Effective Presentation Skills Quiz

Certified Cost Technician Practice Exam - 100 Questions and Answers

• This book contains 100 practice multiple-choice questions and answers for the Certified Cost Technician Exam.
• The questions and answers are not the actual exam questions and answers.
• It's a practice exam, and passing this one doesn't guarantee passing the actual exam.
• The author is an independent practice exam provider and is not affiliated with the certification organization.
• The practice exam aims to give a realistic taste of the actual exam.
• A passing score of 50% or higher on the practice exam indicates a higher chance of passing the actual exam.

Instructions

• Choose the best answer for each multiple-choice question.

Question 1

• In slow construction cycles, contractors often price jobs at or slightly below cost to keep their workforce employed and active in the market.
• This is known as At Cost Pricing.

Question 2

• The objective of developing or designing a facility or item is to minimize life-cycle costs and maximize value while meeting all performance criteria.
• This is categorized as Value Engineering.

Question 3

• Direct costs include material costs and labor costs.
• Overhead costs and subcontract costs are not direct costs.
• Examples of direct costs:
  • Material costs
  • Labor costs
• Examples of indirect costs:
  • Overhead costs
  • Subcontract costs
  • Fixed costs
  • Variable costs

Question 4

• Home office overhead does not include demobilization.
• Examples of home office overhead:
  • Depreciation
  • Advertising
  • Professional fees

Question 5

• The cost solely for completing project activities or assets is termed a direct cost.
• Direct Costs include the cost of materials directly used to make a product.

Question 6

• Direct costs can be either fixed or variable costs.
• Direct costs represent materials directly needed to produce a product.
• If usage of a material is directly linked to the manufacture of a good, it is a direct cost.
• Overhead costs and burden costs are not direct costs.

Question 7

• Market value fluctuates based on a buyer and seller's willingness.
• It also varies based on the prevailing conditions of the sale for a particular good.

Question 8

• Wage rate is not a Premium Pay example.
• Examples of Premium Pay include:
  • Travel time
  • Shortened shift time
  • Show-up pay

Question 9

• Defines the type of estimate as 'Order-of-Magnitude Estimates' when accuracy is expected to be within ±15% or -5%.
• Examples of estimates include:
  • Definitive Estimates
  • Budget Estimates
  • Order-of-Magnitude Estimates

Question 10

• Procurement and marketing are not part of jobsite overhead costs.
• Examples of jobsite overhead include:
  • Supervision
  • Mobilization
  • Temporary facilities

Question 11

• Indirect costs are not directly attributable to a particular activity or asset.
• Indirect costs are also categorized as overhead costs.
• Indirect costs can include subcontract costs, labor costs, and facilities and administrative (F&A) costs.

Question 12

• The best-known and most reliable measure of central tendency is the mean.

Question 13

• Subcontract costs are prices for performing a part of the project that the general contractor would not perform
• Examples:
  • Operating costs
  • Equipment costs
  • Subcontract costs
  • Labor costs

Question 14

• Escalation is a provision for increasing the cost of equipment, materials, or labor due to price changes over time.
• Examples include:
  • Allowance
  • Contingency
  • Escalation
  • Reserve

Question 15

• Reliability is a measure of the goodness of an inference.

Question 16

• Exceptions and assumptions are often used in the estimation section to document aspects of the project which no costs were included.
• For example, potential cost items that may be relevant, but have not been estimated.

Question 17

• Overhead is a cost inherent in an operation that cannot be directly assigned to a particular part of the work.
  • Examples include:
    • Profit
    • Overhead
    • Labor Burden
    • Bonds

Question 18

• The median is the middle point of a distribution, with half of the data above and half below it.

Question 19

• Fabricated Materials are based on shop drawings.
• Examples include:
  • Fabricated materials
  • Raw materials
  • Designed materials
  • Bulk materials

Question 20

• Exceptions to the organization's standard estimating practices should be identified
  • Examples include:
    • Exceptions
    • Exclusions
    • Assumptions
    • Reconciliation

Question 21

• Book value is the determined value of an outstanding stock or share of a corporation.
• Examples include:
  • Book Value
  • Forced Liquidation Value
  • Orderly Liquidation Value
  • Residual or Economic Value

Question 22

• Contingency is a sum added to an estimate for management activities outside of the project scope.
  • Examples include:
    • Reserve
    • Contingency
    • Allowance
    • Liquidated damages

Question 23

• Benchmarking is a technique to document cost comparisons.
  • Examples include:
    • Benchmarking
    • Estimate quality assurance
    • Assumptions
    • Reconciliation

Question 24

• Operating Profit is the earnings from an ongoing business after direct/project indirect costs have been deducted from sales revenue.

Question 25

• Sensitivity analysis is a test where parameters are altered to evaluate an analysis's outcome.
  • Examples include:
    • Modeling
    • Linear programming
    • Sensitivity analysis
    • Monte Carlo method

Question 26

• A performance bond is an insurance policy ensuring work completion.

Question 27

• Penalty is an amount of money that is due in a contract if the contractor fails to complete work on time.
  • Examples include:
    • Reserve
    • Contingency
    • Penalty
    • Liquidated damages

Question 28

• Ideation is not a typical Project Life Cycle stage.
  • Examples include:
    • Ideation
    • Planning
    • Execution
    • Termination

Question 29

• A union is an organization of wage earners that serves the interests of its members in compensation and working conditions.

Question 30

• Leasing does not offer an advantage of maintenance in-house.
  • Advantages of leasing include:
    • Minimal upfront cash outlay
    • Allowing for short-terms peak/seasonal use
    • Maintenance agreement by others
    • Including purchase options

Question 31

• Modeling is the act of creating a physical or mathematical representation of an object, system, or problem.

Question 32

• Mean is of most value in describing large data sets, such as salaries, ages, sale prices, and test scores.
• Examples include:
  • Mean
  • Mode
  • Median
  • Range

Question 33

• Indirect costs are not directly assignable to a product or process
• Indirect costs include
• Overhead costs
• Typically allocated across all activities on a predetermined basis.

Question 34

• Reserve is a resource included in estimates to cover the cost of known but undefined requirements.
• For example, requirements for an individual activity, work item, account, or sub-account.
  • Examples include:
    • Reserve
    • Contingency
    • Allowance
    • Liquidated damages

Question 35

• The normal distribution is bell-shaped and symmetrical.
• The mean, median, and mode are all equal.

Question 36

• Orderly Liquidation Value is the probable price of capital assets.

Question 37

• Depreciation is a fixed cost, not all fixed costs are depreciation.

Question 38

• Contingency is an amount added to an estimate to account for uncertain items, conditions, or events that may impact costs.
• For example:
  • Reserve
  • Contingency
  • Allowance
  • Bonus

Question 39

• Present Value is the value of a benefit or cost determined by discounting future cash flows to the base time.

Question 40

• Monte Carlo Method is a simulation technique used to evaluate mathematical expressions for determining a range or optimum value.

Question 41

• Fixed Capital is the total original value of physical facilities; not accounted for as a current expense.
• Examples include:
  • Operating costs
  • Manufacturing costs
  • Maintenance costs
  • Fixed capital

Question 42

• Activity-Based costing is a superior costing method.

Question 43

• Scrap value is the value of equipment for an auction.

Question 44

• Simulation is the application of a physical or mathematical model used to observe and predict performance.

Question 45

• Present Value is the value of a benefit or cost determined by discounting future cash flows to the base time.

Question 46

• Cost is the amount in money for goods and services.
  • Examples include:
    • Price
    • Cost
    • Bonus
    • Allowance

Question 47

• A By-product is typically an undesirable product.

Question 48

• Cash flow records the inflow and outflow of funds.
  • It is time-based, and often in a graphical format.

Question 49

• Freight forwarding is not the management cost for materials.
  • Examples include:
    • Carrying charges
    • Delivery schedule
    • Handling

Question 50

• Statistics is a branch of mathematics for collecting, analyzing, interpreting, and presenting data.

Question 51

• Market penetration pricing refers to the wide promotion of a product with a comparatively low introductory price.

Question 52

• Replacement cost is an adjusted cost.
• This includes the cost of similar items and standard adjustments and discounts.

Question 53

• T-tests refer to a popular test for determining that a population mean is equivalent to some value.

Question 54

• Depreciation refers to a form of capital recovery.
• It is a periodic portion of the asset's value.
• It is charged to current operations.

Question 55

• The measures of dispersion in numerical methods are variance, standard deviation, and range.

Question 56

• Plant overhead is not an example of a variable cost.
• Examples of variable costs include:
  • Packaging
  • Utilities
  • Marketing

Question 57

• Descriptive statistics are used when employing an average from a segment as an approximate average of complete data.

Question 58

• Descriptive statistics are used to calculate average marks to study student efficiency.

Question 59

• Scrap value is the value of equipment in monetary terms based on basic commodity value.
• Examples include:
  • Scrap value
  • Market value
  • Fair value
  • Salvage value

Question 60

• Kurtosis is a measure of the tails of a probability distribution.
• Other possible answers are skewness, histograms, and probability.

Question 61

• Predatory pricing is the practice of selling below cost to eliminate competition.
  • Examples include:
    • Market penetration pricing
    • Market pricing
    • Demand-oriented pricing
    • Predatory pricing

Question 62

• Range is the difference between the highest and lowest score in a distribution.
  • Examples include:
    • Quartile Deviation
    • Range
    • Standard Deviation
    • Variance

Question 63

• Internal Rate of Return is the compound rate used to discount costs/benefits in a project to equalize time values.

Question 64

• Statistical inference entails estimations, predictions, and generalizations about a population.

Question 65

• Chi-squared is a test used to evaluate how well theoretical distributions fit observed data.

Question 66

• Opportunity cost is the benefit that could be obtained from taking an alternative action.
  • Examples include:
    • Sunk costs
    • Opportunity costs
    • Valuation
    • Depreciation

Question 67

• Standard deviation is used to determine the amount each score deviates from the distribution mean.
  • Examples include:
    • Quartile Deviation
    • Range
    • Standard Deviation
    • Variance

Question 68

• Skewness measures the symmetry of a probability distribution.

Question 69

• Profit is not an indirect cost.
• Examples of indirect costs include:
  • Taxes
  • Contingency
  • Base wage

Question 70

• Maintenance in-house is not an advantage of renting.
• Examples of advantages of renting include:
  • Very efficient for low-percentage utilization
  • Can be returned at any time
  • Keep work progressing when there's an equipment breakdown

Question 71

• Chi-squared is not an item affecting purchase costs of materials.
  • Examples include:
    • Demurrage
    • Storage and Inventory
    • Order Quantity
    • Warranties

Question 72

• Probability measures the likelihood of an event.

Question 73

• Regression Analysis models the relationship between variables.

Question 74

• Range is not a measure of location.
• Examples include:
  • Mean
  • Mode
  • Median
  • Range

Question 75

• Salvage value is the monetary worth of equipment, recognizing parts can be used/resold.

Question 76

• Mode is the measurement occurring most frequently in a data set.
• Examples include:
  • Mean
  • Mode
  • Median
  • Range

Question 77

• Economic value reflects the property's importance in terms of economic purpose rather than personal use.
• Examples include:
  • Economic value
  • Market value
  • Fair value
  • Orderly liquidation value

Question 78

• Contingency, expected in most estimates, is a provision for the unpredictable.

Question 79

• Fringe benefits are not excluded from indirect costs.
• Examples include:
  • Fringe benefits
  • Taxes
  • Overhead
  • Escalation

Question 80

• Mean is the simplest way to describe the mid-point of a modal class.
• Examples include:
  • Mode
  • Median
  • Mean
  • Range

Question 81

• Historical data from previous projects are often used as a basis for estimates.
• Other possible answers include:
  • Previous projects
  • Experience
  • Point of view
  • Consultants

Question 82

• Direct costs are less encumbered with indirect costs; thus, are more reliable for new projects.
  • Examples include:
    • Indirect costs
    • Direct costs
    • Fixed costs
    • Variable costs

Question 83

• If observations are even, the median is the mean of the two middle values.
  • Examples include:
    • Median is the mean of the two middle values
    • Mean
    • Median
    • Mode

Question 84

• Home office overhead expenses are not chargeable to specific projects.

Question 85

• In statistics, the mode may not exist or be unique.

Question 86

• Escalation refers to an increase in the cost of goods/services over time.

Question 87

• Fixed costs are independent of production volume; an example is office rent.
• Examples include:
  • Office rent
  • Direct cost
  • Indirect cost
  • Labor/material costs with changes in production volume

Question 88

• Quartile deviation is more stable than range because it's based on the spread of scores through the center of the distribution, instead of just through the extremes.

Question 89

• The larger the standard deviation, the greater the dispersion around the mean.

Question 90

• Indirect fixed costs include plumbing tools' cost, not directly linked to any single project.

Question 91

• The kurtosis of a normal distribution is 3.

Question 92

• Qualitative data describes, whereas quantitative data defines.

Question 93

• Life-cycle costing uses historical data to estimate resource costs to complete an activity or asset.

Question 94

• Producing more units than the break-even level results in profit generation.

Question 95

• Raw materials require minimal processing before use.
  • Examples include:
    • Raw materials
    • Bulk materials
    • Fabricated materials
    • Engineered materials

Question 96

• Rate of return is the ratio of gain/loss on investment against the invested amount.

Question 97

• Just-in-time (JIT) inventory technique is also referred to as 0% inventory.

Question 98

• Expediting ensures materials are delivered on time as promised.

Question 99

• Work Sampling is a technique for determining production unit rates and specific work activities.

Question 100

• Fair value is the price at which equipment changes hands between a willing buyer and a willing seller, neither under compulsion.

Answer Key

• The Answer Key provides the correct answers for each question.

Test your knowledge on the key elements of effective presentations. This quiz covers structured formats, audience engagement, the importance of feedback, and common mistakes in visual aids. Enhance your presentation skills and learn how to handle tricky audience questions.