Manufacturing
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Industrial Equipment
Factory Production Line (TL9)
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Robotic Production Line (TL9)
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Fabricator (TL9)
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Blueprints (TL9-12)
The instructions to build a gadget. For many commercial goods, blueprints are licensed rather than sold outright. The licensing agreements require royalty payments based on the quantity of goods produced – typically 10%-50% of the base cost of the item. This royalty may exceed 90% on goods whose main cost is their artistic value, information content, or trademark (e.g., designer clothes). LC is equal to that of the item.
3D Blueprints (TL9): These are used with fabricators and robofacs (above). They are Complexity 2 for devices costing up to $100, Complexity 3 for devices up to $1,000, etc.
Molecular Blueprints (TL11): These are usable with nanofacs (below). They are Complexity 3 for devices costing up to $100, Complexity 4 for devices up to $1,000, etc.
Wet Nanofabrication Systems (TL10)
Early industrial nanofactories require highly controlled environments. They use a mix of protein-based nanobots and top-down manufacturing techniques, which is sometimes referred to as "wet" nanotechnology.
Vatfac (TL10)
This is a large biofactory unit that can grow food, pulp, industrial bacteria, or similar products. It can feed up to 20 people, or half as many if creating a variety of imitation flesh, and other foods. $100,000, 200 tons, external power.
Nanofacs (TL11-12)
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Robofac (TL10)
All ultra-tech factories incorporate a wide variety of automated, programmable machine tools. However, these are a step up: fabricators that can operate with no human involvement, with all operations and maintenance directed and performed by machines.
Robofacs can reconfigure themselves to manufacture almost any product. The largest robofacs may cover several city blocks, and cost billions – but they make the difference between a civilized planet and a colony world. An unmanned colony expedition carrying genetic material, exo-wombs, and a robofac can develop a world in an astoundingly short time, producing both living things and industry.
Universal robofacs function exactly like universal fabricators, but they are also capable of fully autonomous control with their own Machinist skill.
Industrial Robofac (TL10): A full-size factory; it has Machinist-14. For every $1,000 or 10 lbs. of goods it can fabricate per hour, it is $1,000,000, 1,000 lbs., industrial power. LC3.
Robotic Minifac (TL10): A workshop-sized unit. It can fabricate $100 or 1 lb. of product per hour. It has Machinist-13. $100,000, 100 lbs., external power. LC4.
Portable Robofac (TL11): Fits in a carrying case, or a large backpack. It has Machinist-12, and can fabricate $10 or 0.1 lbs. of product per hour. $10,000, 10 lbs., C/8 hrs. LC2.
Fabrication speed doubles each TL after introduction.
Replicators (TL12^)
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