Borges Machine Shop, Inc. has a 1-year contract for the production of 200,000 gear housings for a new off-road vehicle. Owner Luis Borges hopes the contract will be extended and the volume increased next year. Borges has developed costs for three alternatives. They are general-purpose equipment (GPE), flexible manufacturing system (FMS), and expensive, but efficient dedicated machine (DM). The cost data follow: General Purpose Flexible Manufacturing Dedicated
Equipment System Machine
GPE FMS DM
Annual contracted units 200,000 200,000 200,000
Annual fixed cost $100,000 $200,000 $500,000
Per unit variable cost $15 $14 $13
Which process is best for this contract?