AIR FORCE CIVIL ENGINEER COST ACCOUNTING SYSTEM REPORTS SHOULD BE USED MORE EFFECTIVELY

• NCJ Number: 67392
• Author(s): ANON
• Date Published: 1980
• Length: 17 pages
• Corporate Author: US Government Accountability Office
• Sale Source: US Government Accountability Office
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: REPORT TO THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE

Annotation

RESULTS ARE REPORTED FROM A GENERAL ACCOUNTING OFFICE REVIEW OF THE AIR FORCE CIVIL ENGINEER COST ACCOUNTING SYSTEM AT THREE INSTALLATIONS.

Abstract

BECAUSE BASE CIVIL ENGINEERING OFFICIALS DO NOT SUFFICIENTLY ANALYZE REPORTED DIFFERENCES BETWEEN PLANNED AND ACTUAL LABOR HOURS ON PROJECTS, THESE DIFFERENCES ARE NOT BROUGHT TO BASE MANAGEMENT'S ATTENTION FOR CORRECTION. THE REPORTS ARE NOT BEING EFFECTIVELY USED BECAUSE AIR FORCE REGULATIONS DO NOT REQUIRE ANALYSES OF THE STAFF-HOUR VARIANCES. FURTHER, BASE CIVIL ENGINEERING OFFICIALS DO NOT BELIEVE FORMAL POST ANALYSES ARE NECESSARY, SINCE CONTINUOUS PROJECT MONITORING ENABLES THEM TO IDENTIFY PROBLEMS AS THEY OCCUR. HOWEVER, THE CONTINUAL OCCURRENCE OF SIGNIFICANT LABOR-HOUR VARIANCES INDICATES PLANNING OR IMPLEMENTATION PROBLEMS THAT MANAGEMENT IS NOT SOLVING. BASE CIVIL ENGINEERING OFFICIALS CLAIM THESE VARIANCES ARE DUE TO INEXPERIENCED PLANNERS AND INADEQUATELY TRAINED AIRMEN, FACTORS THEY CLAIM ARE BEYOND THEIR CONTROL. THE SECRETARY OF THE AIR FORCE SHOULD BE DIRECTED TO REQUIRE CIVIL ENGINEERING OFFICIALS TO ANALYZE LABOR-HOUR VARIANCES AND CORRECT THE CAUSES. FINDINGS WERE DISCUSSED WITH AIR FORCE BASE PERSONNEL AND AIR FORCE HEADQUARTERS AND DEFENSE OFFICIALS. WHERE APPROPRIATE, THEIR COMMENTS HAVE BEEN CONSIDERED IN PREPARING THE REPORT. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED--RCB)