Question

the computer science department is considering two possible investments to support student learning and faculty research. the first option is a high - performance laptop lab, which costs $25,000 upfront, provides $8,000 in yearly benefits from savings and small grants, and requires $3,500 in yearly operating costs for maintenance and licensing. the lab has a lifetime of 5 years, with a $4,000 salvage value at the end of its use, and requires a one - time $2,000 upgrade at the end of year 2. the second option is virtual reality (vr) research equipment, which costs $18,000 upfront, provides $6,000 in yearly benefits from projects and partnerships, and requires $2,200 in yearly operating costs for maintenance and electricity. the vr equipment has a lifetime of 5 years, with a $2,500 salvage value at the end of its use, and requires a one - time $1,200 upgrade at the end of year 3. using an interest rate of 6%, compute the net cash flow per year, the future value of each investment at the end of year 5, the net future value of each investment, and convert the results to net present value. finally, compare the two options to determine which investment is financially better for the department. what is the net present value (npv) of the laptop lab at 6%? -$6470.75 -$4835.32 $4835.32 $6470.75

Explanation:

Step1: Calculate annual net - cash flow

The annual benefit is $8000$ and the annual operating cost is $3500$. So the annual net - cash flow $A$ is $A = 8000 - 3500=4500$.

Step2: Write the NPV formula

The NPV formula for an investment with an initial cost $P$, annual net - cash flow $A$, one - time upgrade cost $U$ at year $n_1$, and salvage value $S$ at the end of $N$ years at an interest rate $i$ is $NPV=-P + A(P/A,i,N)-U(P/F,i,n_1)+S(P/F,i,N)$. Here, $P = 25000$, $A = 4500$, $U = 2000$, $n_1 = 2$, $S = 4000$, $N = 5$, and $i=0.06$.
The present - worth factor $(P/A,i,N)=\frac{(1 + i)^N-1}{i(1 + i)^N}$ and $(P/F,i,n)=\frac{1}{(1 + i)^n}$.
$(P/A,0.06,5)=\frac{(1 + 0.06)^5-1}{0.06(1 + 0.06)^5}=\frac{1.06^5 - 1}{0.06\times1.06^5}=\frac{1.3382255776 - 1}{0.06\times1.3382255776}=\frac{0.3382255776}{0.08029353466}\approx4.21236$.
$(P/F,0.06,2)=\frac{1}{1.06^2}=\frac{1}{1.1236}\approx0.89$.
$(P/F,0.06,5)=\frac{1}{1.06^5}=\frac{1}{1.3382255776}\approx0.74726$.

Step3: Calculate NPV

$NPV=-25000+4500\times4.21236-2000\times0.89 + 4000\times0.74726$
$=-25000 + 18955.62-1780+2989.04$
$=-25000+20164.66$
$=-4835.34\approx - 4835.32$

Answer:

-$4835.32$