Containers - Advice needed - I've given up hope :steamsad:

[kessie51]

I'll try to keep this brief but, due to the randomness of the contents (without creating an endless number of dedicated load/unload facilities), and the fact that Dist Centres seem incapable of moving them, the only use I've found for containers is to export various unwanted items.

I feel like I can already do that cheaper with Warehouses, etc. No employees needs to fill either.

The attraction of containers seems to be in standardised handling but lorry drivers aren't sent to collect just any container, which is what happens in W&R. That seems very odd in a world where we seem to be expected to micro-manage just about everything. We can tell people where to work, attend school, etc, but we can't get to tell a driver that people don't actually need another hat, but they are starving while you ignore those containers stacked full of food.

I would imagine a Distr Centre would be an ideal place to load/unload containers to ship good around our region. For one thing you might better control what goes into and comes out of them. Making a chain of three buildings with a (goods) storage space in between should have a similar effect but still leaves the problem of random contents being delivered. No use the DC looking for food if the warehouse is empty and the few containers with food are at the bottom of the pile. It could create more problems than it solves.

I've tried putting a central hub around a container storage (Why are they so small? Can they be daisy-chained to pull containers through?) but it just looked a mess and still didn't seem to work in any cohesive way. The issue over contents being the main problem. For example, To surround them with enough warehouses where I have limited the contents of some items to zero sounds good in my head, but space never seems to allow it, even on totally flat ground.

I'd like to use them more because I can imagine there must be benefits. I'm sure I must be losing out but I can't see how containers are used successfully - but I'm equally sure that some of you guys must have it figured out. I feel like I'm so close to an answer, yet so far...

So now's you chance to shine.. How is it done? Am I even getting close to answering my own question? LOL

Thanks in advance

[esbenmf]

Containers are severely lacking in this game for the exact reasons you mention.

[dazkaz]

Originally posted by kessie51:

I the only use I've found for containers is to export various unwanted items.

I think you hit the nail on the head right there.

The advantage of the containers, when using trains, is in the extreme speed they can be loaded and then unloaded at the customs house.

You can also carry more, if using trucks.

I don't have much experience exporting, or importing them by ship.

[dazkaz]

https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/1738973449861144554/E8CE1C38A49DD11BAF430BE922123508C20D51C1/?imw=5000&imh=5000&ima=fit&impolicy=Letterbox&imcolor=%23000000&letterbox=false

This is a screenshot of my food distribution hub.
Food is picked up from here by the rail distribution centre and distributed to the various city warehouses.
Excess food gets packed into containers and exported.

The reason for the screenshot is the lorry in the packing station.
Set to load and unload, at the same place its parked, it will push the containers to the attached large storage's.

[ryantheskinny]

Yeah as of right now containers are really only useful for packing right before export, you can then haul more and load/unload faster. Otherwise they are not suited for or work as internal transport unless you take pain staking steps to segregate them.

I hope 3div will look into expanding their usefulness eventually, i can say they are getting some changes in the next update but nothing that really fixes your exact issue

[forzion]

After addition of Distribution Offices people just forget to use lines.

You just simply setup a line to load containers at A and unload them.at B.

The whole problem is vehicles and containers have dimensions and transportation vehicles can load anything that fits on their flatbed.

Tnen those exact vehicles can load certain resources when working for Distribution office. Becaise of that Distribution office is unable handle containers.

You cannot use percents for loading vehicles. Even wait until loaded may cause problems in multipurpose facilities like customs.

I am sure you can handle containers quite well just using lines. But they have to be unpacked and then the distribution offices step in.

[kessie51]

Originally posted by dazkaz:

https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/1738973449861144554/E8CE1C38A49DD11BAF430BE922123508C20D51C1/?imw=5000&imh=5000&ima=fit&impolicy=Letterbox&imcolor=%23000000&letterbox=false

This is a screenshot of my food distribution hub.
Food is picked up from here by the rail distribution centre and distributed to the various city warehouses.
Excess food gets packed into containers and exported.

The reason for the screenshot is the lorry in the packing station.
Set to load and unload, at the same place its parked, it will push the containers to the attached large storage's.

Yes, that's very similar the one I used for testing (except tidier) but, exports aside, the only difference I can see is that you need more warehouses and all the container related buildings. How do you stop containers just having stuff you don't need, leaving no space in warehouse for stuff you do need?

I just use a couple of warehouses/cold store/open storage and a cargo train station where each train from a DC can be told to transport specific items, leaving the rest.

For exports I've set up DC's to collect anything above 80% from these warehouses and take suitable goods to a storage that is attached to a container loading facility for forwarding to the border/port. I've never found any use at all for a place to unload containers.

[kessie51]

Originally posted by forzion:

After addition of Distribution Offices people just forget to use lines.

You just simply setup a line to load containers at A and unload them.at B.

The whole problem is vehicles and containers have dimensions and transportation vehicles can load anything that fits on their flatbed.

Tnen those exact vehicles can load certain resources when working for Distribution office. Becaise of that Distribution office is unable handle containers.

You cannot use percents for loading vehicles. Even wait until loaded may cause problems in multipurpose facilities like customs.

I am sure you can handle containers quite well just using lines. But they have to be unpacked and then the distribution offices step in.

That seems impossible unless you have separate container loading facilities for every different product because you cannot otherwise control what goes into a container, or which container your driver takes to deliver to the destination. You also can't tell them to stop when there's nothing to collect either.

[Dave]

As you and others mentioned OP, the current #1 use for containers is to export. You treat the container loading facility like it's the border, and then export from there. This may be underwhelming but its not worthless. It loads/sells faster, so it lets more trade go thru a border without clogging. Its also useful to switch between earning rubles and dollars without a ton of micromanagement. You just switch the one train/ship exporting containers to the soviet/nato border instead of many different lines.

The other fringe use for containers is honestly very map dependent. Some maps, or some ways in which you design your republic, might need 1 or 2 resources to be transported in very large quantity. For example a map with 2 islands and all your farms are on one island. In that case it could be useful to ship crops and/or food in containers from one island to the other.

It would be awesome if the game handled containers as "smartly" as regular resources, but the reality is that unless your population is huge, 100s of thousands, only a couple of warehouse/container-compatible resources move in big enough volumes for containers to be remotely valuable. Like I said, only crops and food.

[Karma]

As noted, containers are only really useful for exporting. I've been hoping that with the upcoming addition of export limits for goods, containers could be made attractive by letting them use the boat/plane higher export limit rather than the 'local' truck/train export limit. That could represent containers being used for more long-range transport of goods IRL, and would make container loading facilities a worthwhile investment.

[kessie51]

Thanks everyone. I feel less lonely now :LOL:

[forzion]

Containers for imports are quite micromanagement heavy as you will not be able to buy them automatically. Then the capacity of railway boxcars is not significantly worse than the capacity open wagons with containers. You really do not need containers for internal use.

But when we come to exports then it is a totally different story and exports can be fully automatic by just setting up simple lines and no Distribution Office is needed.

But early game you can micromanage a lot so there is some room to use containers when you have only few vehicles to handle with low population. You just need to track your economic numbers to know how much do you need to buy.

Another thing people forget about is that you can use the container unloading and storage for vehicles and containers as storage facility because the containers will not be unpacked if there is no room for the resource in connected storage.

[forzion]

I just did a test and actually you can have over 2000 tons of food stored in container unloading facility which can be quite useful and you do not need use modded storage for that.

In large space for vehicles/ containers you can fit 336 20' containers.
The small space can store 40 20' containers.

[kessie51]

Originally posted by forzion:

I just did a test and actually you can have over 2000 tons of food stored in container unloading facility which can be quite useful and you do not need use modded storage for that.

In large space for vehicles/ containers you can fit 336 20' containers.
The small space can store 40 20' containers.

The issue is you can only make sure that food is in every container if the loading facility is connected to nothing but a warehouse that is prevented from storing anything but food.

You would need similar dedicated set ups for every other product.

All to do what can be done with a DC, one warehouse and/or a cargo station if you want to use trains.

This probably isn't what the app is doing but from where we sit Container loading treats everything in a warehouse as "Stuff" and doesn't care what stuff goes into a container.

The full container is then treated as a single item, let's call it "Goods", so each one gets the same priority as every other container. They all contain "Goods", end of story... but not quite...

We can see what is in each container but the vehicle operators don't.

Unpacking the Container at the other end converts the "Goods" back to "Stuff" and, *roll of drums* it is always the same kind of Stuff that was loaded. This shows that there's a variable somewhere in the app that records what is in every Container, but it just isn't used in transportation.

If the variable was used a DC might work with Containers, or at least you could guarantee that if you want your container full of food that's what you'll get (assuming any exist, of course).

Maybe a clever modder can fix that? It's way beyond me. I just get these headaches

[kessie51]

Originally posted by forzion:

But when we come to exports then it is a totally different story and exports can be fully automatic by just setting up simple lines and no Distribution Office is needed.

Which is fine until there are no containers to collect... You also have to be careful to separate your own needs against what is available to export.

Without containers you only need one point of origin and 2 DC. The first DC is set to collect down to zero for local use, the other set to (example) >85% to take any excess to export. No extra buildings or endless trains.

For imports you need all the extra infrastructure to load and transport containers and yet more at he receiving end so you can sort out the contents. I agree. Total waste