How do you express the cost of making x small boxes, y medium boxes, and z large boxes, it costs $2.50 to make a small box, $4.00 for a medium box, and $4.50 for a large box and the fixed costs are $8000?

1 Answer
Feb 2, 2015

This problem has of course a multiplicative nature. I simply mean that if you produce twice the boxes, you will pay twice the price.

So, how much will it cost to produce x small boxes? Each small box costs $2.50, so the total will be $2.50 \cdot x

For the same reason, the price to pay to produce y medium boxes will be $4.00 \cdot y, and the price to produce z large boxes will be $4.50 \cdot z.

If all of the three prices must be fixes at $8000, your problem is expressed with mathematical notation by writing that
$2.50 \cdot x=8000,
$4.00 \cdot y=8000, and
$4.50 \cdot z=8000,

where x, y and z are, as you said, the number of small, medium and large boxes.