Questions to Client
Replies / Comments UK
Replies / Comments US
How do you match purchase order information to AP
invoice information?
via goods inwards receipts and PO orderVendor invoice processed using APID screen.
Enter vendor #, invoice #, invoice date and PO
#. Correct PO located enter qty, unit price as
per invoice, details calculated, result invoice
matched to PO.
via goods inwards receipts and PO
order-Vendor invoice processed using
APID screen. Enter vendor #, invoice #,
invoice date and PO #. Correct PO
located enter qty, unit price as per
invoice, details calculated, result invoice
matched to PO.
How do you match vendor information to your fixed
assets systems when purchasing assets?
Fixed Assets are treated in the same way as
goods purchase. PO raised and vendor
invoice matched as above. Spreadsheet is
updated upon receipt of vendor invoice.
Fixed Assets are treated in the same
way as goods purchase. PO raised
and vendor invoice matched as above.
Spreadsheet is updated upon receipt of
vendor invoice.
Do you want to be able to update or change the
accounting distribution information for line items in your
purchase orders?
yes
grouped for deflation reporting into
electronics/EMD/indirect/metallic/metals/nonWhat is the basis for your vendor category breakdown? metallic/sourced product/internal
Are vendors categorized for reporting purposes?
yes
Are vendors categorized for financial tracking
purposes?
yes
What are the requirements for reporting tax payments
(e.g. company, rate or tax authority)?
K Rajini Rao:
Discuss in detail as to
the application of the
VATreturns
use monthly
tax
and business rates
annual invoice paid over 10 months.
System generated from AP and manual
journals - GL vat input a/c
How do you record taxes within the GL?
Is there a requirement to support multiple bank
accounts?
yes
Is there a requirement to support foreign currency bank
accounts?
yes
What disbursement (document) types are currently
processed through these bank accounts?
How are your current payment terms structured?
Do you use percentage due or amount due?
Are due dates calculated based on a specific day of the
month or on a number of days from the payment terms
date?
Is there a provision for discounts within the current
payment terms?
How are discount dates calculated - based on a specific
day of the month or on a number of days from the
payment terms date?
Is there a requirement to use multiple discount levels at
present or in the future?
How many checks do you write/produce per period?
Direct Debits, Standing Orders, BACS, TT
purchasing manager authorises terms ie:
30days- 60 days
amount due
yes
alphabetical by vendor name, numerical
by vendor ID no.
no
no
Sales tax is paid when billed. If no tax is
billed we accrue tax and pay a use tax
to the state
tax invoices posted to specific G/L
accounts
no
no
Vendor invoice, expense reports, debit
memos and vendor credit memos
2% 20 days, Net 75 days
amount due
K Rajini Rao:
If the due date is
calculated based on a
specific day of the month
number
specific of
daydays
of thefrom payment terms
month - how are
date
yes
yes
number of days from payment terms date
number of days from payment terms
date
yes
10-15 per month, payments made mainly via
BACS
request bank to place "stop", adjust ledger
accordingly
yes
What is your policy to cancel checks?
Is there a requirement to use Wire Transfers?
Is there a requirement to process Manual Payments? If
so, is a separate bank account used?
yes, but a separate bank account is not used
payment terms 30 -60
days
no
approx. 100 per week
no policy. request bank to place "stop",
adjust ledger accordingly
yes
no
Bullet Points / Notes
Gaps (Prima faci)
Is there a requirement to process Partial Payments?
Is there a requirement to process Pre-Payments?
no
yes
Is there a requirement to process Recurring Payments? yes
Advance payment is processed via APDS to
What is the current procedure for vendor advances?
the appropriate vendor a/c in AP
How are vendor advances reconciled when the invoice Invoice is processed to vendor a/c and
is submitted?
matched to advance payment via APPA.
Do you have a priority system for payments?
no
What is your current payment cycle? (How often do you Every 2 weeks 1 small ie: Expenses, Couriers
print checks?)
& 1 large Main Suppliers
If recurring payments are used, what is the normal
period cycle for these payments?
monthly
Are all invoices paid in local currency?
No. Paid in GB pounds, Euros & Dollars
Is/will there be a requirement to use multiple
currencies?
yes
Do you have a minimum or maximum payment amount
per check?
no
What is the policy/procedures for handling stop
payments?
What is the policy /procedures for handling void
payments if they have been recorded?
What is the policy /procedures for handling void
payments if they have not been recorded?
Do you pay any vendors on a priority basis according to
funds available?
Is there a requirement to prioritise payments?
Who enters invoices and how often?
Do you receive invoices at a central location?
How do you physically store invoices once entered into
the computer?
Are invoices billed to distinct companies, cost centers
or other?
How many invoices per period do you enter?
Do you have security requirements on who can enter
data (invoice processing, payment processing, and
check processing)?
How are invoices identified (numbered)? vendors
invoice number, date, or next allocated number?
How many liability accounts do you use?
Can you identify any frequently used expense
distributions within your current system (for example,
rent or telephone payments)?
Are these recurring expenses for fixed or varying
amounts?
Is there a requirement to match invoices to related
purchase orders?
How are you currently matching invoices to purchase
orders?
Will some invoices never have purchase orders?
Should invoices be matched completely, partially or
both?
Check with bank to ascertain cheque is not
cashed. Write cheque back to ledger.
Void payments are written back using APCV
screen reference to cheque and cash set
number.
no
COD shipments
no
n/a
n/a
no
once per week
n/a
yes
yes
no
no policy. Check with bank to ascertain
cheque is not cashed. Write cheque
back to ledger.
A/P voids in fourth shift (APCV), then
voids in Fleet windows
Void manual cheques are attached to
counterfoil in cheque book as physical
evidence.
no policy. A/P voids in fourth shift
(APCV), then voids in Fleet windows
no
no
Accounts Payable clerk - daily
yes
no
no
A/P - daily
yes
filed in vendor order in folders
file cabinet
yes
250/300 month
Billed to distinct companies
approx. 150 per week
yes
yes
vendors invoice number, then vendor
date if number not avail.
22
invoice number
2
yes
varying and fixed
Yes, but not with utility bills, although readings
are checked
rent, phone, operating leases
rent is fixed, phone varies, operating
leases fixed
See line 3 above
yes
yes
pack slip comes from stockroom,
matched to invoice, matched in fourth
shift to PO
yes
both
completely
Do you perform 2, 3, or 4 way matching of invoices?
3 way
Yes. For certain custom manfactured items ,
eg: cartons, labels, metal machine parts +/10%
yes
both
Matched against PO or signed off by a
Director.
both
proper department manager signs off
based on Matrix
yes
yes
Describe the approval process when invoices need to
be placed on hold and manually released?
Where an invoice needs to be placed on hold and then
manually released, can these invoices be "posted" to
the General Ledger?
How often do you "post" information to your General
ledger?
Do you use Cash or Accrual Based Accounting?
Do you post (or wish to post) in detail or in summary to
the general ledger?
When do you start your AP close?
Do you have any documentation on your AP close?
Manual held invoices would need to be
approved by the Purchasing Manager
A/P puts on hold in fourth shift, releases
from hold upon mgr. Approval
yes
yes
daily
Accrual based accounting
daily
Accrual
detail
3 days prior to GE fiscal month end
yes
detail
last Wednesday of the month
yes
Do you allow posting invoices back to prior periods?
Is there a requirement to track duplicate vendor
information within the Payables system?
What other audit requirements are needed?
Do you need to restrict access to certain functions?
no
no
yes
duplicate invoices/payments
yes
grouped for deflation reporting into
electronics/EMD/indirect/metallic/metals/nonmetallic/sourced product/internal
no
Do you currently have any tolerance levels for
matching? (Price Tolerance, Quantity Ordered
Tolerance, Quantity Received Tolerance, or Tax
Tolerance?)
Would you like to approve your invoices on-line, by
batch or have both options?
What is the internal approval process for an invoice in
your organization at present?
Are there situations where an invoice needs to be
placed on hold and then manually released?
Which vendors should be grouped and why?
For the purpose of Invoice Aging Reports, what aging
periods are currently in use?
Yes
current, 1-30, 31-60, 61-90. 90+
monthly aging, monthly unvouched
aging
Is there a need to define any additional aging periods?
Do you have to pay other businesses in different Set of
Books within the same GL
Will you need to make payments to businesses in
different GL set of books
Is there a requirement to process employee expense
reports?
Is there a standard employee expense claim form?
no
no
no
Yes
yes
Yes
yes
yes
What is the current process to generate expense
payments to employees?
How frequently are employee expense claims
processed?
expenses are picked up on the monthly
payment run
yes
yes
employee fills out form, gets mgr
approval, A/P cuts check. Plus GE
Online Expensing.
monthly
as needed, typically weekly
How many employee expense claims are processed?
Are these expense claims assigned a special pay
priority - high or low? (Before/after other vendor
payments for example.)
10
3-4 per month
high
no
What is the current procedure for employee advances? n/a
no advances
How are these reconciled when the expense claim is
submitted?
Do your employees have company credit cards?
How are company credit cards handled?
n/a
no
n/a
Approved by manager and Finance
yes
Through standard GE processes
Questions to Client
Replies / Comments UK
Replies / Comments US
What types of customers do you have?
Cash and credit customers
Distributors, end users and other GE companies
How do you group your customers for credit limits/credit checks? we dont group them
N/A
How do you group your customers for statements?
N/A
alphabetical
How do you group your customers for interest charges for late
payments?
don't charge currently
We do not charge interest charges
How do you group your customers for payment rules?
as per our credit terms
N/A
How many customers do you have?
300/340
3500
What type of payment terms do you provide?
Payment of the price and VAT shall be be due on or
before delivery unless otherwise agreed when it shall be
within thirty days of the date of the invoice
Varies
Do you provide split term payment terms?
no
No
Do you provide discount payment terms?
no
No
Do you automatically number new customers as they are
created?
yes but this is done manually
Yes
Do you automatically number customer business purposes as
they are created?
no
No
Do you create reciprocal customer relationships whenever you
create a relationship between customers for tracking purposes? no
Yes
Do you send customers statements?
yes
Yes, Charlotte send statements
Do you have multiple "remit tos"?
yes
Yes
How are multiple "remit tos" determined for each customer?
amount is split between cust accounts
Checks to one remit to, wire each to another
What credit information is tracked for each customer?
trade references
D&B rating, credit limit, days to pay
Do you have a prospect system separate from the receivables
customers?
yes, but maintained on Microsoft Word
Yes
Who has access to your customer database?
Sales, Customer Service, Finance
sales office personnel
the process IVMC is run within 4th shift after the item
has been shipped, this notifies 4thshift that an invoice
How do you receive notice to create/generate an invoice to bill a needs to be raised. The invoice is then printed when an
customer?
invoice run is performed.
the process IVMC is run within 4th shift after the item has
been shipped, this notifies 4thshift that an invoice needs to
be raised. The invoice is then printed when an invoice run
is performed.
Do you regularly invoice customers for the same items?
yes
Yes
Do you use standard invoice lines with default pricing and default
accounting information?
yes
Yes
Do you ever use invoice forms and/or the invoice entry process yes, invoices and credits are also used to move
for transactions other than billing customers?
cash/credit notes between customer accounts
No. Use preprinted invoice
Do you use Debit Memos?
no
No
How are Debit Memos accounted for?
n/a
N/A
Why are Debit Memos used?
n/a
N/A
What items appear on Debit Memos?
n/a
N/A
Do you use Customer Account Credit Memos?
yes
Yes
How are Customer Account Credit Memos used?
to represent returned items, price corr'n, discounts etc Customer Service issues Credit memo
Why are Customer Account Credit Memos used?
to correct invoices, move cash, to clear SIWO
What items appear on Customer Account Credit Memos?
amt, reason for raising credit, Credit note number, date, returned product, credit for price variance, freight, sales
tax, cust no., cust name and address
tax
Do you enter invoices in batches?
yes
Yes
How are batch invoices defined?
system generated batch no.
System defined
To credit returned material or correct errors on the
customers account
What are the units of measure you use when you bill customers
for products and/or services?
each as standard
Qty and unit price
Do you require taxes to be established for use when preparing
invoices?
yes
Yes
Do you validate the tax rate against a Customers Ship To
address when preparing invoices?
yes
No, defaults to sold to
Do you bill customers in a foreign currency?
Yes
yes
Are there any other foreign currency issues regarding invoice
generation?
no
euro
How many invoice types do you have?
How frequently do you invoice your customers?
daily
daily
How do you track sales revenue on invoices? How is it reported? arir report/sale & orders report
Revenue is tracked by product line
What different shipping methods do you use?
Post, courier, air freight, sea freight
UPS, DHL, FedEx, Freight Forwarder or Customer
selected carrier
How do you number your invoices?
numerically, system generated
numemric
Do you have standard default line items that you use?
yes
No
Do you have standard default line items that you use or are most
lines free format?
both
No
What type of units of measure do you use?
qty and price
each as standard
Do you have different price schedules dependent on customer or
volumes?
yes
Yes
How often are sales orders invoiced?
3 times a day
daily
What is the criteria to invoice?
order must have been shipped
shipment
What items appear on your invoices (inventory? non-inventory?) both
both
Who maintains your valid payment terms? What are they?
Credit control, 30 days of the date of invoice
GEI and Charlotte varies
What paper stock is used to print the invoices?
pre printed continual 3 part
Preprinted invoice forms
Where are the invoices printed? How many printers and where on one dot matrix printer in same office, yes pre-printed GEI, 1 printer used and it located in Customer Service,
are they? Pre-printed forms?
forms
Yes we use preprinted forms
What remit to address is assigned for your invoices?
GE Protimeter Plc address
For payments by check: GE General Eastern Instruments
12126 Collections Center Drive Chicago, IL 60693
Do you assign shipping charges for your invoices?
yes
Yes
How are shipping charges calculated?
majority fixed
Calculated from shipping machine
How do you calculate your tax charges? What are the rates?
system generated
tax rates are enter into the system by customer
How do you keep your tax rate information up to date?
through 4th shift maintenance
Tax rates are changed when needed
Why are credit memos used?
to amend invoices, move cash or SIWO
To enter returns and correct errors on invoices
How are the revenue, receivable, freight and tax accounts
configured for each invoice type?
general ledger coding format of xx-xx-xx-xxxx
revenue is by product line, freight and tax go to the correct
freight or tax account
How are adjustments to closed periods handled?
Adjustments made in current period
processed in next period
Do you ever recognize revenue from a single transaction over
multiple periods?
no
Yes, these are service contracts
When do you recognize revenue?
at time of shipment to customer
% per month example if 12 month contract we recogize
1/12 per month
How many General Ledger accounts do you distribute to?
35
When do you create or recognize outstanding receivables?
create debtor at time of shipment/review daily until
cleared by payment
When product is shipped an invoice is generated
Do you distribute earned and unearned revenue? What are the
GL accounts?
only earned revenue/document sales revenue a/c nos.
Yes, service contracts
Do you have unbilled receivables?
vat/interest on GE cashpool
No
no
Yes
Do you assign non-revenue credit to sales people?
no
No
How do you maintain and assign salespeople to customers?
n/a
At the order line item level
Do you track Sales Territory Information?
weekly pole reports
Yes
Is revenue
information?
assignment
associated
with
sales
people
How is Sales Territory Information for tracking purposes derived?
(for example, customer, salesperson, and so on)
sales by country reports
Rep Code
Do you maintain mandatory and/or optional reviews in your
orders cycle for credit risk, legal compliance, and/or other
approvals?
yes, credit checks etc..
This is performed by Charlotte
Do you have sales representatives? How many?
yes, 3
15 external reps.
How do you breakup territory for sales?
n/a
By geographic region
How do you assign commissions?
we don't
by product and rep code
Do you automatically determine the general ledger accounts for
specific transactions (for example, receivables, freight, tax,
unearned revenue, unbilled receivables, and so on) during
Invoice Entry?
yes
Yes
How do you enter/manage a credit amount owed to the customer credit bal. shows on cust acc. and is refunded upon a
by your company?
request in writing
place against customer AR Balance if not used within 6
months it is moved to the Customer Advance account
How do you enter/manage a credit amount owed to your
company by the customer
request a refund in writing
N/A
Do you send customers statements?
yes
Yes
Do you ever adjust receivables?
no, except throught bad debt write off
Yes
How do you adjust receivables?
through bad debt write off
Credit memos, write-offs
Do you limit the amounts when adjusting receivables?
depends on write offs, the system will automatically
write off a debit balance less than .99p
Yes
What do your agings look like?
customers are placed into buckets depending on age of
debt
See attached
Do you have multiple "remit tos"?
yes
Yes
How are multiple "remit tos" determined for a customer?
amount is split between cust accounts
By payment method
What credit information is tracked for each customer?
aging
credit limit and payment history
Do you charge finance charges?
not at present
No
How do you charge finance charges?
n/a
N/A
Do you send dunning letters to customers?
yes
Yes
Do collectors actively call customers on delinquent items?
yes
Yes
What is the process for tracking actions to collect on delinquent
accounts?
a manual diary system is kept
Notes on item and or account
Is the process for tracking actions to collect on delinquent
accounts automated?
manual
Follow up flags can be set to automate process
Do terms and conditions of customer agreements and/or
payment terms change based upon the status of their accounts? no
Yes
Do you monitor your collectors performance?
yes
Yes
What metrics are used to monitor collections performance?
past dues as a % of total debt
Past due > 60 days, Total past due, collection effciency %
How do you monitor customer account status?
through the artb, exported into excel and data sorted.
This is done on a weekly basis, and customers are
chased on a daily basis
Check the system and pull reports
Do you have a separate aging for collectors?
no
We have separate portfolios and customers accounts can
be aged by portfolio
Do you use Debit Memos?
no
No
How are Debit Memos accounted for?
n/a
N/A
Why are Debit Memos used?
n/a
N/A
What items appear on Debit Memos?
n/a
N/A
Do you use Customer Account Credit Memos?
see line 29
Yes
How are Customer Account Credit Memos accounted for?
see line 30
Credit memo is applied against outstanding invoice or
invoices
Why are Customer Account Credit Memos used?
see line 31
To credit returns, price variances, freight or sales tax
What items appear on Customer Account Credit Memos?
see line 32
part number, description and amount
How are adjustments to closed periods handled?
see line 62
N/A
How do your customers generally pay invoices?single check -single invoicesingle check -- multiple invoicesmultiple checks -multiple invoices
all
Both
Do you use more than one bank account and/or cash account?
no
Yes
Do you have customers who pay other customers invoices?
no
Yes
Do you use lockboxes?
no
Yes
How many lockboxes do you use?
n/a
What types of payments are received and input? (for example,
check, cash, and so on)
cheque, cash, credit/debit cards, bacs, tt's
checks, credit cards, ach's, wires
How do you receive and input payments?
post, bank statement, c/c report. Items are manually
entered onto system
Checks received into bank lockbox. ACH/Wires into
differenct bank account, credit cards via ACH - checks are
keyed by bank and transmitted nightly to our system
Do you receive deposits and/or prepayments?
we receive pre payments
Yes
Do you receive non-customer related payments?
yes
Yes
How are non-customer related payments accounted for?
manually entered onto system
manual journal entry when check hits lockbox
How do you handle payments without remittance information?
refer to AR ledger
call the customer
How do you handle payments from unknown sources?
Barclays are notified and investigate the payment on
our behalf (for all bacs/or transfer payments) Cheques
that are received with no customer detail what so ever
are return to the bank on which they are drawn against,
with a covering letter explaining why
call the bank
What are your policies and procedures about adjusting
payments?
we don't adjust payments
N/A
What are your policies and procedures about reversing
payments?
duplicated entries are reversed after verification
Payments are only reversed if cash is misapplied
How often do you adjust payments?
n/a
N/A
How often do you reverse payments?
infrequently
Not often
How many payments do you receive in a month?
between 750 to 900
2000
How many checks are returned by the bank in a period?
none, 2 received in last year
1 every 3 to 4 months
What are the reasons for checks being returned by the bank?
insufficient funds
NSF
Who applies cash?
Credit controller
Cash app team
How is cash applied?
manually
Keyed by bank and file transmitted nightly, balance is
applied manually by cash team
Do you create chargebacks (Debit Items) for customer
deductions?
no
Yes
How do you enter/manage a credit amount owed to the customer
by your company?
see line 79
Credit remains on AR for 6 months then move to the
Customer Advance Account
How do you enter/manage a credit amount owed to your
company by the customer
see line 80
N/A
Do you send dunning letters to customers?
Yes
see line 91
Do you default other information (payment terms, shipping, tax)
at the Customer Level?
no
Yes, payment terms and sales tax
Can this information be changed and updated at the time of
order entry?
yes
Yes
Do you require hard copy of the customer purchase order prior to
order entry?
yes
Yes
Do you do check customer credit prior to entering an order?
system automatically checks
Yes
Do you take orders only from approved customers?
yes
Yes
Do you use the invoice as a ship confirmation to the customer?
yes
Yes
Do you allow partial payments of invoices?
no
Yes
When do you send the invoice. With each shipment?
yes
Yes
How many "bill-tos" do you maintain for each customer?
we only have the facility to have one billing address per
custome account although we are able to have a
number of ship to addresses
1 bill to
Do you use the invoice as a ship confirmation to the customer?
no we have a separate shipping note that is sent with
the goods, invoices are posted separate to the goods
Will credit memos be issued automatically upon return, or will
you have special procedures for credit memos?
credits are manually raised after approval
Credit memos are issued only after the returned product
has been evaluated by Quality
How does the credit department get the return goods goodsin return docket with customer correspondence is
information?
passed to customer service for the credit to be raised
From our RMA System
Is a hard copy credit memo issued?
yes
Yes
How do you group your customers for credit limits, credit checks? see line 4
N/A
How do you group your customers for statements?
N/A
see line 5
How do you group your customers for interest charges for late
payments?
no
Do not charge interest or finance charges
How do you group your customers for payment rules?
by age of debt
Signed Contracts or PO
Do you send customers statements?
see line15
Yes
Do you receive deposits and/or prepayments?
see line 116
Yes
Bullet Points / Notes
Gaps (Prima faci)
is it not by creation of the "ship" transaction in f/shift??
examples??
Autoinvoice to be scheduled ???
what are they?
International Sales Rep Balances
What are the adjustments
What are the adjustment and approval limits
reference line no.
reference line no.
reference line no.
reference line no.
reference line no.
What is ACH. Are the credit card payments also coming in through the bank transmission or Lockbox
reference line no.
reference line no.
reference line no.
reference line no.
reference line no.
reference line no.
reference line no.
Questions to Client
Replies / Comments UK
Replies / Comments US
How do you maintain your Fixed Asset Accounting
data?
asset details maintained on spreadsheet, accounted for in
summary level within 4th shift general ledger
Manually using Best Fixed Assets
Which operations/processes do you want to streamline manual interface between spreadsheet and computer
for Fixed Asset Accounting?
system
Need to understand what Oracle is capable of
handling
Which operations/processes do you want to eliminate
for Fixed Asset Accounting?
manual interface between spreadsheet and computer
system
Need to review current process to proposed process
Are there any time-intensive Fixed Asset Accounting
operations/processes that need to be addressed?
no
Yes
How do you close an accounting period for Fixed Asset
Accounting?
in line with our accounting proceedures
Add new Fixed assets to Best and perform monthly
depr. Reports
Is the schedule to close an accounting period for Fixed
Asset Accounting documented?
yes
No
How long does it take to close an accounting period for
Fixed Asset Accounting?
I/2 hour
30 minutes
How long should it take to close an accounting period
for Fixed Asset Accounting?
few minutes
Don't Know
Is closing an accounting period for Fixed Asset
Accounting a hard close or a soft close?
hard close
Soft
How are adjustments to closed periods for Fixed Asset
Accounting handled?
processed in the next period
N/A
How do you open an accounting period for Fixed Asset
Accounting?
in line with our accounting proceedures
N/A
Is the schedule to open an accounting period for Fixed
Asset Accounting documented?
yes
No
How long does it take to open an accounting period for
Fixed Asset Accounting?
?????????
N/A
Who performs the tasks associated with opening an
accounting period for Fixed Asset Accounting?
Finance Manager
Controller
Who performs the tasks associated with closing an
accounting period for Fixed Asset Accounting?
Finance Manager
Controller
Where in your accounting cycle do you run standard
reports and statements for Fixed Asset Accounting?
at month end
End
What business performance statistics do you monitor
for Fixed Asset Accounting?
none
None
What are your Fixed Asset Accounting reporting
requirements with respect to summary or detail
formats? Provide report listing.
asset purchases/disposals/depreciation
Detail Reporting of depr and asset value
What reports do you currently generate to meet your
Fixed Asset Accounting reporting requirements?
Provide examples of each. Include source (could be
manual), user, frequency, or number of copies.
asset purchases/disposals/depreciation
complete asset listing
Is there any Fixed Asset Accounting reporting
requirement that your current set of reports does not
meet?
no
No
Are your asset categories unique for each combination
of asset cost account in your general ledger,
depreciation method, useful life and prorate
convention?
yes
Are fixed assets which use the same asset account in
your general ledger, ever split into more than one
group for accounting or tax depreciation purposes?
no
Do you group fixed assets which use different asset
accounts for reporting purposes?
no
Yes
Yes
Do you have a special name (alias) for each category? no
Yes, Office Equip, Leasehold Impr., Production & Lab,
Tooling, Computer, CIP
How is your corporate and tax information stored now? ????????????
Best FA System
What systems are you using to store asset, vendor,
employee and location information now?
Hard copy of invoices, Asset Tags
4th shift, excel, word
What is the current accuracy of your asset information? 100%
100%
What are your prorate conventions?
long leasehold land &buildings(over period of
lease)/plant&machinery(3 to 7 years)/fitting &equipment(4
to 8 years/ motor vehicles(5 years)
N/A
Do you have any depreciation ceilings? For luxury
items?
no
No
What are your Investment Tax Credit rates, recapture
rates and ceiling rates?
What are your depreciation methods?
What are your useful lives?
???????
straight line
see line 30
N/A
GE Policy
GE Policy
How do you account for prior period additions,
retirements or other transactions in your general
ledger?
prior period transactions form part of the brought balances No prior period adjustments
Do you depreciate leased items, or leasehold
improvements?
yes
Yes
How many fixed assets does your company own? How
are they numbered?
650
250 and the numbering seq. is 000XXX
Do you need to track fixed assets that are not
depreciated?
no
Yes
Do you track different information for different types of
fixed assets?
no
Yes
What basic information about each asset do you store? type, value, date of purchase, vendor
Description, serial #, asset location, date, depr
method, etc.
Are your fixed assets located in several countries?
How do you number your fixed assets?
Do you have physical tags on your fixed assets?
Do you track leased assets using Oracle Assets?
no
sequentially
yes
no
Yes
000XXX
Yes
No
What is your oldest date placed in service for your
fixed assets?
15 years
1990
Do you have standard depreciation for your fixed
assets?
yes
Yes
Do you associate your fixed assets with vendors?
yes
No
Do you use multiple currencies when purchasing,
depreciating, reporting or posting financial information
about you fixed assets?
yes
No
What system do you use presently to do your fixed
asset accounting?
see above
Best Fixed Assets
What systems do you use to track and inventory your
fixed assets?
4th shift, excel,
Best Fixed Assets
Does your current system track asset possession by
employee, department, or cost center?
What are your monthly reporting requirements?
Where are your fixed assets located?
cost center/dept
asset purchases/disposals/depreciation
in premises at Marlow and at subcontractors(tooling)
No
Original Amt, monthly Depr, total depr, NBV
Wilmington, UK, Hann
How do you report property values for tax purposes?
n/a
Yes
Do you have special names for each location
(aliases)?
Do you assign fixed assets to employees?
In what countries are your fixed assets located?
no
yes
United Kingdom
Yes
No
USA, UK, Germany
Explain the accounting structure and reporting methods each class of asset has a unique general ledger code for
used to consolidate your asset cost and depreciation
balance sheet cost and depreciation and for p&l a/c
expenses?
depreciation
Manually entered into system from CIP account
Do you post your asset financial information in
summary or detail to your general ledger?
in summary
Summary
How many corporate depreciation books do you
maintain? If more than one, why?
one
How many different tax depreciation books do you
maintain in each of your companies? How are they
used?
Do you adjust depreciation in your tax books?
one
no
1
Yes
Do you maintain any other types of depreciation or
asset valuation books?
no
No
How often do you calculate depreciation for corporate
accounting, tax, and capital budgeting purposes?
monthly
Every Quarter
How many fixed assets do you purchase each
accounting period?
between 1 and 5
Varies
How often do you transfer large numbers of fixed
assets from one person, cost center, or location to
another?
never
rarely
How often, and for what reasons, do you change fixed
asset depreciation method or life for a single asset?
never
If Corporate changes useful life or depr. Method
How often do you change the useful life, depreciation
method, or prorate convention of all fixed assets in a
category?
How many retirements do you do per period?
never
between 1 and 3
Rarely
Varies
Do you amortize adjustments made in the prior period
over the remaining useful life of the asset or do you
expense the catch- up depreciation in the current
period?
expense catch up in current period
Expense catch-up in current month
Do you want your fixed assets automatically added
from your feeder Accounts Payable system?
What Accounts Payable system do you use?
yes
4th shift
Yes
4th Shift
Do you ever retire fixed assets in the same period they
were purchased?
no
No
How often do you perform physical inventories of your
fixed assets?
Do you cycle count your assets?
Once every 5 years
No
annually
no
Bullet Points / Notes
Gaps (Prima faci)
