How are depreciation methods used in Fixed Assets?

Depreciation method codes from this screen are assigned to the G/L book for depreciable assets based on "Years" and to optional books in Asset Master records, as applicable.

Each depreciation method code supplies specific computation parameters for the system to access during depreciation calculations, including useful life, basis for depreciation (Date of Purchase or Fiscal Year), and percentage of total depreciation per year.

How can I change depreciation method code data on this screen?

• You can change the Depreciation Method Description at any time.
• You cannot actually change the Depreciation Method Code itself, as you must first procedurally delete the unwanted code and then add the desired code.
• If a depreciation method code from this screen is currently in use (such as, it has been assigned to the Depr Method Code field for any book in either an Asset Master record or an Asset Template record), you cannot delete that code from this screen. In order to delete it, you must first assign a different code in the applicable records (either manually or by using the Manage Asset Master Global Changes function).
• When the depreciation method code is no longer in use by any Asset Master or Asset Template record or on the Manage Projected Asset Purchases screen, you can delete it from this screen.

What is the difference between a Date of Purchase basis and a Fiscal Year basis for depreciation?

Although many companies use a Date of Purchase basis in depreciation methods associated with their accounting (G/L) book and a Fiscal Year basis in depreciation methods associated with their other (tax) books, there is no right or wrong methodology applicable to all companies. You should use whichever methodology is currently in place at your company.

• Date of Purchase

  If you link a Date of Purchase basis with your depreciation method, the system references the date of purchase for each asset. This "starting" point for each book is normally entered in the Depr Start Date field in Asset Master records.

  For this basis, depreciation begins in the month of purchase (or in the month following the purchase, and so on, depending on your company policy) and continues for the specified number of purchase years of useful life.

  Regardless of where you are positioned in your current fiscal year, the Date of Purchase basis expenses depreciation in the first year that is proportional to the amount of time that the property was owned during the fiscal year.

  Unless the date of purchase coincides with the first period of your fiscal year (in which your purchase year is identical to your fiscal year), a purchase year crosses fiscal years.

• Fiscal Year

  If you link a Fiscal Year basis with your depreciation method, the system expenses the full annual depreciation amount in the current fiscal year and allocates the annual amount among the number of accounting periods remaining in the first fiscal year.

  Use of the Fiscal Year basis generally accelerates depreciation in the first fiscal year when compared to depreciation using the Date of Purchase basis (except when the date of purchase coincides with the first period of the fiscal year).

  If you use a half-year convention, the same methodology is applicable, but the percentage of annual depreciation is half that of a full year in the first and last years.

  Computation Results Compared Using DP Basis and FY Basis

  In the basic example below, consider the differences in current period depreciation calculations for a $15,000 asset, with a useful life of five years, no salvage value, using straight-line depreciation, for both the DP and FY basis.

  For this example, the current fiscal year is calendar year 2005, the current accounting period is 8, the number of accounting periods in the fiscal year is 12, and the purchase date and start date for the asset are 8-1-05.

  	DP Basis (Date of Purchase)	FY Basis (Fiscal Year)
  Asset Cost	$ 15,000	$ 15,000
  Year Based On	Purchase Year	Fiscal Year
  Annual Depreciation	$ 3,000	$ 3,000
  Current Pd Depr Exp	$ 250	$ 600
  Amt Booked FY05	$ 1,250	$ 3,000

  The computed annual depreciation expense is identical for the DP and FY basis. The current period depreciation expense, however, is different. Because there are period differences for each basis, the amount booked for the fiscal year is also different.

• Using the DP basis for depreciation, the annual depreciation expense of $3,000 is divided by the number of accounting periods (12) in the purchase year. One period of expense ($250) is charged for the current accounting period, irrespective of the fiscal year dates.
• Using the FY basis for depreciation, the annual depreciation expense of $3,000 is divided by the number of accounting periods remaining in the fiscal year. In this example, because "8" is the current accounting period, there are only five accounting periods remaining in the fiscal year over which to spread the annual depreciation cost of $3,000. The current period is included in the remaining periods.
• Use of the FY basis accelerates depreciation in the first year by $1,750 more than with use of the DP basis ($3,000 minus $1,250 = $1,750).

Are there different setup requirements for Date of Purchase and Fiscal Year basis depreciation methods?

If you have assigned a Date of Purchase basis to one or more depreciation methods on this screen (Manage Depreciation Methods) and you have also selected the Added to current period amount option in the System-Wide Configuration for Depreciation Calculations group box on the Configure Fixed Assets Settings screen, the system displays a soft warning message before computing depreciation. The message informs you that you have to first setup historical fiscal year and period data on the Manage Fixed Assets Fiscal Years and Manage Fixed Assets Accounting Periods screens.

This message displays automatically when you access the Compute Depreciation screen.

You should set up fiscal year and period data once for each year specified in the depreciation start date assigned to your Asset Master records (for which there is remaining book value). Be sure to insert the earlier fiscal years into the Manage Fixed Assets Fiscal Years screen instead of using the New Line function.

Alternately, if you do not want to add historical fiscal year and period data on the Manage Fixed Assets Fiscal Years and Manage Fixed Assets Accounting Periods screens, you can change the "Catch-Up" calculation option on the Configure Fixed Assets Settings screen to Spread among remaining periods in PY or FY option. This option spreads missed depreciation for prior periods among the remaining periods in the current purchase year or fiscal year.

Which screens should I set up during initialization and in which order?

The following screens should be set up in the order listed below, as applicable, before you begin to add data for an Asset Master or Asset Template record.

We also recommend that you refer to the more extensive documentation pertaining to each of the Fixed Assets setup items for additional information.

• Property Types: Set up required property types on the Manage Property Types screen. Property types are user-designated property categories, such as personal, real, government, and so on, that are assigned to each asset record.
• Classification Codes: Set up required classification codes on the Manage Classification Codes screen. Classification codes are user-designated classifications, such as automobiles, computers, equipment, and so on, that are assigned to each asset record.
• Subclass Codes: Set up optional subclass codes on the Manage Subclass Codes screen. Subclass codes are user-designated sub-categories that can be used to give more descriptive information. For example, you had defined "Vehicles" as a classification code, you might define subclass codes as "Trucks", "Automobiles", "Vans", and so on, to enhance the sorting potential for your asset records.
• Depreciation Methods: Set up required depreciation methods on the Manage Depreciation Methods screen if you plan to enter data for depreciable assets. The Depr Method Code field is a system-required validated entry for depreciable records in the G/L book Info tab in an Asset Master record and/or in an Asset Template.
• Asset Master Field Labels: Set up optional location code and government labels on the Manage Asset Master Field Labels screen. Use the location code and government label and data entry functionality to record additional information that may be specific to your company but for which there are no system-defined standard fields available. Three location labels are available in which to establish user-defined categories, such as "Building", "Room No", "Bin No", and so on. Fifteen government labels are available in which to establish user-defined categories, such as "Contract #", "Funding Source", and so on. You can use the corresponding optional data fields on this screen and Asset Template screens without first establishing labels for these fields. You may find, however, that screen inquiries and reports that use this data are more meaningful when appropriate labels have been designated for these fields.
• Location 1, 2 and/or 3 Codes: Set up optional location codes on the Manage Location 1, Location 2, and/or Location 3 Codes screens. Use the location code data entry functionality to record additional location information that may be specific to your company but for which there are no system-defined standard fields with the desired terminology (such as "Building", "Room No.", "Bin No", and so on.).
• Location Groups: Set up optional location groups on the Manage Location Groups screen. Use the location group functionality to identify and establish sets of location data that you can summarize into location "templates" (such as sites or other specific physical locations). Because many assets often share basic location data, the location group template makes location data entry more efficient on this screen and on the Asset Template records.
• Asset Master User-Defined Labels: Set up optional user-defined field labels on the Manage Asset Master User-Defined Labels screen. Use the user-defined label and data entry functionality to record additional information that may be specific to your company but for which there are no system-defined standard fields available. You can establish labels for four types of user-defined fields: Date, Number, Text, and Validated Text and set up a virtually unlimited number of labels. Unless you have designed a user-defined label as "Required" for data entry on this and on the Asset Template screens, user-defined data is normally optional. The use of validated text user-defined fields requires that you either specify the acceptable text options in advance via the Validated Text subtask link on the Manage Asset Master User-Defined Labels screen or that the validation occur against a user-specified selection from a pre-defined list of Costpoint tables and fields.
• Validated Text for User-Defined Fields: If you want to use optional user-defined validated text values, set these up in the Validated Text subtask link on the Manage Asset Master User-Defined Labels screen. Use validated text values to control the allowed (validated) data that can be entered. You can alternately bypass this subtask link and instead specify that validation occur against a defined Costpoint table and field.
• Asset, Depreciation Expense, Accumulated Depreciation and Gain/Loss Accounts: In your Costpoint Chart of Accounts, set up and link the account combinations on the General Ledger (G/L) screens that you will use in your asset master and asset template records. If you use reference numbers, set these up as well. The four types of G/L accounts used in Fixed Assets include:
  • Asset Accounts: The Acct-Org-Proj-Ref1-Ref2 combinations assigned as Asset accounts represent property "ownership." Asset accounts can include balance sheet combinations (for company-owned property), project combinations (for property that should be identified with a contract), and/or expense account combinations (for tracking items not capitalized). A valid asset account combination that consists of both an account and an organization (at a minimum) is system-required in both an asset master and asset template record for all types of depreciable and non-depreciable property.
  • Depreciation Expense Accounts: The Acct-Org-Proj-Ref1-Ref2 combinations set up as Depreciation Expense accounts specify where depreciation expense will be posted for depreciable assets. You can allocate depreciation expense for a single asset record to multiple depreciation expense account combinations. As a result, you must set up one or more depreciation expense account allocation codes that define the account combinations and allocation percentages for depreciation expense. Once you have established your "catalog" of depreciation expense account allocation codes, you can assign them to depreciable assets on a record-by-record basis, as desired. The item for Depreciation Expense and Allocation Codes in this initialization list refers to the setup of depreciation expense account allocation codes. A valid depreciation expense account allocation code that maps to at least one combination consisting of both an account and an organization (at a minimum) is system-required in both an Asset Master and Asset Template record for depreciable property.
  • Accumulated Depreciation Accounts: The Acct-Org-Proj-Ref1-Ref2 combinations set up as Accumulated Depreciation accounts specify where the offset to depreciation expense will be posted for depreciable assets. (These accounts are normally set up as offsets to the balance sheet asset accounts). You must set up an accumulated depreciation account code to represent each Acct-Org-Proj-Ref1-Ref2 combination to which you will post accumulated depreciation to. Because many asset records share the same accumulated depreciation account number combination, the ability to identify each combination with a code enhances the efficiency of data entry. The Accumulated Depreciation Account Codes in this initialization list refers to the setup of accumulated depreciation account codes. A valid accumulated depreciation account code that maps to a combination which consists of an account and an organization (at a minimum) is system-required in both an Asset Master and Asset Template record for depreciable property.
  • Gain/Loss Accounts: The Acct-Org-Proj-Ref1-Ref2 combinations set up as Gain/Loss accounts specify where gain or loss on the disposition of depreciable assets will be posted. A gain/loss account combination is required when you enter disposal data on the Manage Disposal Transactions screen. You can designate a default Gain/Loss account on the Configure Fixed Assets Settings screen.
• Accumulated Depreciation Account Codes: Set up accumulated depreciation account codes on the Manage Accumulated Depreciation Account Codes screen if you plan to enter data for depreciable assets. Each Accumulated Depreciation Account Code specifies an Acct-Org-Proj-Ref1-Ref2 combination to which the offset to depreciation expense will be posted for depreciable assets. The Code field in the Accumulated Depreciation Account group box is a system-required validated entry for depreciable assets in an Asset Master record and/or in an Asset Template.
• Depreciation Expense Account Allocation Codes: Set up depreciation expense account allocation codes on the Manage Depreciation Expense Acct Allocation Codes screen if you plan to enter data for depreciable assets. You can allocate depreciation expense from a single asset record to multiple depreciation expense account combinations, based on percentages. Each Depreciation Expense Account Allocation Code specifies the Acct-Org-Proj-Ref1-Ref2 combinations and allocation percentages to which depreciation expense will be posted for depreciable assets. Once you have established your "catalog" of depreciation expense account allocation codes, you can assign them to depreciable assets on a record-by-record basis, as desired. The Depr Expense Acct Alloc Code field is a system-required validated entry for depreciable assets in an Asset Master record and/or in an Asset Template.
• Disposal Types: Set up optional disposal types on the Manage Disposal Types screen to define disposal type codes to link with your asset records when you enter disposal data. For example, set up codes for disposal types such as "Scrapped", "Obsolete", "Stolen", and so on, to enhance the sorting potential for your asset records. The Disposal Type field is an optional validated entry on the Manage Disposal Transactions screen.
• Manage Fixed Assets Fiscal Years and Manage Fixed Assets Accounting Periods: Regardless of the date of purchase or Fiscal Year basis assigned to your depreciation methods, you must establish your accounting periods and fiscal years in Fixed Assets. The system refers to this data when computing current period or projected depreciation. Three separate screens are available to enable the setup of Fixed Assets Fiscal Year/period data, as follows:

  • Manage Fixed Assets Fiscal Years

  • Manage Fixed Assets Accounting Periods

  • Update FA FY/Pd Information from GL FY/Pd Information

  You should, at a minimum, enter data for the current fiscal year and data for the next two future fiscal years in Fixed Assets. If you do not set up this information before you compute depreciation, incorrect data may display in your Asset Master records after the system has computed depreciation.

  You can manually enter data on the Manage Fixed Assets Fiscal Years and the Manage Fixed Assets Accounting Periods screens or you can use the optional Update FA FY/Pd Information from GL FY/Pd Information screen to automatically populate these screens with fiscal year/period data that already exists in your General Ledger.

  You need not set up future fiscal years and periods in the General Ledger for Fixed Assets use, because functionality for both current and future fiscal year/period data resides in its entirety in Fixed Assets to accommodate the computation of current period and projected depreciation expense.

  Fiscal year/period data in Fixed Assets is not validated against data in the General Ledger. Although the system permits Fiscal Year/Period data in Fixed Assets that is inconsistent with G/L data, use extreme caution when entering different data or editing existing data. To avoid potential Fixed Assets calculation, posting, and closing problems, Fiscal Years/Period data in Fixed Assets should be identical to existing data set up for comparable fiscal years/periods in your General Ledger. The system will verify that the current fiscal year and periods from Fixed Assets are consistent with G/L data and will display a message if this is not true.

  When posting depreciation/disposal data from Fixed Assets, however, the system will always use the fiscal year/period data from the General Ledger.

  Special Circumstances:

  • Date of Purchase Basis Depreciation Methodology and the 'Catch-Up' Calculation Option

    If you have assigned a Date of Purchase basis to one or more depreciation methods on the Manage Depreciation Methods screen and you have also selected the Added to current period amount option in the depreciation 'Catch-Up' calculation for prior periods in the current depreciation (PY or FY) on the Configure Fixed Assets Settings screen, a warning message will display that will inform you that historical fiscal year and period data on the Manage Fixed Assets Fiscal Years and Manage Fixed Assets Accounting Periods screens must be set up.

    You should set up the historical year and period data on a one-time basis for each year specified in the depreciation start date assigned to your Asset Master records for which there is remaining book value for depreciation computation purposes, (For reporting purposes, you should set up year and period data going back in time for each Acquisition Fiscal Year/Period assigned to Asset Master records that should be included in reports. (Make sure that you insert the earlier fiscal years into the Manage Fixed Assets Fiscal Years screen instead of using the New Record function.)

    Alternately, if you do not want to add historical fiscal year and period data on the Manage Fixed Assets Fiscal Years and Manage Fixed Assets Accounting Periods screens for depreciation computation purposes, you can change the 'Catch-Up' calculation option on the Configure Fixed Assets Settings screen to Spread among remaining periods in PY or FY.

  • Compute/Update Depreciation Computation Data Utility

    Blanks will display (in the Curr Depr Yr and Days/Pds Remaining fields) in the report produced by running the Compute/Update Depreciation Computation Data utility for any record for which no corresponding FY/Pd data is found on the Manage Fixed Assets Fiscal Years and Manage Fixed Assets Accounting Periods screens for the fiscal year indicated in the Depr Start Date field(s) on Asset Master records.

    If you plan to use the Compute/Update Depreciation Computation Data utility to verify (and optionally update) data in the Depr Start Date, Current Depr Yr, and Days/Pds Remaining fields for your historical assets, you must also set up FY/Pd data in Fixed Assets for the historical fiscal years that correspond to the Depr Start Date field(s) from Asset Master records, as applicable.

• Project Depreciation Calculations: To compute projected depreciation expense, you must add Fixed Assets fiscal year/accounting period data for each future year for which you will compute projected depreciation expense.
• Configure Fixed Assets Settings: Enter control information in the following critical fields:

  • No., Book Name and Description in Books Detail group box

  • Length of Asset Number field

  • Enable automatic numbering for Asset Master records check box

  • System-Wide Configuration for Depreciation Calculations group box

  • System-Wide Configuration for DP Basis Depreciation Methods group box

  For more information, please refer to the documentation for the Configure Fixed Assets Settings screen.

  Because these critical fields establish your system configuration for depreciation calculation rules and in many data entry screens, make certain that you first read the documentation for these fields before you finalize your selections. Decide on your configuration options carefully during your initialization planning. In most cases, once you have selected the configuration and have begun depreciating in the system, you cannot change your selection without extensively editing the asset data.

  If you want to set up a default Gain/Loss account for the G/L Book and/or a default Asset Template at this time, you may do so. Alternately, you can safely add this optional data at any time after initialization.

• Configure Posting Settings: Specify the current Fixed Assets fiscal year, period, and subperiod to which depreciation disposal data and asset transfers will be posted to the General Ledger on the Configure Posting Settings screen. Unlike the rest of Costpoint, there can only be one fiscal year, period, and subperiod designated as current in Fixed Assets.

  Decisions relative to the field entries in this screen are very important to system processing, and you should be very careful to initialize these fields correctly. You cannot change the data in the Current Fiscal Year and Current Period fields after you have posted depreciation disposal entries and/or transfers to the General Ledger for the first time. You can, however, change the Current Subperiod field at any time, because it relates only to the posting timing.

  Once you have entered data in these fields and posted to the G/L for the first time, you will need to run a special process to close the Fixed Assets accounting period on the Close Fixed Assets Accounting Period screen. When you close the Fixed Assets period, the process will automatically populate the Current Fiscal Year and Current Period fields with the next sequential data. The system will automatically populate the Current Subperiod field in this screen with "1" as the default subperiod. If you have set up more than one subperiod, you can always edit this field to specify in which of your subperiods Fixed Assets postings should take place.

  The system validates the fiscal year, period, and subperiod on this screen against existing data in the General Ledger only during the posting process to the G/L. Although we recommend that the data on the Manage Fixed Assets Fiscal Years and Manage Fixed Assets Accounting Periods screens should be consistent with the Fiscal Year/period data in your G/L, if there is a discrepancy the system will validate against your G/L data.

  Historical depreciation is usually entered based on a pre-determined "live" date that corresponds with the date that balance sheet amounts were "frozen" for data entry. If your initialization date slips, which is often the case, you should make certain that you adjust the Current Fiscal Year and Current Period fields on this screen (as well as your historical data) before the first posting to the G/L takes place.

• Tracking Field Labels: Set up optional labels in the Manage Tracking Field Labels screen, as desired.
  Use the tracking field label and data entry functionality to optionally enter additional inventory, maintenance, and transfer tracking data for your property records. You can enter optional tracking data on the following screens:

  • Manage Asset Inventory Transactions

  • Manage Asset Maintenance Information

  • Manage Asset Transfer Information

  Although you can establish the labels at any time, you cannot enter the actual inventory, maintenance, and transfer data for a record until you have added the Asset Master for the record.

  You can set up inventory tracking labels for up to eight additional user-defined inventory categories, such as "Counted By", "Condition", and so on.

  You can set up maintenance field labels for up to nine additional user-defined maintenance categories, such as "Type", "Vendor", "Cost", and so on.

  You can set up transfer tracking labels for up to eight additional user-defined transfer categories, such as "Fld Chngd", "From", "To", "Reason", and so on.

  You can use the corresponding optional inventory, maintenance, and transfer data fields without first establishing labels for these fields. You may find, however, that screen inquiries and reports that use this data are more meaningful when appropriate labels have been designated for these fields.

  You will most likely find that the new change/audit trail functions available for transfers in Fixed Assets are more powerful and flexible than the older transfer functions available from the Transfer Records menu. Make sure that you read the item, Enable Audit Trail Functionality in this initialization list to determine the capability that will work best for you.

• Enable Audit Trail Functionality: You can use the Configure Asset/Template Change Settings screen to select specific actions to be performed by the system when you capture and store change data for fields/columns in the Asset Master and/or Asset Template records.
  You must first decide if you want the system to capture change data at all and, if so, whether you want to capture change data for Asset Master records, Asset Template records, or both. The system can capture the:

  • Asset/template record identifier

  • The name of each changed field

  • The old data as it existed before the change

  • The new data after the change

  • Information on the user who performed the change

  • The date and time of the change

  In order for the system to capture change details, you must select the desired fields/columns in the Asset/Template Field/Column Names subtask of the Configure Asset/Template Change Settings screen before you make changes to Asset Master and/or Asset Template records.

  Each check box that you select in the Asset/Template Field/Column Names subtask signifies that you want to capture data for that field for an Asset Master and/or Asset Template record each time you make a change to that data, regardless of the screen in which the change was made.

  Special Circumstances:

  • Table Sizes

    The tables that store the change data have the potential to become very large, depending on how many fields you select and how many changes you make to Asset Master/Template records. As a result, the default status for all check boxes for all rows in the Asset/Template Field/Column Names subtask have all been initially set as cleared.

    To limit the size of the audit log tables, you will probably select specific check boxes rather than all check boxes. You should capture change data for the fields you consider most significant, such as depreciation method, current period depreciation expense amount, location, and so on. You may decide not to capture change data for more insignificant data changes, such as spelling corrections made to description fields, and so on.

    Once the change details have been captured, use the View Asset Change History screen to view change data from the Asset Audit Log and the View Template Change History screen to view change data from the Template Audit Log. Use the Print Asset/Template Change History Report screen to print change data reports from the Asset Audit Log or the Template Audit Log.

    If the change storage tables become too large, you can perform a selective purge from the Purge Asset/Template Change History screen.

  • Transfer Functionality

    You can also use the Configure Asset/Template Change Settings screen to create G/L transfer entries for posting to the General Ledger. With the proper advance setup, the system can generate transfer entries automatically when you make changes to the asset (ownership) account, organization, and project fields and/or in the accumulated depreciation account code in an Asset Master record.

• Enable Autocreation Functionality: You can use the autocreation screens in Fixed Assets to manage the setup and functions of the optional autocreation feature. This feature can automatically create Asset Master records by importing data from Purchasing, Receiving, and/or Accounts Payable, thus reducing the need for duplicate data entry in Fixed Assets.

  To use the autocreation feature, you must perform the following initialization steps:

  1. If you are licensed for Purchasing and Receiving, select the preferred asset/item numbering configuration from the Configure Default Autocreation Asset Numbering screen and the preferred defaults in the Configure Autocreation Settings screen.
  2. On the Manage Autocreation Accounts screen, enter the Account/Organization/Project/Ref1/Ref2 combinations and/or wild card combinations for which it is permissible to create Asset Master records. You must assign a Receipt or Posting Timing Code to each row to signify whether data should be captured at time of Receipt or at time of A/P Posting.
  3. On the Configure Fixed Assets Settings screen, select the Enable automatic numbering for Asset Master records check box and enter the appropriate data in the Last Asset Number field.

  Once initialization is complete, you will perform the additional operational steps for autocreation functionality.

• Asset Templates: Use the optional template functionality to establish sets of default data for property that shares common characteristics by entering this data on the Manage Asset Template Information screen.

  A template functions only as the mechanism by which template data can be automatically imported into an Asset Master record. Once the data displays in the Asset Master record (after import), you can edit it on a field-by-field basis, if necessary, and there is no additional functionality for the template.

  The primary role for the Asset Template is to reduce the amount of repetitive manual data entry in Asset Master records that share mutual attributes. Another important advantage in the Asset Template functionality lies in the ability to incorporate consistent descriptions and data across property records, thus enhancing the quality of tracking and reporting functions within the system.

• Compute/Update Depreciation Computation Data: Use this optional utility from the Compute/Update Depreciation Computation Data screen to assist you in verifying the relationship of the Depr Start Date field to the Curr Depr Yr and Days/Pds Remaining fields in your Asset Master records. The relationship of initialization data in these fields is critical to the accurate calculation of depreciation (as is the data in the Amt Taken Purchase YTD field for users whose depreciation methods employ a Date of Purchase basis).

  This utility should be especially helpful when you are initializing historical data. Data entry in the Curr Depr Yr and Days/Pds Remaining fields in Asset Master records is particularly prone to error due to misinterpretation of the system "rules" for these fields and/or because of missing/inadequate historical data.

  The Update process is similar to posting routines in that you must first print the report before you can update. Never run the Update process as a matter of routine unless you agree with the system field changes that will take place for each Asset Master record.

  The Compute/Update Depreciation Computation Data utility produces a report based on the depreciation start date. The system first prints a side-by-side comparison of both the current values displayed in the Asset Master record and the values that the system computed for the Curr Depr Yr and Days/Pds Remaining fields, by book. Once the report has printed, the system displays a message which says that the report has been printed and will ask you if you want to update the data. The update will apply the system-computed vales to the Asset Master records. The process updates the existing data in the Curr Depr Yr and Days/Pds Remaining fields by replacing the existing data with the system-computed values.

  For new Asset Master records, the system will automatically compute the values in the Curr Depr Yr and Days/Pds Remaining fields (provided you have not entered data in these fields) when depreciation is computed for the first time, based on the date in the Depr Start Date field.

  Warning:

  Because the Update portion of this utility will overwrite your existing data with system-generated data, always carefully review and agree with the reported results on a record-by-record basis before updating

• Compute/Update Amt Taken Purchase YTD: Use this optional utility from the Compute/Update Amount Taken Purchase Year-To-Date screen to assist you in verifying  the relationship of the value in the Amt Taken Purchase YTD field to the value in the Curr Depr Yr and Days/Pds Remaining field. This utility will verify/update Asset Master data only for books in which the assigned depreciation method uses a Date of Purchase basis and whose depreciation start date is before the current Fixed Assets posting Fiscal Year, Period, and Subperiod. (For assets in the first period of a purchase year, the Amount Taken Purchase YTD value will be automatically display as zero.)

  This utility should be especially helpful when you are initializing historical data. Data entry in the Amt Taken Purchase YTD field in Asset Master records is particularly prone to error due to misinterpretation of the system "rules" for this field and/or because of missing/inadequate historical data. Initialization data in the Amt Taken Purchase YTD field is critical to the accurate calculation of depreciation (as is the data in the Curr Depr Yr and Days/Pds Remaining fields).

  The verify and update portions of this utility follow methodologies similar to those on the Compute/Update Depreciation Computation Data utility, except that this utility computes and compares values in the Amt Taken Purchase YTD field in Asset Master records (instead of the Curr Depr Yr and Days/Pds Remaining fields).

  For new Asset Master records, the system will automatically initialize and update the values in the Amt Taken Purchase YTD field in Asset Master records (provided you have not entered data in these fields) when you close the current accounting period.

  Warning: Because the Update portion of this utility will overwrite your existing data with system-generated data, always carefully review and agree with the reported results on a record-by-record basis before updating

Are multiple depreciation methods (straight line, double declining balance, and so on) supported?

Costpoint supports a virtually unlimited number of user-defined depreciation methods, including straight line, double declining balance, and so on, for use in the G/L book and the nine optional tax books.

No default depreciation methods are supplied with the system. During initialization, you must set up, on a "one-time" basis, your own "catalog" of book and tax depreciation methods, as applicable. As a result, it is the user's responsibility to maintain changes for any tax methods entered on this screen.

How should I set up this screen for a straight line depreciation method that uses a half-year convention?

The example below illustrates how you should set up data in the Table Window for a straight-line depreciation method with a five-year life using a half-year convention.

Example

Straight-Line Method, 5-Year Life, Half-Year Convention

How should I set up this screen for a declining balance depreciation method that employs a "switch to straight line" methodology?

If you use a declining-balance depreciation method, the cost of a depreciable asset will never be entirely written off as long as the asset continues to be depreciated. You must decide whether you want to switch to straight-line percentages, beginning with the year in which straight-line percentages will be greater than those calculated using declining-balance methodology.

If you choose to switch to straight-line, full depreciation of the asset can take place, and the percentages in the Total % to Depreciate and Cumulative % fields will be equal at "100.00%".

The example below illustrates how you should set up data in the Table Window for a declining-balance method with a 2.00 multiplier over a seven-year life. The percentages that begin in Year 5 reflect a switch to a straight-line method, which is the first year in which straight-line depreciation will exceed declining-balance depreciation.

Example

Declining-Balance Method, Switch to Straight-Line, 7-Year Life

Declining Balance Method (2.00 Multiplier), 7-Year Life

How should I set up this screen for a declining balance depreciation method that does NOT use a "switch to straight line" methodology?

If you use a declining-balance depreciation method, the cost of a depreciable asset will never be entirely written off as long as the asset continues to be depreciated. You must decide whether you want to switch to straight-line percentages, beginning with the year in which straight-line percentages will be greater than those calculated using declining-balance methodology.

If you choose to NOT switch to straight-line, depreciation calculations can take place, but the asset cannot be depreciated beyond the total percentage summed from the individual percentages from each year of life of the asset.

The example below illustrates how you should set up data in the Table Window for a declining-balance method with a 2.00 multiplier over a ten-year life. In this example, there is no switch to a straight-line method in any year, and the asset is not fully depreciated after its 10-year life.

Example

Declining-Balance Method, NO Switch to Straight-Line, 10-Year Life

Declining Balance Method (2.00 Multiplier), 10-Year Life

How should I set up this screen for a sum-of-the-years' digits depreciation method?

Sum-of-the-years'-digits depreciation methods, like declining-balance methods, are considered accelerated methods because higher depreciation charges occur in the earlier years and decline over the remaining life of the asset.

For sum-of-the-years'-digits calculations, the denominator of the fraction, which remains the same, is the sum of the digits representing the years of life. The numerator of the fraction, which changes each year, is the number of years of life remaining of the years for which depreciation is being computed. For example, for an asset with an estimated life of five years, the denominator is 5 + 4 + 3 + 2 + 1, or 15. For the first year, the numerator is 5, for the second year 4, and so on.

Example

Sum-of-the-Years'-Digits Method, 10-Year Life

Can I change the System-Wide Configuration for Depreciation Calculations option on the Configure Fixed Assets Settings screen?

You can change the System-Wide Configuration for Depreciation Calculations option, which specify whether to "Catch-Up" current year (fiscal or purchase year) depreciation in the current period or "Spread" depreciation over the remaining periods in the year, at any time on the Configure Fixed Assets Settings screen

Your configuration selection has no effect on the computation of annual depreciation; it only directs how the value for the Current Pd Deprecation field should be calculated.

Are there special issues to consider when changing depreciation methods for an asset once it has started depreciating?

Many users elect to change depreciation methods by allowing existing assets to continue depreciating under the "old" methodology until they are fully depreciated and then applying the "new" depreciation methods to all new assets only on a forward-going basis.

Some users make an exception to this strategy by also applying the "new" depreciation methods to assets with a long useful life, using the methodology illustrated below.

Assumptions for this example:

Old Depreciation Method: S/L 5

New Depreciation Method: DDB 200%

Both old and new depreciation methods use a Date of Purchase basis methodology.

In purchase year 1, the system expense is 20% ($1,200) for this asset using SL5 methodology. If you had used DDB200% methodology, the system expense would be 40% ($2,400) in purchase year 1.

For now, ignore the issue of going back to a prior year and simply address the change in the current purchase year on a forward-going basis. This asset is now on its second purchase year – any change you make to depreciation methodology will be reflected in full at the end of the second full purchase year. We'll ignore what happened in the first purchase year for this example.

We are short 20% going forward because we now want to use DDB200% methodology. It will be your decision on how to remedy this.

Do you want to plug the 20% missed in year 1 into current year 2 so that subsequent years 3-5 will be correct, as in the example below?

DDB 200%

Do you want to spread the 20% missed in year 1 over the remaining 4 years (including current year 2), as in the example below?

DDB 200%

Or, does the user want to develop any other methodology on how to handle the 20% missed in year 1?

Once the overall methodology decision has been made on how to handle the 20% missed in year 1, the user will need to create new depreciation methods with the desired years and percentages, as above.

For example, the illustrations above regarding percentage adjustments by year only apply to this sample asset that is currently in its second year of useful life. The user will need to set up percentages for new depreciation method DDB 200% for assets that are in their third year of life, fourth year of life, and fifth year, since different incorrect percentages have already been applied in the past based on the historical S/L methodology.

On which Fixed Assets screens can I enter, edit or view the depreciation method code?

You can enter, edit, or view the depreciation method code in the following screens:

• Manage Asset Template Information
• Manage Template Global Changes
• Manage Asset Master Information
• Manage Asset General Ledger Book Information
• Manage Asset Other Book Information
• Manage Projected Asset Purchases
• Manage Asset Master Global Changes
• Manage Autocreation Transactions
• Configure Asset/Template Change Settings
• View Asset Change History
• View Template Change History
• Purge Asset/Template Change History
• Compute/Update Depreciation Computation Data
• Compute/Update Amount Taken Purchase Year-To-Date

Can I print depreciation method code data from standard system reports?

The Depr Method Code field automatically or by selection prints in the following standard reports:

• Print Asset Master Detail Report
• Print Asset Template Detail Report
• Print Autocreation Transactions Edit Report
• Print Asset/Template Change History Report, as applicable
• Print Comparative Book Data Report
• Print Projected Asset Purchases Report
• Compute/Update Depreciation Computation Data
• Compute/Update Amount Taken Purchase Year-To-Date

Are there any Fixed Assets reports or processes in which I can select records by depreciation method code?

There are two standard system reports that feature a selection option to display data for the depreciation method code, as follows:

• Print Comparative Book Data Report
• Print Asset/Template Change History Report

  You can also create custom reports to select or sort depreciation method code (for example, using Impromptu).

  There are no system processes that include the depreciation method code as a selection or sort parameter.