GE 104 – Freshman Engineering 1
Fall 2008 – Dr. Estell
Homework – due 6 October 2008
Homework Assignment: Perform a cost analysis between a conventional flashlight and the BoGo Light for
two years of use, which is about when the rechargeable batteries for the BoGo light would need to be
replaced. Assume that the flashlights are used for 4-5 hours each night, and that the conventional
flashlight uses 2 D-cell disposable batteries.
You’ll need to gather information on the following:





Cost for a conventional flashlight (your choice of brand)
Cost for the BoGo Light
Typical length of continuous use for D-cell batteries before batteries need to be replaced
Typical cost of D-cell batteries
Typical cost of 3 AA-cell rechargeable batteries for the BoGo Light
Also, please report on the environmental impact of using disposable batteries for two years by looking at:
 Hazardous materials present in batteries.
 Approximate volume of the total number of batteries discarded in two years of use.
You don’t have to be 100% accurate with your calculations – this is a classic “back of the envelope”
approximation to get a feel for what the results would be if we were to perform a formal study of the
problem.
Please submit a memo with your findings; calculations can be performed by hand and attached to the
memo. The memo must have the following sections:


Economic analysis results
o Cost for BoGoLight verses cost for traditional flashlight
Environmental analysis results
o Hazardous materials
o Volume of discarded material