How Do You Account for Repairs to Factory Equipment
In accounting, repairs to factory equipment, or any capital assets, are handled in one of two ways: as either expenses or capital expenditures, depending on the nature and extent of the repair. Here’s how you account for each:
- Routine maintenance and minor repairs: These are treated as an expense and immediately deducted from profits in the income statement. This is because these types of repairs simply maintain the equipment’s existing condition without significantly enhancing its value or extending its useful life. Such costs are often referred to as “repair and maintenance expense.”
- Major repairs or upgrades: If a repair or upgrade significantly extends the useful life of the equipment, increases its capacity, or improves its efficiency, it is treated as a capital expenditure. Instead of being expensed in the current period, these costs are capitalized, meaning they’re added to the equipment’s carrying value on the balance sheet. These costs will then be expensed over the useful life of the equipment through depreciation.
Here’s an example of each:
- Routine maintenance: Your factory’s conveyor system requires regular lubrication and adjustment. The cost of the lubricants and the time spent by your maintenance crew are treated as repair and maintenance expense in the period they were incurred.
- Major repair/upgrade: You decide to replace the motor on your conveyor system with a more efficient one, significantly improving the system’s performance and extending its useful life. The cost of the new motor and its installation would be capitalized and added to the conveyor system’s carrying value. The new total value would then be depreciated over the system’s estimated remaining useful life.
Remember that the distinction between these types of costs can sometimes be a gray area and may require professional judgment. Always consult with an accountant or financial advisor when you’re uncertain about how to account for these costs.
Example of How to Account for Repairs to Factory Equipment
here’s a step-by-step example on how you might account for routine and major repairs to factory equipment:
- Routine Maintenance
Suppose a factory equipment needs annual maintenance costing $1,000. This amount is immediately recognized as an expense in the current fiscal year.
In the journal entry, you would debit “Repair and Maintenance Expense” for $1,000 and credit “Cash” or “Accounts Payable” (depending on whether you’ve paid the expense or not yet) for $1,000. This decreases your income for the fiscal year by $1,000. - Major Repairs/Upgrades
Now, consider a major repair where you replace a part of the factory equipment, costing $10,000, that extends its useful life by 5 years. This expense is capitalized and then depreciated over the extended life of the equipment.
For the initial capitalization, the journal entry would debit “Factory Equipment” for $10,000 and credit “Cash” or “Accounts Payable” for $10,000, depending on whether you’ve paid or not. This increases the carrying value of the factory equipment on the balance sheet but does not immediately impact your income statement.
For the depreciation, assuming you’re using straight-line depreciation and the equipment has no salvage value, you would then depreciate the $10,000 over the 5 additional years the repair is expected to extend the life of the equipment, which equates to a depreciation expense of $2,000 per year.So, each year for the next 5 years, you would debit “Depreciation Expense” for $2,000 and credit “Accumulated Depreciation” for $2,000. This would reduce the book value of the equipment and decrease your income by $2,000 each year for 5 years.
Remember that tax regulations about what can be expensed and what must be capitalized may differ from accounting rules, so it’s important to consult with an accountant or financial advisor.
