How long will it take 4 people to decorate a house

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on calculating the time required for 4 people to decorate a house, given that 10 people can complete the task in 6 days. This equates to 60 people-days for the entire job. By dividing the total people-days (60) by the number of workers (4), it is established that it will take 15 days for 4 people to finish decorating the house. The conversation emphasizes the concept of "people-days" and the inverse relationship between the number of workers and the time taken to complete a task.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of "people-days" as a unit of work measurement
  • Basic knowledge of inverse proportions in mathematics
  • Familiarity with the concept of work rate and efficiency
  • Ability to perform simple arithmetic calculations
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the concept of "man-hours" and its applications in project management
  • Learn about inverse proportion calculations in various contexts
  • Explore efficiency metrics in team-based projects
  • Investigate the impact of varying work rates on project timelines
USEFUL FOR

This discussion is beneficial for project managers, team leaders, and anyone involved in workforce planning or task scheduling, particularly in construction or decoration projects.

gazparkin
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There may be a simple way of answering this but I'm stumped! it takes 10 people 6 days to decorate a house. how long will it take 4 people?

Any help appreciated
 
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Ever heard the term "man-hours" to complete a job? This is very similar in units, except it's "people-days" ...

1 house decorated by 10 people in 6 days means it takes 60 people-days (same as 60 days for 1 person to finish decorating the house)

(60 people-days to finish a house)/(4 people working) = 15 days to finish
 
skeeter said:
Ever heard the term "man-hours" to complete a job? This is very similar in units, except it's "people-days" ...

1 house decorated by 10 people in 6 days means it takes 60 people-days (same as 60 days for 1 person to finish decorating the house)

(60 people-days to finish a house)/(4 people working) = 15 days to finish

Thanks for this Skeeter. So the calculation is people X days (in the original calculation) then divide by however number of people are in the question?
 
The more people you have the less time it will take. This is an "inverse" proportion. You have 4/10= 2/5 as many people so it will take 10/4= 5/2 as long.

(Also, this is assuming that each person works at the same rate no matter how many people there are. If "decorating" involved lifting some object so heavy it takes 5 people to lift it, 4 could never finish!)
 

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