Final answer:
The company should charge approximately $2014.35 per year to break even on the maintenance costs.
Step-by-step explanation:
Calculating server room maintenance cost
Given:
- Initial maintenance cost: $50
- Annual increase in maintenance cost: $1300
- Years: 5
- Interest rate: 5%
Step 1: Calculate maintenance costs for each year
Year | Maintenance Cost
1 | $50
2 | $50 + $1300 = $1350
3 | $1350 + $1300 = $2650
4 | $2650 + $1300 = $3950
5 | $3950 + $1300 = $5250
Step 2: Calculate the present value of each year's maintenance cost
Present Value = Future Value / (1 + Interest Rate)^Years
Year | Maintenance Cost | Present Value _ |
1 | $50 | $50 / (1 + 0.05)^1 = $47.62 |
2 | $1350 | $1350 / (1 + 0.05)^2 = $1222.60 |
3 | $2650 | $2650 / (1 + 0.05)^3 = $2164.44 |
4 | $3950 | $3950 / (1 + 0.05)^4 = $3005.41 |
5 | $5250 | $5250 / (1 + 0.05)^5 = $3641.69 |
Step 3: Calculate the total present value of all maintenance costs
Total Present Value = $47.62 + $1222.60 + $2164.44 + $3005.41 + $3641.69
Total Present Value = $10071.76
Step 4: Calculate the annual charge to break even
Annual Charge = Total Present Value / Years
Annual Charge = $10071.76 / 5
Annual Charge = $2014.35
Therefore, the company needs to charge $2014.35 per year to break even on the server room maintenance costs over the 5-year period, considering the 5% annual interest rate.