Do you put Storage Units between the Steps of your Factories?

[. -.-. .-.. .. .--. ... .]

I was wondering if it would be beneficial to build Storage Units between the Steps of certain Factory Buildings.
Like I am pretty much at the start and am building reinforced Plates (Sorry im not playing on English) but i always produce more screws than plates, so the screws just sit there. I produce Screws too seperatly, but would it be beneficial for me to build another Storage Unit for the "overflow" of Screws, because otherwise the Constructor just sits there doing nothing and i am on Coal, so its not like Energy really is a big struggle anymore.

And yes i am really late to the party, but all my hours i have so far (around 23) are since last weekend, so this Game really got me good so far.
Really loving it

[apdsmith]

Originally posted by Chris Solomon:

i use containers in portions of asssembly line just so that if there is a supply chain disruption, there is a buffer to prevent sudden supply shortages. ( i got the idea after the pandemic supply shortage events after reading up on the underlying causes.) i don't have containers for things like raw ore, because they are able to be produced rapidly and in large numbers via miners. I sometimes use containers for ingots, but not usually. but for intermediate stage items such as rotors, motors, and heavy frames, and encased industrial beams, and of course steel pipes and steel beams, i definitely use containers. another critical factor is taking the time to go seeks out the crash site and retrieving the HDD's from the wreck to be processed at the M.A.M. the alternate recipies are critical to sucess in this game. for instance the main recipe for screw goes something like this: Iron Ore> Iron Ingot> Iron Rod> Screws. but one of the alternate recipes shortens that recipe and actually makes more and in faster amounts. it's recipe goes something like this: Iron Ore> Iron Ingot> Screws. when the next step after screws in making something like reinforced iron plates (iron plates, Screws), having alot of screws is neccessary. using the alt recipe, cuts down on the steps needed, and on the machines needed to make the final item. now, there is also an alt recipe for even the reinforced iron plates, but i will stop there.

one last tip. once you unlock fluid storage, build the fluid storage way up high (think water tower high) and let the gravity help you supply whatever you you need the fluid for. of course you will need pumps to get the fluid up to the storage, but you will not regret setting it up that way later.

Yup, once processing paths diverge - so, once I've got a store of iron ingots, say, I'll tend to have some storage for all the useful stages after that. Because of all the various processing units downstream of "iron ingots" it's not really sensible for me to calculate precise demand-over-time, but with storage units present I don't have to, particularly if I store the iron plates to accommodate fluctuations in, say, the reinforced plate production line.

Also note that there's yet another screw recipe, this one using steel beams, that is even more efficient, if you already have adequate production of the steel beams - it's something like a 52:1 ratio, so for Seaview, I'm planning on mostly carting steel beams around and turning them into screws in the production rooms that need it.

[PsYcHo_O]

Storage units between production steps are basically noob traps. I did this as well when I started playing, but in the end it is totally pointless and only wastes space. There are no supply disruptions in this game other than you ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ something up. There are 4 main scenarios for your productions:

1) You produce excess somewhere in your production line because of bad math or funky production ratios
-> Sink it or ignore it because it's useless

2) You produce excess somewhere in your production line because you (might) need it for building
-> You should store this somewhere central instead of in the middle of your factories (would still be better to have dedicated production for this)

3) You produce too little of a component resulting in your productions running <100%
-> Your mistake should be fixed but the excess goods are worthless because your production line is built for a specific throughput

4) Everything works at 100%
-> Storage is useless as it will always be empty

So, storing intermediate products inside your production line is pretty pointless. Especially later in the game when you need 200 machines to produce 1-2 elevator parts it will become a nightmare and any manual interference is really hard to do in a big factory with lots of machines.

[Doc✪Hollywood]

Originally posted by PsYcHo_O:

2) You produce excess somewhere in your production line because you (might) need it for building
-> You should store this somewhere central instead of in the middle of your factories

YES! Learned that the hard way!

Originally posted by PsYcHo_O:

would still be better to have dedicated production for this

Why the need for a additional production site? Seems to be a wast of resources and space and cause logistic problems (if far away). Please explain your statement and idea behind that.

Originally posted by PsYcHo_O:

4) Everything works at 100%
-> Storage is useless as it will always be empty

EDIT: Erased what I wrote before. I assume now you are only talking about storage "in between" and not storage in general

[mdkaden]

Originally posted by PsYcHo_O:

Storage units between production steps are basically noob traps. I did this as well when I started playing, but in the end it is totally pointless and only wastes space. There are no supply disruptions in this game other than you ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ something up. There are 4 main scenarios for your productions:

1) You produce excess somewhere in your production line because of bad math or funky production ratios
-> Sink it or ignore it because it's useless

2) You produce excess somewhere in your production line because you (might) need it for building
-> You should store this somewhere central instead of in the middle of your factories (would still be better to have dedicated production for this)

3) You produce too little of a component resulting in your productions running <100%
-> Your mistake should be fixed but the excess goods are worthless because your production line is built for a specific throughput

4) Everything works at 100%
-> Storage is useless as it will always be empty

So, storing intermediate products inside your production line is pretty pointless. Especially later in the game when you need 200 machines to produce 1-2 elevator parts it will become a nightmare and any manual interference is really hard to do in a big factory with lots of machines.

This exactly! I could't have said it better myself.

[Lion Llew]

everyone has their own take on this - myself I think that having access to items is important - how you o that is up to you - if you put storage in line then you run the risk of running out of items. If you plan to numbers and sink excess you will never need storage, but i you are human and just starting out learning the game it might be as well to have those buffers as you build and learn.

TL:DR You don't *need* to have buffer storage in a well planned factory, but having it doesn't make you a bad engineer.

Play how you choose and tweak where you like.

[Chris Solomon]

Originally posted by apdsmith:

Originally posted by Chris Solomon:

i use containers in portions of asssembly line just so that if there is a supply chain disruption, there is a buffer to prevent sudden supply shortages. ( i got the idea after the pandemic supply shortage events after reading up on the underlying causes.) i don't have containers for things like raw ore, because they are able to be produced rapidly and in large numbers via miners. I sometimes use containers for ingots, but not usually. but for intermediate stage items such as rotors, motors, and heavy frames, and encased industrial beams, and of course steel pipes and steel beams, i definitely use containers. another critical factor is taking the time to go seeks out the crash site and retrieving the HDD's from the wreck to be processed at the M.A.M. the alternate recipies are critical to sucess in this game. for instance the main recipe for screw goes something like this: Iron Ore> Iron Ingot> Iron Rod> Screws. but one of the alternate recipes shortens that recipe and actually makes more and in faster amounts. it's recipe goes something like this: Iron Ore> Iron Ingot> Screws. when the next step after screws in making something like reinforced iron plates (iron plates, Screws), having alot of screws is neccessary. using the alt recipe, cuts down on the steps needed, and on the machines needed to make the final item. now, there is also an alt recipe for even the reinforced iron plates, but i will stop there.

one last tip. once you unlock fluid storage, build the fluid storage way up high (think water tower high) and let the gravity help you supply whatever you you need the fluid for. of course you will need pumps to get the fluid up to the storage, but you will not regret setting it up that way later.

Yup, once processing paths diverge - so, once I've got a store of iron ingots, say, I'll tend to have some storage for all the useful stages after that. Because of all the various processing units downstream of "iron ingots" it's not really sensible for me to calculate precise demand-over-time, but with storage units present I don't have to, particularly if I store the iron plates to accommodate fluctuations in, say, the reinforced plate production line.

Also note that there's yet another screw recipe, this one using steel beams, that is even more efficient, if you already have adequate production of the steel beams - it's something like a 52:1 ratio, so for Seaview, I'm planning on mostly carting steel beams around and turning them into screws in the production rooms that need it.

I actually am using the steel beam screw recipe in my current save because of how many screws it produces. i am making so many screws from the line of constructors, that form the industrial storage container, i am able to supply two different priduction lines and still keep the screws levels topped off in the storage container. I am probably no over producing the screws and many other items now that the bug where some items from the belt were being deleted when split. i make heavy use use of splitters and mergers in my production runs (i think just about everyone does though), so i was having a severe decrease in output becuase of the bug that was fixed in the the 8.2.0 patch.

[Aven]

Originally posted by Chris Solomon:

I actually am using the steel beam screw recipe in my current save because of how many screws it produces. i am making so many screws from the line of constructors, that form the industrial storage container, i am able to supply two different priduction lines and still keep the screws levels topped off in the storage container. I am probably no over producing the screws and many other items now that the bug where some items from the belt were being deleted when split. i make heavy use use of splitters and mergers in my production runs (i think just about everyone does though), so i was having a severe decrease in output becuase of the bug that was fixed in the the 8.2.0 patch.

The common theme in this thread of respondents who are operating storage containers in-line seems to boil down to improper planning and a misuse of resources. If you have a stockpile in the middle of a production, that stockpile should not be a part of that production. Siphon it off. Get it out of the equation. Send it to your component mall or a sink. When you've got factories spread out across the map, the last thing you want to do is traipse around to each of them trying to remember which container on which line in which factory has your random iron rod storage.

[Chris Solomon]

Originally posted by Aven:

Originally posted by Chris Solomon:

I actually am using the steel beam screw recipe in my current save because of how many screws it produces. i am making so many screws from the line of constructors, that form the industrial storage container, i am able to supply two different priduction lines and still keep the screws levels topped off in the storage container. I am probably no over producing the screws and many other items now that the bug where some items from the belt were being deleted when split. i make heavy use use of splitters and mergers in my production runs (i think just about everyone does though), so i was having a severe decrease in output becuase of the bug that was fixed in the the 8.2.0 patch.

The common theme in this thread of respondents who are operating storage containers in-line seems to boil down to improper planning and a misuse of resources. If you have a stockpile in the middle of a production, that stockpile should not be a part of that production. Siphon it off. Get it out of the equation. Send it to your component mall or a sink. When you've got factories spread out across the map, the last thing you want to do is traipse around to each of them trying to remember which container on which line in which factory has your random iron rod storage.

that kind of thinking is exactly why the world is still experiencing supply chain shortages worldwide.

[. -.-. .-.. .. .--. ... .]

Originally posted by Aven:

Originally posted by Chris Solomon:

I actually am using the steel beam screw recipe in my current save because of how many screws it produces. i am making so many screws from the line of constructors, that form the industrial storage container, i am able to supply two different priduction lines and still keep the screws levels topped off in the storage container. I am probably no over producing the screws and many other items now that the bug where some items from the belt were being deleted when split. i make heavy use use of splitters and mergers in my production runs (i think just about everyone does though), so i was having a severe decrease in output becuase of the bug that was fixed in the the 8.2.0 patch.

The common theme in this thread of respondents who are operating storage containers in-line seems to boil down to improper planning and a misuse of resources. If you have a stockpile in the middle of a production, that stockpile should not be a part of that production. Siphon it off. Get it out of the equation. Send it to your component mall or a sink. When you've got factories spread out across the map, the last thing you want to do is traipse around to each of them trying to remember which container on which line in which factory has your random iron rod storage.

I dont get your summary. Who says i dont have a Hub with sink? Do you think i travel the whole map 5 times to build something because i gather everything from all around map? Sorry, but that sounds like you think people who dont play like you, are mentally not capable of grasping a production line.
I just like to have them in line for a buffer, just like i stated in my first post.
My production can keep running even when i, for example rebuild the mine and conveyor belts. Or in a Pure Mine with MK 3 Mine on it, when for some reason the Mine capacity reaches 100 the mine stops working for 10 seconds. That can stall your whole production line, so i have a buffer after that so the mine does not matter that much anymore to keep full on running 24/7. Even if it stops for 10 seconds i have a full storage right behind it from where the factory gets fed.

[Doc✪Hollywood]

These buffers only prevent this "stalling" when you empty or fill them from time to time. You primary concern to prevent this would still be to match output of miner with the following inputs - therefore the clocking. If not every container will fill/empty nevertheless


I also did the same like you, but more to prevent power consumption going up and down too much. Then you get power storage and it doesn't matter anymore.

P.S.
And it would not stall the whole production line when miner reaches 100. Because it means that every following input also has 100 and can run a good minute without miner. Therefore zero stalling.