Directions : Sarp Infotech Solutions Software Company before selling a package…
2023
Directions : Sarp Infotech Solutions Software Company before selling a package to its clients, follows the given schedule.
Which five consecutive months have the lowest average cost per month under new technique ?
- A.
11 - 16
- B.
11 - 19
- C.
11 - 15
- D.
11 - 14
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
Concept: To compare the average cost of different five-month spans in a schedule, add up the monthly cost figures for each stage that falls inside that span, then divide by five (the window length). Given a fixed window length, the span with the lowest total also has the lowest average.
Stage | Months | Cost per month (Rs '000) |
|---|---|---|
Specification | 1-2 | 40 |
Design | 3-4 | 20 |
Coding | 5-8 | 10 |
Testing | 9-10 | 15 |
Maintenance | 11-15 | 10 |
Apply this to the four spans given:
Of the four spans given, only 11-15 actually covers five consecutive months: 11-16 covers six months (month 16 is undefined in this 15-month schedule), 11-19 covers nine months (mostly beyond month 15), and 11-14 covers only four months.
Months 11 to 15 fall entirely within the Maintenance stage, where the cost stays at Rs 10,000 per month throughout.
Total cost for months 11-15 = 5 x 10,000 = 50,000; average = 50,000 / 5 = Rs 10,000 per month.
Cross-check: no other five-month window beats this. The only other stage at the same per-month rate is Coding (months 5-8), but that band is only four months long, so any five-month window touching it must also pull in a costlier month from Design (Rs 20,000) or Testing (Rs 15,000) — for example months 5-9 average Rs 11,000 and months 10-14 average Rs 11,000, both above Rs 10,000. So months 11-15 gives the unique lowest average.