Find all School-related info fast with the new School-Specific MBA Forum

 It is currently 26 Jun 2016, 17:43

### GMAT Club Daily Prep

#### Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.

Customized
for You

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History

Track

every week, we’ll send you an estimated GMAT score based on your performance

Practice
Pays

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History

# Events & Promotions

###### Events & Promotions in June
Open Detailed Calendar

# A department manager distributed a number of pens, pencils,

Author Message
TAGS:

### Hide Tags

Director
Joined: 24 Oct 2005
Posts: 575
Location: NYC
Followers: 1

Kudos [?]: 44 [0], given: 0

A department manager distributed a number of pens, pencils, [#permalink]

### Show Tags

20 Jun 2007, 19:30
00:00

Difficulty:

(N/A)

Question Stats:

0% (00:00) correct 100% (00:33) wrong based on 11 sessions

### HideShow timer Statistics

A department manager distributed a number of pens, pencils, and pads among the staff in the dept, with each staff member receiving x pens, y pencils, and z pads. How many staff members were in the dept.

1. The number of pens, pencils, and pads that each staff member recieved were in the ratio 2:3:4 respectively

2. The manager distribute a total of 18 pens, 27 pencils, and 36 pads.
_________________

Success is my only option, failure is not -- Eminem

Director
Joined: 26 Feb 2006
Posts: 904
Followers: 4

Kudos [?]: 90 [0], given: 0

### Show Tags

20 Jun 2007, 20:21
bewakoof wrote:
A department manager distributed a number of pens, pencils, and pads among the staff in the dept, with each staff member receiving x pens, y pencils, and z pads. How many staff members were in the dept.

1. The number of pens, pencils, and pads that each staff member recieved were in the ratio 2:3:4 respectively

2. The manager distribute a total of 18 pens, 27 pencils, and 36 pads.

if there are 9 staff: 2 + 3 + 4
if there is 1 staff: 18 + 27 + 36.

in above case it is E. but "among" can not be used for 1 staff. therefore there could be 9 staff. so could be C.
Manager
Joined: 21 May 2007
Posts: 120
Followers: 1

Kudos [?]: 24 [0], given: 0

### Show Tags

21 Jun 2007, 21:33
Quote:
if there are 9 staff: 2 + 3 + 4
if there is 1 staff: 18 + 27 + 36.

Good point Himalayan. I missed that completely and considered only the case of 9 employees.
Director
Joined: 13 Mar 2007
Posts: 545
Schools: MIT Sloan
Followers: 4

Kudos [?]: 53 [0], given: 0

### Show Tags

21 Jun 2007, 23:53
st1 - does not say anything about total # of staff members - INSUFF

st2 - INSUFF

st1 + st2 - 'n' can be 3 or 9

hence E
Current Student
Joined: 03 Oct 2006
Posts: 85
Followers: 1

Kudos [?]: 0 [0], given: 0

### Show Tags

22 Jun 2007, 14:38
st1 - does not say anything about total # of staff members - INSUFF

st2 - INSUFF

st1 + st2 - 'n' can be 3 or 9

hence E

Sorry, where did you get 3 from?

I could see how if you take S1 + S2 you could get 9:
2x+3x+4x = 18+27+36
9x = 81
x = 9
Director
Joined: 13 Mar 2007
Posts: 545
Schools: MIT Sloan
Followers: 4

Kudos [?]: 53 [0], given: 0

### Show Tags

22 Jun 2007, 16:00
n can also be 3

3 staff members - each getting 6pens / 9pencils / 12pads
Current Student
Joined: 03 Oct 2006
Posts: 85
Followers: 1

Kudos [?]: 0 [0], given: 0

### Show Tags

22 Jun 2007, 16:03
n can also be 3

3 staff members - each getting 6pens / 9pencils / 12pads

True! Algebraically how would you do this? Thanks.
Senior Manager
Joined: 06 Jul 2004
Posts: 473
Location: united states
Followers: 1

Kudos [?]: 64 [0], given: 0

### Show Tags

22 Jun 2007, 16:27
bewakoof wrote:
A department manager distributed a number of pens, pencils, and pads among the staff in the dept, with each staff member receiving x pens, y pencils, and z pads. How many staff members were in the dept.

1. The number of pens, pencils, and pads that each staff member recieved were in the ratio 2:3:4 respectively

2. The manager distribute a total of 18 pens, 27 pencils, and 36 pads.

Assume every staff member received 2x, 3x and 4x number of pens, pencils and pads respectively. Let's say total number of staff members is k.

so, 2xk=18, 3xk=27, 4xk=36

xk=9.

so, x=1, k=9 ; x=3, k=3; x=9, k=1

nothing conclusive

_________________

for every person who doesn't try because he is
afraid of loosing , there is another person who
keeps making mistakes and succeeds..

Senior Manager
Joined: 06 Aug 2007
Posts: 368
Followers: 1

Kudos [?]: 32 [1] , given: 0

### Show Tags

26 Apr 2008, 11:01
1
KUDOS
bewakoof wrote:
A department manager distributed a number of pens, pencils, and pads among the staff in the dept, with each staff member receiving x pens, y pencils, and z pads. How many staff members were in the dept.

1. The number of pens, pencils, and pads that each staff member recieved were in the ratio 2:3:4 respectively

2. The manager distribute a total of 18 pens, 27 pencils, and 36 pads.

Tricky question. ans E

1. 9 employees - each employee get 2 pens, 3 pencils, 4 pads
2. 3 employees - each employee get 6 pens, 9 pencils, 12 pads

in both cases the ratio is 2:3:4
Intern
Joined: 07 May 2011
Posts: 8
Followers: 0

Kudos [?]: 6 [0], given: 1

### Show Tags

30 Oct 2011, 03:05
Could someone clarify my doubt?

S1 and S2 individually are clearly insufficient. Consider them combined

S1 says ratio of items :> pens: pencils: pads = 2:3:4
Now we can go ahead and write this as pens: pencils: pads : total items = 2x:3x:4x :9x

S2 tells about the total sum of items distributed: 18 pens, 27 pencils and 36 pads.
which can be again be written as pens: pencils: pads : total items = 18:27:36:81

Isnt x clearly = 9. Which should be the number of staff? Am i missing something here folks?
Intern
Joined: 06 Dec 2011
Posts: 2
Followers: 0

Kudos [?]: 0 [0], given: 1

Re: A department manager distributed a number of pens, pencils, [#permalink]

### Show Tags

06 Dec 2011, 06:11
I strongly feel this should be (C), both statements.

I get what you are all saying about (E)... BUT...Do this question again and see that statement 1 asserts that EACH staff member recieved these items in the ratio of 2:3:4. That means that each staff member gets 2 pens, 3 pencils and 4 pads. No more, no less. The answer to the quesiton is that there are 9 people in the department. Statements 1 and 2 are needed for sufficiency.

If we want (E) as the answer, then the GMAC needs to re-write statement (1) as follows: ".....and pads (each) staff members received were in the ratio of 2:3:4".

So in summary, statement 1 needs to eliminate the word "EACH", and also the word "RESPECTIVELY" at the end of the sentence... Both these terms relate the ratio of equipment to a single staff member, giving the implicit ratio of 1 Staff member : 2 pens : 3 pencils : 4 pads, or 1:2:3:4, equating to 9 staff members; 9:18:27:39 (remember EACH! and RESPECTIVELY!) thereby validating (C)

Please give me a solid mathamatical reason why it should be (E), and don't just re-write what can be read in the OG guide. Guys, seriously, this question is worded very poorly...
Senior Manager
Joined: 13 May 2011
Posts: 317
WE 1: IT 1 Yr
WE 2: Supply Chain 5 Yrs
Followers: 20

Kudos [?]: 224 [0], given: 11

Re: A department manager distributed a number of pens, pencils, [#permalink]

### Show Tags

06 Dec 2011, 08:11
both the statements talk about x,y, and z. one giving ratio and other the actual numbers i. e. x+y+z=18+27+36. also the first statement is repeat of the second one. hence, combining both does not provide any new information.
E.
Re: A department manager distributed a number of pens, pencils,   [#permalink] 06 Dec 2011, 08:11
Similar topics Replies Last post
Similar
Topics:
3 A department manager distributed a number of books, calendars, and dia 4 24 Feb 2016, 04:28
2 A pencil costs $3 and a pen costs$7. If pens and pencils 2 16 Aug 2013, 08:36
6 Sam spent a total of \$6.00 on pens and pencils. How many pen 3 01 May 2013, 01:59
67 A department manager distributed a number of pens, pencils 23 15 Nov 2010, 00:54
7 A department manager distributed a number of pens, pencils, 7 04 Jul 2009, 21:43
Display posts from previous: Sort by