Santorino Company produces two models of a component, Model K-3 and Model P-4. The unit contribution margin for Model K-3 is $6; the unit contribution margin for Model P-4 is $14. Each model must spend time on a special machine. The firm owns two machines that together provide 4,000 hours of machine time per year. Model K-3 requires 15 minutes of machine time; Model P-4 requires 30 minutes of machine time. What is the contribution margin per unit of scarce resource (machine time) for Model K-3?

Contribution per unit of scare resource (in hour) = $24 per hour

Explanation:

The question falls under the limiting factor analysis

When a business is faced with a problem of shortage of a resource which can be used to produced more than one product type, to maximize the use of the resource, the business should allocate it for production purpose in such a way that it maximizes the contribution per unit of the scare resource.

Therefore Santario Company should allocate the machine hours to maximize the contribution per unit of machine hour.

Contribution per unit of scare resource is determine as follows:

Contribution per unit of scare resource for Model K-3

Contribution per unit of Model K-3 = $6

Machine time per unit = 15 minutes

Contribution per unit of scare resource in minutes

=Contribution per unit/Machine time per unit

= 46/15 minutes

= $0.4 per minute

Contribution per unit of scare resource (in hour)

$0.4 per minutes * 60

= $24 per hour