Factorio rocket efficiency, part 1
Factorio: Space Age has some inconsistencies when it comes to the weight and rocket capacity for different items.
We can use this to our advantage, saving on rocket parts and launches by sending some non-obvious things. When we need something on a space platform or need something moved from one planet to another, instead of sending the item itself, we send some or all of the parts to produce it, and then produce it in space or on the target planet.
Ammo
Improves by a factor of 2.5
One simple example is ammo. You can send 100 in a rocket. But if you send iron plates instead, the rocket takes 1000 plates which is enough to produce 250 ammo. So never send ammo in a rocket.
Inserters
Improves by a factor 8 (3.44 for blue)
The yellow inserter is another. With a rocket capacity of 50, it is wasteful to send them ready-made, as they are very cheap to make. The same rocket can take enough raw materials to produce 400 inserters instead: 400 iron plates, 400 iron gears and 400 green circuits will fill a rocket.
But no one uses yellow inserters, right? Let’s dig deeper. Blue ones are good for a while. All inserters have a rocket capacity of 50, but blue inserters need more materials to make. The input is 1 yellow inserter, 2 iron plates, 2 green circuits.
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We cannot improve by shipping yellow inserters + the extra materials, but if we break down the yellows:
Ship the materials to make 172 yellow inserters: 172 iron plates, 172 green circuits, 172 iron gears. To make the blues we need an additional 2*172 = 344 more iron plates and green circuits. For a total of 516 iron plates, 516 green circuits, 172 iron gears. This takes up 946 kg in the rocket, so we even have 5% spare capacity for more items.
Rockets
Improves by a factor 10 (20, even)
Rockets are also a notable example, needed in plenty when travelling to Aquilo and beyond. The rocket capacity for rockets is just 25, but we can fit 250 explosives + 500 iron plates into a rocket and make 250 rockets in space, 10 times as many. Of course, we probably never need to ship iron plates into space since we have free iron up there, so we can send 500 explosives and produce iron in space to get 500 rockets from 1 launch.
Modules
Factor 2.66
All modules have a rocket capacity of 50. But we can produce 133 modules by sending circuits instead. Send 665 each of red and green circuits, and make the modules in space.
Summary and conclusion
We probably don’t need 172 blue inserters or 133 modules on a starter platform. But by saving on each component, we can get our platform running with a lot fewer rockets than if we’d send each component ready-made. It’s a tradeoff between time, resources and manual work. I have an idea for a platform starter kit that gets the most use out of the first 1 or 2 rockets we send, since this matters most early in the game when resources are scarce.
