Planning a supply chain
Plan the chain backwards from a destination that accepts the finished cargo. A productive factory needs both its inputs and a service that delivers its output to demand.
Start with demand and work upstream
Section titled “Start with demand and work upstream”Use the cargo article to find consumers and town demand. Check the destination in your save, then choose a producer and follow its required inputs upstream. Inputs within one recipe are needed together; separate recipes are alternatives. Optional boost cargo improves production but is not a required ingredient.
Plan each transport leg
Section titled “Plan each transport leg”Place loading and unloading facilities so their catchment includes the producer, consumer or transfer warehouse. Passenger access and cargo access have different requirements; use the facility guide to check them.
Choose compatible vehicles for each cargo and match their capacity, loading rate and facility requirements to that leg. Recipe quantities give input ratios, not a fixed fleet size. Travel time, available production and demand also affect how much transport is useful.
A transfer needs an onward service as well as an incoming one. Warehouses can buffer cargo within station catchment, but do not deliver it directly to industries or towns. Check every leg before increasing capacity at one point in the chain.
Worked example: beverages
Section titled “Worked example: beverages”A Brewery needs both Grain and Glass. Build the route around those two inputs and a destination that demands Beverages.
| Stage | Cargo movement |
|---|---|
| Crop Farm → Brewery | Grain |
| Sand Pit or Sand Dredger → Glassworks | Sand |
| Glassworks → Brewery | Glass |
| Brewery → town demand | Beverages |
Place loading facilities within reach of each producer and unloading facilities within reach of each consumer. Check each transfer point as well as the final destination: a connected brewery still needs a route for its finished cargo. At the town end, use the demand icons to find buildings that accept beverages.
The recipes below show the ingredient quantities used together in a production cycle. Their ratios describe consumption; they do not prescribe a fixed number of farms, factories or vehicles. Available production depends on the industries you have placed, their capacity and boosts, and the demand your route serves.
Choose vehicles separately for grain, sand, glass and beverages. A vehicle suitable for one leg may not carry the next cargo. Start with the beverages vehicle filter, then check capacity, loading and terminal requirements. Where a transfer needs storage, use the warehouse guide.
Beverages recipes
Section titled “Beverages recipes”Follow each recipe from its required ingredients to its output. Inputs in one recipe are used together; separate recipes are alternatives.