Selection of Sprinkler Lateral for Shorter Life Cycle

This paper presents a methodology to select a sprinkler lateral from different design alternatives for a duration shorter than its full life cycle. The selection is made by determining the time period up to which an alternative would be more economical than others. The developed methodology uses the break-even analysis involving total annual cost with escalating cost factors. The analysis is carried out by using a numerical method to solve a function of difference between total annual cost of two design alternatives. The application of the developed methodology is illustrated by solving an example.