
Product-level costs are highest in the introductory phase and generally fall throughout the rest of the life cycle with possible spikes upward for new models in the maturity phase. An example is engineering change orders. which occur most frequently when the product is started into production. Facility0level costs may or may not be affected unless the product calls fir a new facility or equipment then they are highest in the introductory phase. Exhibit 18-7 depicts the general direction of costs in the ABC categories throughout the product life cycle.
Product life cycle costs in the ABC categories
product life-cycle phase
ABC Category Introduction Growth Maturity Decline
Unit-level costs
Batch-level costs
Product-level costs
Facility-level costs