1. You are investigating alternative for concentrating ore. One alternative is to crush the ore into a powder and mixing it with potassium amyl xanthate. The concentrate is skimmed off the top of the mixing vat after water and air is bubbled through the mixture. To figure the life cycle costs, your junior engineer has used CPI for the inflation rate of the xanthate. Propose a better method for estimating the inflation for the 30 years the mine is expected to be in operations.

2. Your subcontractor is paid actual costs times the indirect rate of 167% and fee on the total of the direct and indirect costs of 15%. You discover in the invoice timecards of their Canadian Subsidiary, roughly $100,000 CD of the $500,000 US invoiced. Even though the work was performed 4 months ago, the accounting department used the current exchange rate to calculate the amount billed to you. What should you do?

3. Your cost estimate for a client will include steel supplied from Korea, Japan, or China. Assuming the quality of the steel is equivalent and FOB Anchorage all three are within equal price, what will you recommend to your client?