Factory production planning

Factory model in 1.0 build 3674

Current factories use the EA 0.10 production redesign: simplified unobstructed lines, meaningful worker skill, production targets, and a separate warehouse distribution layer.

Official EA 0.10 notes describe a complete overhaul. Conveyor layouts no longer define production; workers no longer perform the old constant back-and-forth pattern; ingredient hoarding in one input station was addressed; line speeds increased; every product can be produced; and Factory Worker skill has a noticeable effect. Therefore pre-0.10 conveyor diagrams, component-chain ratios, and worker-output claims are rejected unless reproduced in build 3674.

The same redesign separates industrial roles. A factory produces and sends finished goods to a warehouse or eligible importer/exporter. A warehouse distributes to retail stores. The developer explicitly confirmed that direct factory-to-store delivery was intentionally removed. Build 3674 later repaired an employee quit-state defect that could stop production-adjacent systems such as imports and deliveries together. Update, continue into the next day, and retest before dismantling a valid build 3672 factory network.

Complete production dependency chain

A line can run only when business, recipe, machines, labor, inputs, storage, and outbound logistics are all valid.

The physical chain is industrial property registered as Factory to required recipe-specific machines to configured product to accessible raw-material storage to assigned Factory Workers and workstation schedule to non-zero production policy to output capacity. The inbound chain is raw-goods importer to Purchasing Agent contract and plan to Monday or urgent factory receipt. The outbound chain is factory Logistics Manager to vehicle bay to qualified Delivery Driver to distribution warehouse target and receiving capacity, then a separate warehouse logistics chain to stores.

Treat each arrow as a testable inventory transition. Import success is proven by raw-input growth at the factory. Production success is proven by input consumption and finished-output growth during a controlled staffed interval. Factory logistics success is proven by source/destination deltas at 02:00. Warehouse retail success is a later 02:00 handoff. An empty store cannot identify which of these stages failed; locate the last place where the exact SKU is present.

Choose the product before the building

The product determines recipe, machine footprint, importer coverage, worker demand, output rate, and market outlet.

Open F1 Help for the intended finished product and transcribe every required input, machine, workstation, and sourcing note. Confirm that the retail businesses can sell the product and inspect current demand rather than assuming a high unit price guarantees throughput. Map each input to its current Piers 6–9 raw-goods importer after the EA 0.10 catalog expansion. Count required Purchasing Agent contracts and weekly per-location limits before signing an industrial lease.

Estimate demand-driven capacity. Let stores i sell a_i units per complete in-stock day and H be the planned operating days per week. Required weekly finished output Y = H times sum(a_i) times (1+g) + B - existing reliable supply, where g is expected growth and B is a chosen buffer. Compare Y with a measured build-3674 line rate, not an unversioned web number. If the product is also importable, compare landed import and production cost; if factory-only in standard mode, the decision is about scale and timing rather than source substitution.

Building, layout, and access

The redesign removed conveyor mazes, but machines, workers, input storage, output storage, and vehicle bays still need usable space.

Select an Industry City industrial property that fits the number of independent lines, pallet shelves for all inputs and outputs, worker movement, delivery spots, and vehicle bays. EA 0.9 added six Industry City warehouse sizes and Stonegood Architecture support for industrial blueprints. EA 0.10 made layouts cleaner and unobstructed, but a decorative dense fit can still make diagnosis difficult. Commission lines with visible separation and accessible interactions.

Reserve expansion lanes and receiving headroom. Monday 08:00 raw imports may create the weekly input peak, while production accumulates output until 02:00 factory logistics can move it. If inputs fill every pallet position, output can block even when machines are correctly staffed. Do not copy exact machines-per-building claims; furniture footprint, blueprint, product mix, worker count, and later balance changes differ. Measure the live layout and preserve an aisle to inspect each line.

Current line configuration

A build-3674 commissioning procedure should follow F1 machine requirements and assume one configured product per independent line unless the live UI proves otherwise.

Recent explicitly 1.0 player testing reports that a jewelry production station consists of a Consumer Goods Assembly Machine plus the two recipe-specific machines, and that one connected station is configured for one product at a time. That report also notes no conveyor requirement. This is useful versioned evidence, but it is not an official universal machine count for every product family. F1 Help is authoritative for the exact combination and current recipe.

After placement, interact with each configurable machine or the line control exposed by the current UI. Select the intended product and set a production ceiling that allows a visible test. Confirm every required companion machine is recognized. Do not configure two intended SKUs on one line and assume automatic rotation; current 1.0 community testing reports that automatic day-by-day product switching is unavailable. Separate lines or schedule manual configuration changes, then label that process as manual.

Workers, schedules, and skill

Factory Worker coverage and skill are production inputs, not merely staffing compliance.

Recruit Factory Workers, assign them to the factory, and schedule every exposed production workstation required by the line. The player cannot substitute personal labor for an unstaffed factory role in the management plan. Cover only the hours justified by demand and input supply. Employee demands, weekly status, and satisfaction still matter because resignation can remove a workstation and, before build 3674, a bugged quit state could affect other systems.

EA 0.10 officially states that Factory Worker skill has a noticeable production impact. Do not use guides claiming skill has no effect; those are stale or wrong. The exact rate function is not officially published. Model measured rate as q = F(product, line, worker skill, staffed hours, build). Measure output over a controlled interval at known skill and keep input/output storage unconstrained. When skill changes, repeat the same test before revising capacity plans.

Raw-material importing and weekly timing

Factories depend on Purchasing Agent plans whose standard inputs arrive Monday at 08:00.

Map each ingredient to its current raw-goods importer at Piers 6–9. One Purchasing Agent manages one importer contract, so multi-source recipes or product portfolios can require several agents. Orders are entered in individual units, have per-item weekly limits per receiving location, and can use Smart plus recurring target fills. The agent must be assigned to the plan before Sunday 20:00 in the documented 2026 workflow.

The factory's outbound Logistics Manager event occurs at 02:00, before Monday's raw receipt. Production between events and existing input stock determine whether lines bridge the weekly boundary. Set raw targets from recipe consumption plus safety stock, convert units to boxes using live item data, and reserve pallet capacity for all simultaneous receipts. An urgent order can recover a midweek shortage at the displayed premium, but it cannot create input storage or repair a misconfigured line.

Recipe math and ingredient targets

Translate a finished-output plan into raw orders with the recipe basis shown in current F1 Help.

Let Y be desired finished units for the planning week. If the live recipe states that one production batch yields y finished units and consumes r_k units of ingredient k, required ingredient G_k = ceil(Y/y) times r_k. Add safety B_k and subtract usable on-hand H_k and reliable pending receipts P_k: order need O_k = max(0, G_k + B_k - H_k - P_k). Do not assume y=1; transcribe the recipe basis exactly.

Worked abstract example: a recipe yields 20 finished units per cycle and uses 4 units of A plus 2 of B. For Y=3,000, cycles=ceil(3,000/20)=150, so gross need is 600 A and 300 B. With safety 100 A/50 B and on-hand 120 A/80 B, order candidates are 580 A and 270 B before Smart inventory counting, limits, and box conversion. Replace these illustrative ratios with F1 values; they are not a Big Ambitions product recipe.

Production targets and overproduction control

Use the line's stop-production ceiling to prevent one SKU from consuming all inputs and storage.

EA 0.10 preview patches increased the stop-production field to seven digits, confirming a target-based output control. Set the ceiling from downstream demand and reserve rather than leaving every line unlimited. Let D be weekly store demand, W current finished stock across the controlled location basis, and B desired safety stock. Candidate ceiling T = D + B, adjusted for how the live factory counts stock. Because the exact cross-location inventory basis is not fully documented, run a controlled test before assuming warehouse stock is included.

Recent 1.0 discussion reports no automatic product rotation and warns that unlimited production creates excess. When a line reaches its ceiling, the player may need to reconfigure manually if another product shares equipment. There may be no notification for every cap event, so include a factory review field for current output versus ceiling. If output continues beyond an expected cap, capture exact stock locations and build before calling it a bug; old EA 0.10 reports included target issues that may not represent 3674.

Measure real line capacity

Use a controlled staffed interval because product, skill, and build affect output.

At test start record build, product, recipe, machines, production target, every worker and skill, scheduled hours, raw input inventory, output inventory, and free storage. Keep the target well above expected test output and eliminate outbound logistics during the interval or record it exactly. Run a closed measurement window of h staffed hours. Let DeltaO be finished output increase and DeltaI_k each input decrease. Measured line rate q = DeltaO/h units per staffed hour.

Repeat at least twice and report range, not false precision. A recent 1.0 player test reported 60 cheap-jewelry units per hour and 30 expensive-jewelry units per hour under its setup, yielding theoretical 10,080 and 5,040 over 24x7. This is valid as version-labelled player evidence, not a universal rate: worker skill, exact line state, difficulty or later balance may differ. Use it only as a hypothesis to reproduce.

Production economics and break-even

Compare factory landed cost with current importer alternatives and expected retail contribution using measured output.

For a period, total production cost C = raw-material cost + Factory Worker wages + allocated factory rent/utilities + machine/depreciation assumption + Purchasing Agent/HQ allocation + factory logistics + distribution warehouse allocation + expected export loss. Unit cost c = C/Y_good, where Y_good is finished units actually available for sale or valued export. Idle staffed hours and blocked output increase c; theoretical capacity is not the denominator.

If an importable finished product has landed import cost c_i, factory saving per unit is c_i-c. Fixed factory investment K has simple break-even units K/(c_i-c) when the saving is positive. For factory-only goods, compare retail contribution with total chain cost and capital opportunity. Difficulty, wages, locked Import Index, export price, and demand make another player's universal profitability ranking unreliable. Compute from the current save and include unsold inventory rather than valuing all production at retail price.

Outbound factory logistics

Finished goods must leave through a factory Logistics Manager plan and enter a distribution warehouse before reaching stores.

Assign a Logistics Manager in HQ to the factory, place a delivery-capable vehicle in a factory bay, and assign a qualified Delivery Driver. Add the distribution warehouse as a destination and enter a positive target. At 02:00, nominal request is max(0,T-D), where D is destination inventory; actual movement is bounded by factory output S and warehouse free capacity C. Vehicle manual cargo does not cap automated quantity, but vehicle class and manager skill limit destinations.

A factory may also send eligible excess to an importer/exporter. Developer discussion confirms a warehouse-first then exporter sequence can be created by destination ordering and a large export target, but current 1.0 export economics react to Import Index and market supply. Test order and prices. Do not send directly to stores; that topology is intentionally unsupported after 0.10. The distribution warehouse needs its own manager, vehicle, driver, store targets, and space.

Export economics and saturation caveat

Export is a market transaction, not a free overflow drain.

EA 0.10 build 3463 fixed an incorrectly low Import Index that caused low export prices for expensive jewelry and electronics and stated that active businesses selling an item should raise the index, improving manufacture-and-export economics. In 1.0, recent players report that heavy exports can weaken subsequent prices during the week. That observation is version-labelled but not a published universal formula; track the displayed price before and after batches.

For export batch e with quantity Q_e and unit price p_e, revenue is Q_e times p_e. Compare p_e with marginal production cost, not average retail price. Define minimum acceptable export price p_min as raw input plus variable labor and other avoidable unit costs, or a higher policy floor that recovers capital. If p_e < p_min, stop or store output if capacity allows. Unlimited production plus unconditional export can convert profitable retail lines into loss-making volume.

Factory failure diagnostic procedure

Diagnose from the first missing inventory transition rather than rearranging every machine.

If no raw inputs arrive, audit Purchasing Agent plan assignment before Sunday 20:00, contract, SKU, target, weekly limit, cash, and pallet capacity. If inputs exist but no production occurs, inspect recipe, required machines, product selection, production ceiling, Factory Worker assignment/schedule/skill, worker access, and output space. If output exists but warehouse is empty, inspect factory Logistics Manager, vehicle, driver, destination target, 02:00 timing, and receiving space.

If the warehouse has finished goods but stores are empty, the factory succeeded; inspect the warehouse's separate routes. If one line stops, focus on that recipe, input, target, worker, and output area. If all factories, imports, and deliveries stop simultaneously in a build 3672-origin save, update to 3674 and advance a day. If a controlled line still violates expected input/output deltas, save screenshots and submit F2 with exact build, line, employees, stock, target, interval, and result.

Scaling gates

Add factory capacity only when demand, input, line-hours, storage, logistics, or risk measurements justify it.

Demand gate: stores cannot sell current output, so another line creates inventory rather than profit. Line-hour gate: required Y exceeds measured q times sustainable staffed hours. Input gate: weekly raw limit or contracts cannot feed more output. Storage gate: Monday inputs or daily output approach capacity. Route gate: factory vehicle cannot add another warehouse/exporter. Labor gate: qualified workers or acceptable schedules are unavailable. Market gate: export price falls below marginal cost. Each requires a different response.

Scale in modules. Prove one line, measure q and input ratios, then clone the tested module. Add workers and input orders before activating the new line. Increase warehouse target and capacity before output arrives. Preserve enough raw and finished buffer for commissioning variance. A larger factory can reduce site count but concentrates outage and makes product switching harder. Dedicated factories simplify flow; mixed factories share fixed costs but compete for storage and management attention.

Commissioning and acceptance test

A factory is accepted only after inbound, production, outbound, and downstream handoffs each pass independently.

Stage one: import a controlled quantity of each input and reconcile Monday or urgent receipt. Stage two: run one configured line for a known staffed interval with no outbound movement, record input decrease and output increase, and calculate q. Stage three: create one factory-to-warehouse target, record S/D/T/C at 01:59, and reconcile the 02:00 transfer. Stage four: create one warehouse-to-store target and reconcile the next 02:00 movement.

Acceptance criteria should be numeric: all required inputs received within bounds; output produced with a repeatable positive rate; recipe consumption ratios consistent with F1; no unexplained idle hours; factory output transferred to the correct warehouse; store target filled; and no storage warning. Keep the line below large-scale operation until two comparable shifts pass. When adding products, repeat production-stage acceptance because a working jewelry line does not prove a food recipe.

Factory operations ledger

Track every product as demand, recipe, capacity, cost, storage, and route records joined by week and build.

Record build, factory, line, product, recipe version, machines, ceiling, workers and skills, scheduled hours, actual staffed hours, starting/ending inputs, starting/ending output, dispatched units, q, utilization, raw unit prices, labor, allocated overhead, unit cost, warehouse target, retail sales, sell-through, exported units, export price, warnings, and downtime reason. For inputs record agent, importer, Smart/recurring state, Sunday stock, Monday receipt, weekly limit, and pallet use.

Review raw coverage before Sunday lock, staffing daily, line ceilings and output space before 02:00, receipts Monday 08:00, and retail sell-through weekly. Calculate days of raw cover, line utilization, yield ratio, finished days of cover, unit cost, and export margin. Change only one major variable per test. Preserve pre-change rates so a balance patch, skill increase, or recipe change can be identified instead of hidden inside a blended average.

Reconcile material flow for every controlled period. Beginning input plus receipts minus ending input should match measured consumption after accounting for manual transfers. Beginning finished stock plus production minus ending finished stock should match warehouse dispatch plus exports and other documented movement. Store the unexplained variance rather than forcing it into production. A variance that begins exactly at 02:00 is likely a logistics measurement issue; one that grows during staffed hours points toward line accounting or an unrecorded product change.

Add downtime categories: no input, no output space, unstaffed station, worker unavailable, production ceiling reached, machine or recipe not recognized, outbound congestion, and unknown. Utilization without a reason code only says output was low. Reason-coded hours identify whether the next investment should be raw contracts, shelves, workers, another line, a higher target, or a route. Review unknown downtime with a one-line acceptance test before adding equipment.

Keep demand allocation beside the production ledger. For every finished SKU, identify the stores, distribution warehouse, daily target, expected weekly sell-through, and exporter fallback. Sum planned outlets and compare them with measured output. This prevents a line from being scaled because its factory inventory stays low when the real reason is indiscriminate exporting, and it prevents export stock from being valued as if every unit will receive the retail margin. Reconcile physical flow and economic destination together.

Version caveats and rejected claims

Factory systems changed too much in EA 0.10 for older universal recipes, layouts, or rates to be reliable.

Reject conveyor requirements, direct factory-to-store routes, claims that Factory Worker skill has no effect, pre-0.10 pier maps, and old component production chains. Official 0.10 notes supersede them. Reject universal machines-per-product and units-per-hour claims unless the product, skills, schedule, target, and build are stated. Recent 1.0 jewelry rates are included only as a reproducible hypothesis, not a master table.

Do not publish exact recipe ratios, machine prices, wages, rent, import caps, box sizes, or export formulas from stale sources. Read F1 and live UI. The production ceiling's exact inventory-count basis should be tested per build. Export price response is economically important but not reduced here to an unsupported equation. Build 3674 fixed shared execution failure; it did not announce a recipe or rate rebalance. Retest after any patch mentioning factory speed, worker skill, recipes, imports, export index, storage, or logistics. Archive the prior measured line rate, recipe screenshot, staffing state, and material-flow ledger before loading a relevant patch so any change can be reproduced rather than guessed.