forklift garage

[nicht123]

I just switched from stable to test branch with my recent save. Are the forklift garages and forklifts mandatory now to make industry connections work? As in stable, industry connections were rather simple, many my constructions up to now are just A-->B, most without space to insert the garage. Will they still do the job?

[Total Oh No]

Direct industry connections still work like they used to. In my opinion, in most situations it's still kinda preferable to just use direct connections instead of forklifts, even though they look cool.

[nicht123]

So the forklifts, garages and crossings are to extend the range and connectability and will not replace the old, direct way?

[Total Oh No]

Nah they are completely separate things.
A direct industry connection from building to building works the same way it used to, letting the two buildings instantly share resources between each other.
Using the crossings and garages will create indirect industry connections, which NEED forklifts to transport goods around.

I agree that it's not exactly immediately obvious.

[nicht123]

yeah i was a little confused when i saw it. thanks man

[Prometheus]

Unfortunately forklifts are still too weak to be properly functional. I'd go as far as to double their capacity just to get them closer.

[Total Oh No]

I thought maybe it could be nice to have an optional pre-game setting that stops direct industry connections from working, forcing you to use forklifts whenever you want to connect two buildings over factory connections. Like an optional, harder way to play. The forklifts make a lot more sense to me, when you actually HAVE to use them.

Either way, direct industry connections need to display some kind of movement to make it obvious that they can actually transport goods without needing forklifts.

[ryantheskinny]

More forklift variety would help. A small forklift is great for some Industries. Larger ones would be good for larger factories, and maybe having them staggered across the timespan a bit to have lower efficiency in the early game, and higher as time goes on.

One thing to consider is: forklifts are to industrial connections as conveyor engines and pumps are to conveyors/pipes. Without them complex factory connections are not possible only a direct link. So in some instances (like a road cargo station) a passive connection (one without an engine/forklift/pump) is better. But in the case of a large warehouse complex supplying multiple factories and docks, a engine is needed, or the connections will not work.

[MG83]

with the current forklifts those has inadequate capacity i use direct connection .

[Storpappa]

After a brief stint of forklift overdose, I went to rehab and realized that its not a forklift addition. It is a forklift garage.

If you want a connection that is more robust, or you Want or Need more space in between buildings, then the garage provides extra forklifts, fuel and routing control.

A factory having its own forklift would be expected.
A factory having a forklift to drive to the next three adjacent buildings is a lot to ask.

Mandatory forklift safety video link - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-oB6DN5dYWo

[TheAmishStig]

Originally posted by ryantheskinny:

More forklift variety would help. A small forklift is great for some Industries. Larger ones would be good for larger factories, and maybe having them staggered across the timespan a bit to have lower efficiency in the early game, and higher as time goes on.

One thing to consider is: forklifts are to industrial connections as conveyor engines and pumps are to conveyors/pipes. Without them complex factory connections are not possible only a direct link. So in some instances (like a road cargo station) a passive connection (one without an engine/forklift/pump) is better. But in the case of a large warehouse complex supplying multiple factories and docks, a engine is needed, or the connections will not work.

+1. Forklift Garages trade throughput for flexibility...it runs slower, but allows multiple buildings to use a single connection without having to build a bunch of superfluous (and space-eating) warehouses to use as splitters/combiners.

Since Crossing Pads count as buildings, they can also be used as an 'insulator' for the 'area of effect' on transfers, with the drawback that it also cuts off the industry's ability to consume from outside storage. For example, Warehouse -> Crossing Pad -> Animal Farm would 'isolate' the warehouse, so that a train with 'wait until unloaded' unchecked will leave when the warehouse [and the forklift parked in front of it] is full, rather than sitting there as the farm eats 3kg per second [the minimum...1 employee working].

The best uses I've found for them so far are to run between "1 producer can supply multiple consumers, all at low to medium volumes" and "multiple producers depositing in a single pick-up warehouse" building sets, though I want to start playing with the insulator effect more soon.

I'll use them, for example, between a Fabric factory and 2 Clothing factories. Or between multiple Chemical factories and a single Warehouse, things of that nature...but for larger-volume consumption [like a Distillery in a larger agriculture-based industrial park] I'll use shuttle trucks with a Road Cargo Station; the ability to have up to 3 other trucks waiting while one is unloading prevents disruptions without having to build a separate storage facility for each factory.

[Total Oh No]

Originally posted by TheAmishStig:

I'll use them, for example, between a Fabric factory and 2 Clothing factories.

Forklifts between fabric and clothing factories? Why?

Originally posted by TheAmishStig:

For example, Warehouse -> Crossing Pad -> Animal Farm would 'isolate' the warehouse, so that a train with 'wait until unloaded' unchecked will leave when the warehouse [and the forklift parked in front of it] is full, rather than sitting there as the farm eats 3kg per second [the minimum...1 employee working].

That cargo vehicles get stuck without "wait until un-/loaded" at factories that constantly consume/produce goods is kinda a bug, in my opinion.
Forklifts can be used as a workaround to stop that, yeah, but I wouldn't really highlight this as a "feature" of the forklift system.

I'm starting to think that forklifts are mostly an optional way to transfer goods for people who just prefer a little more realism in the goods' movement. Just like how I'm using a cableway in my current game to transport quarried stone down to a gravel plant. It would be a lot more efficient to use a conveyor instead, but I like the cableway, simply because you can see the stones physically move to their destination, instead of teleporting there.

[TheAmishStig]

Originally posted by Total Oh No:

Forklifts between fabric and clothing factories? Why?

It's more aesthetically pleasing. The spacing on the outputs is obnoxious, this way I can run a block of clothing factories 4 or 6 wide, slap a forklift network in there [there's a bug in 'load here' prioritization and I don't know if it's been addressed, so one garage per output factory], and it's off to the races.

Originally posted by Total Oh No:

That cargo vehicles get stuck without "wait until un-/loaded" at factories that constantly consume/produce goods is kinda a bug, in my opinion.
Forklifts can be used as a workaround to stop that, yeah, but I wouldn't really highlight this as a "feature" of the forklift system.

I'm starting to think that forklifts are mostly an optional way to transfer goods for people who just prefer a little more realism in the goods' movement. Just like how I'm using a cableway in my current game to transport quarried stone down to a gravel plant. It would be a lot more efficient to use a conveyor instead, but I like the cableway, simply because you can see the stones physically move to their destination, instead of teleporting there.

It's definitely an unintended consequence. I can live with it, but when it comes to the cargo system my two wish-list items are:

- Add a 'Store output' checkbox on production buildings, or if Peter feels like going nuts, a 'Where should material go?' in the vein of what's there for bus stations so that we can say 'Give 40% to the fabric factory, and 60% to the distillery, I don't care about relative fullness'. I like having the ability to use production buildings' internal storage as a "peak and hold" gauge for where my cargo delivery system is backing up, but once I get the cargo system tuned I don't need that ability any more.

- For 'do not wait' to trigger on 'moved less than [loading rate] material this tick', rather than 'could not move any material this tick'. It could cause some funky interactions with vehicle factories, and there would be a LOT of complaining about it breaking systems put in place to work around things as they sit, but that'd make it more intuitive to people who aren't us and haven't spent a year making like The Far Side surgeons with the guts of the game:

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/25/e4/a4/25e4a40bbb518d42b879650a49818d0a.jpg