Choosing the Best Container for Storing and Shipping Hazardous Waste

Overview of Container Options

This project will give you a more extended problem-solving experience and provide the opportunity to explore applications more deeply.

The project also gives you the experience of communicating your work in writing in a clear and logical form, an essential skill in the business world. You must submit your finished project on Blackboard. It is worth 15% of your final course grade.

The project is graded out of 50 points: 20 points each for the different types of container, and 10 points for the writing component.

Your consultant company provides analysis and projections for clients and their businesses. Your company helps them to save costs, maximize profits, and other business needs.

You received this email from your boss asking you to provide advice to a client about storage containers: 

We have a client asking for our recommendations on which storage containers are better for shipping and storing hazardous waste.

Their requirements are as follows:

The container should hold 150,000 cm3 (which is 150 liters);

The sides of the container will be made from 22 gauge aluminum sheets;

The two bases of the container need to be thicker (for greater support) and will be made from 16 gauge aluminum sheets;

There are two options to consider for the shape of the containers:

Option 1: closed cylinders;

Option 2: closed boxes with a square base (note the top and bottom are squares, but the sides could be rectangles).

Some considerations to take into account:

The fixed cost of production of a cylinder container is $19 per cylinder;

The fixed cost of production of a box container is $11 per box;

The current price for 22 gauge aluminum sheets is $0.00713 per square centimeter.

The current price for 16 gauge aluminum sheets is $0.02220 per square centimeter;

You need to advise the client on the dimensions of the containers that will both meet the size requirement and minimize cost. Based on the cost, you should make a recommendation to the client on whether to order square or cylinder containers.

Submit two items for this project:

1.An email (typed as a Word document) to your manager, in good business style, presenting your findings and recommendations. In this document you should:

1) provide your recommendation for which container the client should order;

2) explain your reasoning/methods for how you arrived at your conclusion;

3) provide the dimension and costs you arrived at in your calculations. Some tips:

a.Write a clear concise email – bullet points can help.

b.Don’t “bury the lead”. Write your conclusions first and follow that with justifications and explanations. You are required to explain your conclusions.

c.Use proper grammar and professional writing – no slang, emojis, etc.

2.All of your calculations that support your conclusions for the dimensions and cost of the containers, presented clearly (think of this as an attachment to the email). This can be a picture of your handwritten work. Things to remember:

a.Carefully show all of your equations and work that lead to your results.

b.Clearly indicate the optimal dimensions and minimum cost for each type of container.

c.Remember to include units on your results.

d.Avoid rounding until the final calculations. Round final results to two decimal places.

This project will give you a more extended problem-solving experience and provide the opportunity to explore applications more deeply. The project also gives you the experience of communicating your work in writing in a clear and logical form, an essential skill in the business world. You must submit your finished project on Blackboard. It is worth 15% of your final course grade.

The project is graded out of 50 points: 20 points each for the different types of container, and 10 points for the writing component.