Jane and Ashley take 8 days and 40 days respectively to complete a project when they work on it ...

Jane and Ashley take 8 days and 40 days respectively to complete a project when they work on it alone. They thought if they worked on the project together, they would take fewer days to complete it. During the period that they were working together, Jane took an eight day leave from work. This led to Jane's working for four extra days on her own to complete the project. How long did it take to finish the project ?

Quiz

Answer/Solution

14 Days

Steps/Work

Let us assume that the work is laying 40 bricks.
Jane = 5 bricks per day
Ashley = 1 brick per day
Together = 6 bricks per day
Let's say first 8 days Ashley works alone,
No of bricks = 8
Last 4 days Jane works alone,
No. of bricks = 20
Remaining bricks = 40 - 28= 12
So together, they would take 12/6 =2
Total no. of days = 8 + 4 + 2 = 14
Answer is A