The accurate evaluation of production costs has become absolutely essential for companies today. Over the past few decades, the ABC method has offered a solution for allocating indirect costs using the cost driver concept. However, the activity-based costing method does not propose general criteria for identifying the relevant resources, activities and cost drivers on the shop floor. This article proposes a reference activity model that enables the activities and resources related to most of the cost objects of a particular shop floor to be deduced systematically. An industrial application illustrates the use of this model. The value of this approach is also discussed