14-53 (Static) Evaluate Trade-Offs in Return Measurement (LO 14-2) Leidich Corporation manufactures hospital equipment. The Measurement Division (MD) manufactures testing and measurement equipment including a special cardiovascular instrument. MD started the year with $6.25 million in other assets. At the beginning of the current year, MD invested $7.5 million in automated equipment for instrument assembly. The division's expected income statement at the beginning of the year was as follows: Sales revenue $ 24,000,000 Operating costs Variable 2,970,000 Fixed (all cash) 11,600,000 Depreciation New automated equipment 2,500,000 Other 1,650,000 Division operating profit $ 5,280,000 A sales representative from South Street Manufacturing (SSM) approached the manager of MD in late November. SSM is willing to sell for $9.4 million a new assembly machine that offers significant improvements over the automated equipment MD acquired at the beginning of the year. The new equipment would expand division output by 12 percent while reducing cash fixed costs by $828,400. It would be depreciated for accounting purposes over a four-year life. Depreciation would be net of the $600,000 salvage value of the new machine. The new equipment meets Leidich's cost of capital criterion. If MD purchases the new machine, it must be installed prior to