Waterway Industries required production for June is 172,000 units. To make one unit of finished product, three pounds of direct material Z are required. Actual beginning and desired ending inventories of direct material Z are 350,000 and 380,000 pounds, respectively. How many pounds of direct material Z must be purchased?

A. 528,000
B. 498,000
C. 546,000
D. 516,000

To find out how many pounds of direct material Z must be purchased, multiply the number of units to be produced by the pounds required per unit, then adjust for inventory changes. Waterway Industries must purchase 546,000 pounds of direct material Z. Therefore the correct option is c.

The question is about calculating the quantity of direct material Z that must be purchased by Waterway Industries for their production in June. Here's how to approach the problem:

Determine the total amount of direct material Z needed for production: 172,000 units *3 pounds/unit = 516,000 pounds.
Calculate the total materials requirement by adding the desired ending inventory and subtracting the actual beginning inventory: 516,000 pounds + 380,000 pounds - 350,000 pounds.
The result gives us the amount of direct material Z to be purchased: 546,000 pounds.

In conclusion, Waterway Industries must purchase 546,000 pounds of direct material Z for the required production in June.