A river runs between them: An instructional case in professional services provided by a CPA firm
Abstract This instructional case presents a realistic situation in which there is a request for professional services by a CPA firm. Two towns, Weston and Easton, are involved in a dispute over the costs of a shared wastewater treatment facility. The mayor of Easton believes his town has paid more than its agreed-upon share of the facility's operating costs over the years. The mayor of Easton has approached a local CPA firm to “audit” the amount Easton has paid towards operation of the plant and determine the amount of the overpayment. Students are asked (1) to determine whether an audit can be performed, (2) if an audit cannot be performed, to decide what type of service is appropriate, (3) to research the applicable professional standards, (4) to assess whether the applicable standards can be met, (5) to develop a program that outlines the steps/procedures to be completed when providing the professional service to the mayor, and (6) to identify other concerns relevant to accepting this engagement.
The success story of international additives producer AG: A case study on categorization of investments under IFRS
International Additives Producer AG (IAP) recently announced ambitious forecasts regarding revenue and operating income to the capital market. These key performance indicators depend on the way IAP's investments are currently accounted for in its consolidated financial statements, a situation that is seriously questioned by the newly appointed auditor. In this context, the case requires the application of the relevant International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) regarding the categorization of investments for group reporting purposes. Specifically, Part I of the case requires the application of the control concept of IFRS 10 as well as the classification rules of IFRS 11 for joint arrangements, while Part II of the case introduces the assessment of significant influence according to IAS 28. Throughout the case the consequences of investment categorization on external reporting and related management incentives that arise from the interplay between financial reporting and capital markets, compensation contracts and additional disclosure requirements are discussed.
State estimation for integrated vehicle dynamics control
This paper discusses a vehicle controller and a state estimator that was implemented and tested in a vehicle equipped with a combined braking and chassis control system to improve handling. The vehicle dynamics controller consists of a feed forward body roll compensation and a feedback stability controller. The estimator is based on a non-linear vehicle model combined with an extended Kalman filter. The Kalman filter is also connected to an algorithm, which estimates the tyre-road friction coefficient. The developed estimator was tested in a vehicle. Good results were achieved for normal and extreme driving manoeuvers.