Compute/Update Depreciation Computation Data Utility

The Compute/Update Depreciation Computation Data utility was developed to assist you in verifying the relationship of the Depr Start Date field to the Current Depr Yr and Days/Pds Remaining fields.

The relationship between these fields and the Depr Start Date is critical to the accurate calculation of depreciation.

Note: All values computed by the system in this utility are based on the assumption that the value in the Depr Start Date field is correct. The system displays its own computation, based on the Depr Start Date value, for the Current Depr Yr and Days/Pds Remaining fields as well as existing data for these fields from the Asset Master record. The system will never overwrite any manually entered data already existing in the Current Depr Yr and Days/Pds Remaining fields unless you run the Update portion of the utility.

You can run this utility for one asset/item number, a range of asset/item numbers, or all asset/item numbers. The system prints a report by asset/item number and by book, based on the depreciation start date, that includes a side-by-side comparison of both the current values displayed in the Asset Master and the system-computed the values for the Current Depr Yr and Days/Pds Remaining fields, based on the data in the Depr Start Date field.

Although you can print this report for all selected records, you can also print the report for exceptions only, which may make discrepancies easier to identify. After the report has printed, you may decide to activate the option in this utility that applies the system-computed values to your asset records. The update portion of the process updates the existing data in the Current Depr Yr and Days/Pds Remaining fields in the Asset Master record by replacing your data and writing the system-computed values to these fields. Please refer to the specific documentation for this utility for additional operational information.

If you choose not to apply the system-computed values, you may need to manually adjust some values in the Current Depr Yr and Days/Pds Remaining fields or, in some cases, the Depr Start Date field, to ensure the accuracy of depreciation calculations.

Warning: Because the Update portion of this utility will overwrite your existing data with system-generated data, you should always carefully review and agree with the reported results on a record-by-record basis before performing the Update process. (Note that the Update process is similar to posting routines in that you must first print the report before you can proceed with the Update process.) Never run the Update process as a matter of routine unless you are in agreement with the system data field changes that will take place for each Asset Master record. As an additional safeguard, ensure that a timely data backup has been performed.

This utility is designed as a diagnostic tool rather than a sophisticated system program. Note that fully depreciated records will also print as exceptions in the report. If you have named your depreciation method codes logically, however, it should be easy to match your codes against depreciation start dates in order to eliminate these records from the valid exceptions.

Because fully depreciated records will also print as exceptions on the report, you may find that you do not want to apply all the system-computed values to your asset records. In this event, you can use the system-generated report to guide you in manually adjusting the values in the Current Depr Yr, Days/Pds Remaining, and/or, in some cases, the Depr Start Date fields.

Note, however, that if you have carefully reviewed and agree with the system-computed changes for assets that are NOT fully depreciated, there will be no harm in also updating the system-computed changes for fully depreciated assets.

Under normal circumstances, when an asset is fully depreciated and the last period of life for the asset is closed, the values in the Current Depr Yr and the Days/Pds Remaining fields automatically change to 0 and display as such in the G/L Book Info tab and Other Books Info subtask of the Manage Asset Master Information screen (and on the Manage Asset General Ledger Book Information and Manage Asset Other Books Information screens).

Note:

During the Close Fixed Assets Accounting Period process, the system compares the value in the Current Depr Yr field with the last year of useful life from the depreciation method code attached to the Asset Master record. If there is a match AND the value in the Days/Pds Remaining field is equal to 1, the system does NOT increment the value in the Current Depr Yr field, but instead changes it to 0 (along with the value in the Days/Pds Remaining field.) This condition signifies that the asset has reached the end of its useful life as defined in its depreciation method.

When you update a fully depreciated record with this utility, the Update process will replace the zeroes in these fields with system-computed values based on the Depr Start Date field. If there is no book value remaining, however, the system will never compute additional depreciation, regardless of the values in the Current Depr Yr and the Days/Pds Remaining fields.

You must print the Compute/Update Depreciation Computation Data Report before you can run the Update process. You can print the report for all selected records or for exceptions only. This report provides supporting detail to the Update process and should be retained as part of the system audit trail.

Either version of the report prints columns for the following data:

Asset Master Record Data
Asset No/Item No
Short Description
Book No
Depr Method Code
Depr Start Date
Current Depr Yr
Days/Pds Remaining
Values Computed by System
Current Depr Yr
Days/Pds Remaining

Although you must print the Compute/Update Depreciation Computation Data Report before you can run the Update process, you can also print the report without updating so that you can review the data first. If you exit from the selection screen or change your selections, however, you must print the report again before you can run the Update process.

You should run this utility to verify and/or update your data after you initialize your historical records, after you reconcile the detail Asset Account and Accumulated Depreciation Account values with your General Ledger, but before you compute depreciation for the first time.

After initialization, you may want to run this utility on a regular basis each period as part of your company's standard procedures, to confirm that your period additions have been initialized correctly. For this monthly process, you would normally expect to print only the Exceptions, and would not expect to run the Update action for this utility unless your review has made it clear that the records on the report would be corrected by running the process.

Note that the same validations and rules by which depreciation is computed are followed in this report. For example, any record in which the Auto Calculate Depreciation check box is not selected will not be included in the report, just as any such record will be skipped during depreciation calculations.

Field	Description
Compute/Update Amount Taken Purchase Year-To-Date	Use the Compute/Update Amount Taken Purchase Year-To-Date utility to verify the relationship of the value in the Amt Taken Purch YTD field against the values in the Current Depr Yr and Days/Pds Remaining fields. Initialization data in the Amt Taken Purch YTD field is critical to the accurate calculation of depreciation, as is the data in the Current Depr Yr and Days/Pds Remaining fields. Historical data entry in the Amt Taken Purch 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. Note: 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 Amt Taken Purch YTD value will automatically display as zero]. The verify and update portions of this utility follow methodologies similar to those in the Compute/Update Depreciation Computation Data utility, except that this utility computes and compares values in the Amt Taken Purch YTD field in Asset Master records, instead of the Current 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 Purch YTD fields in Asset Master (provided you have not entered data in these fields) when you close the current accounting period. For additional information, please refer to the specific documentation for the Amt Taken Purch YTD field for the G/L Book Info tab of the Manage Asset Master Information screen. Warning: Because the Update portion of this utility will overwrite your existing data with system-generated data, you should always carefully review and agree with the reported results on a record-by-record basis before performing the Update process. The Update process is similar to posting routines in that you must print the report before you can continue with the Update process. Never run the Update process as a matter of routine unless you are in agreement with the system field changes that will take place for each Asset Master record.

Field

Description

Compute/Update Amount Taken Purchase Year-To-Date

Use the Compute/Update Amount Taken Purchase Year-To-Date utility to verify the relationship of the value in the Amt Taken Purch YTD field against the values in the Current Depr Yr and Days/Pds Remaining fields. Initialization data in the Amt Taken Purch YTD field is critical to the accurate calculation of depreciation, as is the data in the Current Depr Yr and Days/Pds Remaining fields. Historical data entry in the Amt Taken Purch 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.

Note: 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 Amt Taken Purch YTD value will automatically display as zero].

The verify and update portions of this utility follow methodologies similar to those in the Compute/Update Depreciation Computation Data utility, except that this utility computes and compares values in the Amt Taken Purch YTD field in Asset Master records, instead of the Current 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 Purch YTD fields in Asset Master (provided you have not entered data in these fields) when you close the current accounting period.

For additional information, please refer to the specific documentation for the Amt Taken Purch YTD field for the G/L Book Info tab of the Manage Asset Master Information screen.

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

Costpoint Online Help

Compute/Update Depreciation Computation Data Utility

Contents