Question

A construction elevator can carry at most 2,320 pounds. If the elevator operator weighs 195 pounds and each palette of roofing material weighs 425 pounds, what is the maximum number of palettes of roofing material that the elevator can carry in one trip?

Answer 1

To answer the question above, let x be the number of palettes of the roofing material that one elevator trip may carry. 

The inequality expression that satisfy the condition above will then be, 
 
                                             195 + 425x ≤ 2,320

Solving for x gives x ≤ 5. Thus, the maximum number of palettes of roofing materials that may be brought is 5.