The table below lists key operational and financial metrics for 10 enterprise data center facilities operated by a global cloud services provider: | Facility ID | Tier Classification | Server Racks | Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) | Monthly Maintenance Cost ($ in thousands) | |---|---|---|---|---|

The table below lists key operational and financial metrics for 10 enterprise data center … — GMAT

The table below lists key operational and financial metrics for 10 enterprise data center facilities operated by a global cloud services provider:

Facility ID	Tier Classification	Server Racks	Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE)	Monthly Maintenance Cost ($ in thousands)
Facility A	Tier III	450	1.35	64
Facility B	Tier IV	600	1.20	94
Facility C	Tier III	520	1.48	78
Facility D	Tier III	480	1.42	72
Facility E	Tier II	300	1.65	40
Facility F	Tier III	400	1.30	52
Facility G	Tier III	550	1.55	86
Facility H	Tier IV	650	1.25	98
Facility I	Tier III	460	1.38	68
Facility J	Tier II	350	1.60	82

Based on the table, what is the median monthly maintenance cost for the subset of facilities classified as Tier III?

The median monthly maintenance cost for Tier III facilities is $70,000.

To find the median monthly maintenance cost of Tier III facilities, first isolate the 6 relevant rows: Facility A (

64k), Facility C (

78k), Facility D (

72k), Facility F (

52k), Facility G (

86k), and Facility I (

68k). Sorting these costs from lowest to highest yields:

52,000,

64,000,

68,000,

72,000,

78,000,

86,000. Because there are 6 values (an even count), the median is the average of the 3rd (

68,000) and 4th (

72,000) terms.

\frac{68,000 + 72,000}{2} = 70,000

. Therefore, $70,000 is the correct answer.

Filter the table data for facilities classified as 'Tier III'.

Six facilities match this condition: Facility A (

64k), Facility C (

78k), Facility D (

72k), Facility F (

52k), Facility G (

86k), and Facility I (

68k).

The question specifically targets the subset of facilities with Tier III classification.

Sort the monthly maintenance costs for the filtered Tier III facilities in ascending numerical order.

52,000,

64,000,

68,000,

72,000,

78,000,

86,000.

Determining percentile or rank statistics such as the median requires ordering data from smallest to largest.

Calculate the median for this even-count dataset (N = 6).

Average of the 3rd value (

68,000) and 4th value (

72,000):

\frac{68,000 + 72,000}{2} = 70,000

When a dataset contains an even number of observations, the median is the arithmetic mean of the two middle terms.

Descriptive Statistics Interpretation (Even-Count Filtered Median)