Difference between revisions of "Manufacturing"

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[[Category:Guides]]
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{{Industry Links}}
[[Category:Industry]]
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In the EVE universe, the vast majority of items are manufactured by player characters and traded in a relatively free way in the marketplace. Students of economics will note that these markets are neither perfect nor efficient in the technical senses; volumes of many items are low enough that the market can be (and is) manipulated, and the supply of materials and modules is partly provided by loot drops in missions, which can be adjusted without warning by the game developers. Similarly, the developers may adjust the requirements for a manufacturing process, or increase the availability of ore, or otherwise mess in the sandbox.
[[File:Manufacturing.png|350px|right|An outline of the manufacturing process.]]
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In the EvE universe, most items are manufactured by player characters and traded in a relatively free way in the marketplace. Students of economics will note that these markets are neither perfect nor efficient in the technical senses; volumes of many items are low enough that the market can be manipulated (and is), and supply of materials and modules is partly provided by loot drops in missions, which can be adjusted without warning by the game developers. Similarly, the developers may adjust the requirements for a manufacturing process, or increase the availability of ore, or otherwise mess in the sandbox. So it's not a bad proxy for real life at that. (All these interventions have happened within the 90 days prior to this writing.)
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Nonetheless, manufacturing and selling items can provide interest and ISK profit for the careful and canny player. The player must be aware, however, that there are plenty of items that destroy value - that is, there are a great number of Tech 1 items, modules especially, that are worth '''less''' than the cost of manufacture. Many more items can be sold at a profit, but only in a limited volume in certain markets. Manufacture in these cases may simply be an alternative to hauling stuff between markets.
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== Skills ==
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The following skills are useful or required for all production that can be done.
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* {{sk|Industry|mult=yes}} - 4% reduction in manufacturing time per skill level.<br>At least level 1 is required to use most blueprints, and level 3 is required for further manufacturing skills. The speed bonus increases the rate at which you can produce items (and therefore, produce profit).
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* {{sk|Advanced Industry|mult=yes}} - 3% reduction in all manufacturing & research time per skill level.<br>This skill adds not only a fairly substantial further time reduction in manufacturing but also a time reduction in all [[research]] and [[invention]] jobs. Whilst less noticeable when building small items individually, these time-savers add up when doing multiple runs and building large ships.
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Increase the number of concurrent jobs:
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* {{sk|Mass Production|mult=yes}} - Allows 1 additional job per level. <br>By default, all characters can run 1 manufacturing job at a time. Training this skill lets you run additional jobs simultaneously from 2 jobs at I up to 6 jobs at V. Any industrialist who wants to create things will need to train this to IV or V fairly early in their plans.
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* {{sk|Advanced Mass Production|mult=yes}} - Allows 1 additional job per level. <br>Once you train Mass Production to V, you can then train Advanced Mass Production, for a further increase in concurrent jobs. Having this skill at IV gives you 10 manufacturing lines (1 + 5 + 4), which is enough for most people. Training to V takes around 28 days, making it only of interest to dedicated manufacturing characters.
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Allow remote management of jobs:
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* {{sk|Supply Chain Management|mult=yes}} - Allows starting jobs remotely. +5 jumps per level. <br>Without training this skill, you can start jobs anywhere in the current system. Each level in this skill gives you the ability to start manufacturing jobs an extra 5 jumps away, to the maximum of 25 jumps at level V (this may include other regions).<br>This skill is more of a convenience skill than a must-have for a budding industrialist - allowing you to manage your production lines for a distance. If you invest in this skill, training to level III or maybe level IV would offer the most return on time investment. Note that you still have to haul the materials and blueprint to the relevant station.
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== Basics of production ==
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Production of Tech 1 items - ships, modules, ammunition, rigs, or even components - is the simplest of manufacturing tasks, within reach of even the newest player to EVE. However, whether they will be able to make a profit is another question entirely. Very few skills are needed for Tech 1 production, and the materials are often fairly easily acquired.
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All Tech 1 manufacturing jobs require a blueprint. These come in two forms: originals (BPOs) with infinite runs and copies (BPCs) that can only be run a limited number of times. For most blueprints, a single run of a blueprint will produce a single item, but there are some exceptions - most obviously ammunition, which produces 100 units per run.
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Many manufacturers use BPCs, copied from a BPO, to manufacture, for a variety of reasons, including security and the ability to run multiple production lines. For more details, see [[Research#Why should I copy my BPOs?|Why should I copy my BPOs?]]
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See [[Blueprints]] for more details on blueprints.
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==== Selecting the item to produce ====
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Tech 1 BPOs are seeded by various NPC traders, with costs varying from 100,000 to 75 billion ISK. This can be a significant cost, especially to new players. Also significant is the amount of research time that may be spent on the blueprint. Selecting a good one versus a bad one is important!
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A good item will have these characteristics:
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* '''Inexpensive Materials''' - The material cost should be such that you can reasonably expect to manufacture a decent number of items, and you won't be bankrupt if you lose them while trying to sell them. There isn't a rule on how much cost is too much, but if you need a number then keep the cost of an item below 1% of your net worth. This will not be a problem for players with a large wallet but can be an issue for new players starting out in manufacturing. Loading the potential BPO into the Industry window will provide an estimate of the material cost.
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* '''Good Profit Margins''' - The difference between the selling price and the cost to manufacture should be worthwhile. Be sure to compare the absolute profit (ISK) and percent profit (% of selling price) and make sure both are worth your time. What makes it worth your time? It is up to the individual, but strive for at least 10% per item. Profits of 80% have been witnessed by players as young as 2 months to EVE, but they are rare and tend to disappear.
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* '''Good Transaction Volume''' - If you find an item that is extremely profitable but is only sold once per week, then it has poor transaction volume. There is no guarantee that you can capture all (or even most) of the sales of a particular item! To check the volume of an item, use the Market window. If you choose an item, click on the Price History tab. If it shows a graph, you can see daily sales volume by clicking the Show Table button in the bottom of the window. This will show you how many of an item were sold each day in the region over the past year.
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Many items do meet all three requirements. Finding them is a matter of a lot of research time looking for items that meet your criteria. Typically it is easiest to search through the market tab looking for items with sufficient volume, then go to the BPO research calculator to compare the prices to selling volumes. Once you choose a blueprint, the BPO Research Calculator will also tell you what faction sells the BPOs you have chosen.
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=== Total job cost === <!-- because that is what it is called in the Industry window -->
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Raw materials are not the only cost of production. The act of installing the manufacturing job costs too and the job installation fee is a factor that cannot be ignored. In choosing where to base your manufacturing operation consider the installation cost of industry jobs. This cost is dynamic, so if a large number of other manufacturers join you in the system, it may save you money to move elsewhere (weighed against the cost in time and effort of moving all your materials to a new system).
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:<math> \displaystyle \text{Total job cost} = {\color{green}\text{Estimated item value} } \times ( ( {\color{blue}\text{System cost index} } \times \text{Structure bonuses} ) + \text {Facility tax} + \text{SCC surcharge} + \text{Alpha clone tax} )</math><ref>[https://www.eveonline.com/news/view/viridian-expansion-notes Total job cost formula] under Tax reforms</ref>
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The estimated item's approximate value is the cost estimation of the materials. The exact values can be calculated by multiplying the number of items with the adjusted prices of the items (found in ESI [https://esi.evetech.net/ui/#/Market/get_markets_prices /markets/prices/] endpoint).
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: <math> \displaystyle {\color{green}\text{Estimated item value} } = \sum_{\text{all materials}} ( \text{Material quantity} \times \text{Material adjusted price} ) </math>
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{{important note box
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| Caution: the information about the system cost index calculation is probably no longer correct, considering this patch note "We have adjusted the System Cost Index formula to make it more volatile." which was published in the [https://www.eveonline.com/news/view/patch-notes-version-21-05-2 Version 21.05 Release 2023-09-12.1]
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}}
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The system cost index is calculated from the amount of production job hours done in system and the amount of production job hours done in universe.<ref>[https://www.eveonline.com/news/view/eve-industry-all-you-want-to-know System cost index formula], under Basic Pricing section</ref>
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:<math> \displaystyle {\color{blue}\text{System cost index} } = \sqrt{ \frac{ \text{Work hours done in system in past 28 days} }{ \text{Work hours done in universe in past 28 days} } } </math>
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You will also need to pay taxes. The taxes are based on the Estimated item value. The tax is composed of the following elements:
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; Facility tax : Fixed at 0.25% for NPC stations. Set by the owner for player structures.
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; SCC surcharge : Fixed at 4% <ref>Increase from 0.25% to 0.75% [https://www.eveonline.com/news/view/patch-notes-version-21-05 Patch notes: Version 21.05 Release 2023-07-06.1]</ref><ref>Increase from 0.75% to 1.5% [https://www.eveonline.com/news/view/patch-notes-version-21-05-2 Patch notes: Version 21.05 Release 2023-09-12.1]</ref><ref>Increase from 1.5% to 4% [https://www.eveonline.com/news/view/patch-notes-version-21-06 Patch notes: Version 21.06 Release 2024-02-01.1]</ref>
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; Alpha clone tax : Only applicable to [[Alpha clone]]s, set to 0.25%
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The maximum tax that can be set for industry services will be capped at 10%.
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=== Running jobs ===
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[[File:Manufacturing job.png|thumb|Installing a manufacturing job is easy. Select the blueprint, select job type as manufacturing job, set the amount of runs and press start. If using containers or corporation hangars you may need to change the input and output locations.]]
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Once you have a blueprint and materials ready, and decided which system to manufacture in, it's time to produce your goods. Most of the time you'll be using an NPC station to manufacture goods.
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Engineering complexes and citadels with the appropriate service module online can also be used to manufacture goods. Engineering complexes provide a modest material savings (1%) and significant time savings (15% - 30% depending on size) over NPC stations; these savings can be further increased for certain categories of goods by installing the appropriate rigs to the structure.
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Gather the materials and BPO (or BPC) in your station hangar, and open the industry window. You will need to find your blueprint using the drop-down selection boxes. Click the blueprint to install it to the main industry window. Or you can start the job from the blueprint in your hangar.
  
Nonetheless, manufacturing and selling items can provide interest and ISK profit for the careful and canny player.  The player must be aware, however, that there are plenty of items which actually destroy value -- that is, there are a great number of T1 items, modules especially, that are worth '''less''' than the cost of manufacture.  There are many more items which can be sold at a profit, but only in a limited volume in certain markets.  Manufacture in these cases may simply be an alternative to hauling stuff between markets.
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Simply choose the number of runs, check the input/output locations (most of the time this will simply be Item Hangar, but if you have your own personal corporation or use containers for sorting you may need to change them - note: if the industry window says you are missing inputs that you know you have, check to make sure all input/output choices are from/to the Item Hangar) and press Start.  
  
__TOC__
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While the job is running, you can check on its progress using the same Industry window, in the Jobs tab. Select the Jobs tab, and a list of your currently running jobs will be displayed. You can cancel the job if you want your blueprint back for some reason, but none of the materials used or installation costs will be refunded.
  
==T1 Production==
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Finally, once the job is completed, job listed in the Jobs tab will contain a large Deliver button instead of a time remaining display; press this and the results & blueprint will be returned to the station.
  
===Skills===
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{{expansion past| You also had the option of selecting a [[Teams|Team]] to assist your manufacturing process, if there was one in the system. If the team you wished to use modified material efficiency, deciding whether to use it would be a simple matter of comparing installation cost increase to estimate input cost decrease ''(with the proviso that it was only an estimation, not an actual value)''. If the team modified time efficiency, it may have been more difficult to decide whether to use one.}}
  
The following skills are useful or required for T1 production. Most or all of these will be needed for T2/T3 production as well. Recommended minimum skills are Industry 3 and Production Efficiency 4. Supply Chain Management 1 is required to use the Uni POS service.
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==== Beware of rounding "errors"! ====
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A particular problem that can quickly cost you a million ISK or two when manufacturing Tech 2 items is the rounding that is applied as an effect of material efficiency. The rounding is done per job instead of per run. a single industry job with 3 runs can use ''less'' material than 3 single jobs from the same blueprint!
  
====Production Skills====
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Additionally, the manufacturing job will require at least one item of each type per run. This is most notable when the job requires one item per run. With 100 runs and 10% material reduction, you would assume that you would need 90 items but you still need 100 items.
Production skills are found in the Industry category.
 
  
Basic:
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== Storyline production ==
* [[Skills:Production#Industry|Industry]] - 4% reduction in manufacturing time per skill level.
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[[COSMOS|COSMOS missions]] and data sites are a source of storyline module blueprint copies. These modules require rare components that can be found in data sites, relic sites, and COSMOS sites.
: At least level 1 is required to use most blueprints, and level 3 is required for further manufacturing skills. The speed bonus increases the rate at which you can produce items (and therefore, produce profit) and reduces installation costs slightly.
 
  
Increase number of concurrent jobs:
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To manufacture them you will also need few extra skills:
* [[Skills:Production#Mass Production|Mass Production]] - Allows 1 additional job per level.
 
: By default, all characters can run 1 manufacturing job at a time.  Training this skill lets you run additional jobs simultaneously from 2 jobs at level I up to 6 jobs at level V.  Any industrialist who wants to create things will need to train this to IV or V fairly early in their plans. Level 5 is required for:
 
* [[Skills:Production#Advanced Mass Production|Advanced Mass Production]] - Allows 1 additional job per level.
 
: The current NPC price for this skill is 20M ISK.  So if you invest, train it to level IV quickly.  At level I you'll be able to use a total of 7 job slots (1 base + 5 from mass production + 1 from this skill) up to a total of 11 slots at level V.  Most people stop training after level IV and instead choose to roll up a new production alt.
 
  
Reduce materials needed:
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* {{sk|Amarr Encryption Methods|mult=yes}}
* [[Skills:Production#Material Efficiency|Material Efficiency]] - 5% reduction per skill level to the material requirements needed for production.
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* {{sk|Caldari Encryption Methods|mult=yes}}
: If you are just producing ammo for your own use, training this skill to level III or IV is all that is needed as you won't care about an extra 8-12% waste.  But for the profit-minded industrialist, training this skill to level V is a very strong recommendation.
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* {{sk|Gallente Encryption Methods|mult=yes}}
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* {{sk|Minmatar Encryption Methods|mult=yes}}
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* {{sk|Sleeper Technology|mult=yes}}
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* {{sk|Takmahl Technology|mult=yes}}
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* {{sk|Talocan Technology|mult=yes}}
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* {{sk|Yan Jung Technology|mult=yes}}
  
Allow remote management of jobs:
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== Booster production ==
* [[Skills:Production#Supply Chain Management|Supply Chain Management]] - Proficiency at starting manufacturing jobs remotely. Each level increases the distance at which jobs can be created. Level 1 allows for range within the same solar system, Level 2 extends that range to systems within 5 jumps, and each subsequent level then doubles it. Level 5 allows for full regional range.
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[[Image:Drug_map.png|thumb|256px|Industry map of drugs. Manufacturing of improved and strong drugs requires multiple multiple raw gas sources.]]
: This skill is more of a convenience skill than a must-have for a budding industrialist. The current NPC cost is 6.75M ISK, but it allows you to manage your production lines for a distance.  If you invest in this skill, training to level III or maybe level IV would offer the most flexibility. Note that you still have to haul the materials and blueprint to the relevant station.
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Boosters are manufactured from mytoserocin and cytoserocin gas harvested from clouds in [[cosmic signatures]] found in known space. These signatures only spawn in specific regions of New Eden. These gasses are distinct from the fullerine gasses found in wormholes, which are used to create Tech III ships and subsystems.
  
==== Research Skills ====
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Booster production requires the following skill:
Research skills are found in the Science category.
 
  
Basic:
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* {{sk|Drug Manufacturing}} - Required for manufacturing drugs.
* [[Skills:Science#Science|Science]] – 5% Bonus to blueprint copying speed per level.
 
: Basic skill, reduces time needed to create BPCs. Level 3 is required for Research.
 
  
Time reduction:
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If you also want to refine the gas used for drug manufacturing you will need the relevant [[Reactions|reaction]] skills.
* [[Skills:Science#Research|Research]] – 5% bonus to blueprint manufacturing time research per skill level.
 
* [[Skills:Science#Metallurgy|Metallurgy]] - 5% Bonus to material efficiency research speed per skill level.
 
  
Increase number of concurrent jobs:
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=== Processing gas ===
* [[Skills:Science#Laboratory Operation|Laboratory Operation]] – allows you to run a research operation, either ME or PL, per level.
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Gas must be processed into pure booster material before the final product is created. This is done using reactors at a [[refinery]] structure.
: Basically equivalent to the Mass Production skills. Level 5 is required for:
 
* [[Skills:Science#Advanced Laboratory Operation|Advanced Laboratory Operation]] – allows you to run a research operation, either ME or PL, per level.
 
  
Allow remote management of jobs:
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Pure boosters use Simple Reactions at a Standup Biochemical Reactor I. These structures can only be installed at a refinery in 0.4 or lower security space. Besides the gas, the reactions also require an additional unit, which varies based on the grade of the booster. Synth reactions need Garbage, Standard reactions require Water, Improved reactions require either Spirits or Oxygen, depending on the exact product, and Strong reactions require Hydrochloric Acid.
* {{sk|Scientific Networking}} - Skill at running research operations remotely. Each level increases the distance at which research projects can be started. Level 1 allows for range within the same solar system, Level 2 extends that range to systems within 5 jumps, and each subsequent level then doubles it. Level 5 allows for full regional range.
 
: Basically the Laboratory equivalent of Supply Chain Management.
 
  
==== Other Skills ====
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=== Booster creation ===
* {{sk|Trade}} / {{sk|Retail}} / {{sk|Wholesale}} etc - Increases number of available market orders.
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Boosters themselves are created as a normal manufacturing job in industry window. This has no security requirements and can be done in high security space. Manufacturing the final booster product requires the pure booster material of the desired grade covered in the above section, megacyte, and an appropriate blueprint.
: Buy and Sell orders will most often be the main way of acquiring materials and selling manufactured products, and increasing the number of available orders beyond the base 5 will help greatly.
 
* {{sk|Marketing}}, {{sk|Procurement}} and {{sk|Daytrading}} - Allows remote management of market orders.
 
: These skills will allow you to manipulate market orders without being present in the relevant station. Level 2, or 5 jumps, allows management of Hek from Aldrat and Rens from Eystur.
 
* {{sk|Connections}}, {{sk|Broker Relations}}, {{sk|Accounting}} - Reduces NPC taxes
 
: These skills will reduce some extra costs from installation and market orders, increasing profit margins.
 
  
=== Blueprints ===
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== Tech 2 production ==
All manufacturing jobs require a blueprint. These come in two forms: originals (BPOs) with infinite runs and copies (BPCs) that can only be run a limited number of times. For most blueprints, a single run of a blueprint will produce a single item, but there are some exceptions including ammo, which produces 100 ammo per run. BPCs are produced through copying (T1) and invention (T2).
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[[File:Manufacturing.png|thumb|400px|Not all Tech 2 manufacturing jobs require every single input material.]]
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Tech 2 manufacturing requires Tech 2 BPCs, which are 'invented' through the invention process. This is a chance-based process, requiring a lot of skill investment in advance, and you are not guaranteed to get a Tech 2 BPCs at the end of it. Some Tech 2 manufacturers do not invent, but instead merely buy Tech 2 BPC packs from dedicated inventors. See [[Invention]] for more details on the invention process.
  
==== Selecting a Blueprint ====
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There are also limited number of extremely valuable tech II blueprint '''originals''' in circulation. These were seeded years ago in the so called "Blueprint lottery" and new tech II blueprint originals will never enter the game.
T1 BPOs are seeded by various NPC traders, with costs varying from 100,000 to 72 billion ISK. This can be a significant cost, especially to new players. Also significant is the amount of research time that may be spent on the blueprint. Selecting a good one versus a bad one is important!
 
  
A good blueprint will have these characteristics:
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Tech 2 production also requires a much wider range of materials compared to tech I production.
* '''Inexpensive Materials''' - The material cost should be such that you can reasonably expect to manufacture a decent number of items, and you won't be bankrupt if you lose them while trying to sell them. There isn't a rule on how much cost is too much, but if you need a number then keep the cost of an item below 1% of your net worth. This will not be a problem for players with a large wallet, but can be an issue for new players starting out in manufacturing. The [http://zofu.no-ip.de/bpo BPO Research Calculator] provides an estimate of the material cost, which typically makes up the bulk of T1 manufacturing cost. Instructions for using this site will be given below.
 
* '''Good Profit Margins''' - The difference between the selling price and the cost to manufacture should be worthwhile. Be sure to compare the absolute profit (ISK) and percent profit (% of selling price) and make sure both are worth your time. What makes it worth your time? It is up to the individual, but strive for at least 10% per item. Profits of 80% have been witnessed by players as young as 2 months to EVE, but they are rare and tend to disappear. Note that [[Skills:Production#Material Efficiency|Material Efficiency]] has a large impact on profit margins. If you are considering manufacturing as a career, spend the time and train it to V as soon as possible.
 
* '''Good Transaction Volume''' - If you find an item that is extremely profitable but is only sold once per week, then it has poor transaction volume. There is no guarantee that you can capture all (or even most) of the sales of a particular item! To check the volume of an item, use the Market window. If you choose an item, click on the Price History tab. If it shows a graph, you can see daily sales volume by clicking the Show Table button in the bottom of the window. This will show you how many of an item were sold each day in the region over the last 3 months (default).
 
  
There are many items that do meet all three requirements. Finding them is a matter of a lot of research time looking for items that meet your criteria. Typically it is easiest to search through the market tab looking for items with sufficient volume, then go to the BPO research calculator to compare the prices to selling volumes. Once you choose a blueprint, the BPO Research Calculator will also tell you what faction sells the BPOs you have chosen.
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=== Skills required ===
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The main difference between tech 2 and tech 1 manufacturing is the increased skill requirement, and the many more different types of input materials required. Not all Tech 2 manufacturers will have all these skills, some may specialize in (for example) constructing only Minmatar ships, and thus have only those skills. Most of these skills are the same as those required for invention. Different blueprints require these skills at different levels, but in general: the larger the ship or item, the higher skill level will be required. Most of these skills also give a 1% time efficiency bonus per level.
  
==== Reducing the Cost of a Blueprint ====
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* {{sk|Mechanical Engineering|mult=yes}}
Blueprints have a "Bill of Materials": this is a list of the materials and skills that a single run of the blueprint requires. Most simple blueprints require Industry 1 to run, although more advanced blueprints will require more advanced skills, probably increasing the total cost of owning the blueprint.
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: Required to build Tech 2 ships of any size & race.
  
Blueprints have a number of attributes that affect the efficiency of the BPO. All newly purchased BPOs have a degree of wastage associated with them. These are split into:
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* {{sk|Amarr Starship Engineering|mult=yes}}
* Material Level
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* {{sk|Caldari Starship Engineering|mult=yes}}
: New BPOs will always use 10% or 25% more material than ideal, independent of character skill. The level of material waste is controlled by the Material Efficiency (ME) level, and can be reduced by performing Material Research at a laboratory slot. With no skills, blueprints will have an additional 20% material waste, which is reduced with the Material Efficiency skill.
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* {{sk|Gallente Starship Engineering|mult=yes}}
: Material level research in public stations are extremely hard to find, and most stations have a queue of two weeks or more to do research. The University provides a [[Using the Uni POS for research|service to research BPOs]] for students who have the [Θ] Theta or Sophomore [[titles]].
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* {{sk|Minmatar Starship Engineering|mult=yes}}
: You may want to check the Contracts market for BPOs that are already researched if getting ME research completed is taking too long. While these BPOs are generally marked up 10x the normal purchase price (or much more!) the extra cost can usually be recouped in the time it would take to research the BPO yourself. Remember that while you are researching, the BPO is unavailable for use. A BPO in hand can be immediately used to generate revenue.
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: Required to build Tech 2 ships of the relevant race.
  
* Productivity Level
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* {{sk|Advanced Small Ship Construction|mult=yes}}
: As with ME, the amount of time needed to produce the item will take x% longer than ideal. The level of time waste is controlled by the PE level, and performing Time Efficiency Research at a laboratory slot will reduce the wasted time during manufacture.
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* {{sk|Advanced Medium Ship Construction|mult=yes}}
: Productivity level research in public stations is generally available with no wait time, although you may have to travel a few systems to find them.
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* {{sk|Advanced Large Ship Construction|mult=yes}}
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* {{sk|Advanced Industrial Ship Construction|mult=yes}}
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: Required to build Tech 2 ships of the relevant size. These skills are not required for invention, only construction.
  
Both forms of research are subject to fairly severe stacking penalties, so while a few levels of research are almost mandatory on most blueprints, it becomes much less worthwhile after that. The lowest ME level that results in a BPO with zero wasted units of materials ("Ideal ME") is determined by the material with the highest unit quantity. For 10% wastage BPOs, Perfect ME = quantity/5.5. For 25% wastage BPOs, Perfect ME = quantity/2.5.
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* {{sk|Electromagnetic Physics|mult=yes}}
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* {{sk|Electronic Engineering|mult=yes}}
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* {{sk|Graviton Physics|mult=yes}}
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* {{sk|High Energy Physics|mult=yes}}
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* {{sk|Hydromagnetic Physics|mult=yes}}
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* {{sk|Laser Physics|mult=yes}}
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* {{sk|Mechanical Engineering|mult=yes}}
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* {{sk|Molecular Engineering|mult=yes}}
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* {{sk|Nanite Engineering|mult=yes}}
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* {{sk|Nuclear Physics|mult=yes}}
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* {{sk|Plasma Physics|mult=yes}}
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* {{sk|Quantum Physics|mult=yes}}
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* {{sk|Rocket Science|mult=yes}}
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: Two of these skills are required to build each Tech 2 (non-ship) item. These are the same as the skills required to invent that Tech 2 item. Consult a blueprint to find out which skills at which level are required to build that item. Example (see right): Nanofiber Internal Structure II BPC requires Nanite Engineering and Molecular Engineering.
  
This site [http://zofu.no-ip.de/bpo BPO Research Calculator] provides an easy way of finding out the optimal ME and PE research level. To use it, you first must search for a particular item. For example: 1MN Microwarpdrive I. After you search, select the correct blueprint from the search results. You can select your skill level (Metallurgy, Research, and Industry), and then Submit. The website will then generate tables to show you various ME and PE levels effect on the estimated manufacturing cost and production time. If you wish to see a particular ME or PE level, you can enter it into the relevant field and resubmit.  
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=== Tech 2 required materials ===
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Whereas the majority of Tech 1 production requires only minerals, the range of input materials required hugely expands for Tech 2 production - moons, planets, items and components are all potential sources of materials for Tech 2 production. Not all Tech 2 blueprints require every single source of input material, but one particular additional input required for most Tech 2 manufacturing is a Tech 1 item of the similar type. For example building a Tech 2 nanofiber requires a single Tech 1 nanofiber, some Remote Assembly Modules (Armor/Hull Tech R.A.M.s), extra minerals (Morphite) and some planetary materials (Construction Blocks).  
  
==== Blueprint Copying ====
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==== Moon materials ====
T1 Blueprint Copies (BPCs) are produced by copying (running a copy job on) T1 BPOs. The resulting BPCs will inherit the Material and Productivity levels of the respective BPO, but cannot be researched further. Public copy slots are also hard to find, and the University provides a [[BPO Copying Service|BPO copying service]]. BPCs are required for T2 manufacturing.
+
Moon materials are produced via moon mining, which is an activity only possible in 0.5 security space and lower, and requires a Refinery anchored next to the moon mining beacon you wish to mine from and fitted with Moon Drill module. It is also very lucrative, and some moons are fought over regularly, so being able to defend your structure is necessary if you wish to maintain your moon mining operation.  Moon mining is an activity carried out on the corporation or alliance level, and thus generally not possible (to run a profitable operation) as a solo player.  
  
=== Running Jobs ===
+
Moon materials - basic elements such as Chromium, Technetium, and Tungsten, which can be found in the Reaction Materials > Raw Moon Materials section of the market - are mined and then reacted together in the refinery to produce advanced moon materials - such as Tungsten Carbide, Fullerides and Fermionic Condensates. It is possible however to run a profitable reaction only operation: buying the raw moon materials on the market, reacting them together in your refinery (and it does have to be in lowsec or nullsec) and then selling or using the advanced moon materials.
[[Image:Bpomanufacturingoptions.png|thumb|left|180x200px|Installing a manufacturing job]] [[Image:Manufacturing_progress.png|thumb|right|200x180px|Checking the progress of manufacturing jobs]]
 
Once you have a blueprint and some materials ready, it's time to produce your goods. Most of the time you'll be using an NPC station to manufacture goods, and it's generally a lot easier to find available manufacturing slots than research slots. Most NPC stations will charge 1000ISK + 333ISK/hour to use, and this can often make small runs unprofitable, so be careful. Generally, creating more runs at a time will reduce the impact of the 1000ISK installation fee.
 
  
If you have a POS available to manufacture with, then there are a few more options (and no installation costs). Different arrays can be constructed that are able to manufacture different types of modules or ships - at an increased rate compared to a station manufacturing line. A special type of array, the Rapid Equipment Assembly Array, can create modules even faster than a normal POS array, but at an increased mineral cost.
+
These advanced materials are sometimes used directly in Tech 2 item manufacturing, but more often used in the construction of advanced components, which are then in turn used in Tech 2 manufacturing.
  
Once you have the minerals and blueprint in the target station, then right-click on the blueprint and select Manufacturing. Pick an installation with the top button, and set the number of runs, and you should be good to go. A confirmation window will pop up with a check that you have enough materials and telling you how much it will cost: press Accept Quote to start the job running.
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See [[Moon mining]] and [[Reactions]] for more details.
  
While the job is running, you can check on its progress using the Science&Industry window on the [[NeoCom|NeoCom]]. Select the Jobs tab, and a list of your currently running jobs will be displayed. Clicking on a job will show more details, including the time to completion (TTC). You can cancel the job if you want your blueprint back for some reason, but note that the minerals will be lost and the manufacturing line will stay unavailable until the job would have completed.
+
==== Components ====
 +
Advanced components are the most common type, and are manufactured exclusively from moon materials. They are used in the majority of Tech 2 manufacturing, Tech 2 ships in particular using large numbers of multiple different types of components. Components come in Amarr, Caldari, Gallente and Minmatar flavours, with the icon coloured according to which race they 'belong' to. The advanced component manufacturing process is just like any other Tech 1 manufacturing process, except that the inputs are moon materials, and one particular science skill (see list of Tech 2 skills required above) is required for each component.
  
Finally, once the job is completed, the Cancel button will be replaced by a Deliver button; press this and the results and blueprint will be returned to the station.
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Tech 2 items frequently use these racial components as well as ships, and the particular racial component(s) they require will be the same as the racial encryption skill and the racial data interface item required to invent the BPC.
  
 +
==== Robotic Assembly Modules (R.A.M.s) ====
 +
Robotic Assembly Modules, more commonly known as R.A.M.s, are robotic assembly units that build things for you.  They are manufactured from minerals just like any other Tech 1 manufacturing process. Nine different R.A.M.s exist, for different types of construction: Starship Tech, Ammunition Tech, Cybernetics, etc.
  
== T2 Production ==
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==== Planetary materials ====
=== Skills ===
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[[Planetary Industry]] can be done with the same character you might use for production, and thus save you expenditure on the market (although, just like minerals you mine are not free, neither are planetary materials you produce).
<!-- TODO: add details and links -->
 
{{stub}}
 
Basic skills:
 
* CPU Management 2 / Power Grid Management 2 :
 
: These are required for a lot of the other skills in this section. Level 5 may be additionally required.
 
* Electronics Upgrades 3
 
: Required for Hacking
 
* Hacking 2
 
: Required for racial Decryptor skills
 
* Science 5 / Electronics 5 / Engineering 5 / Mechanic 5
 
: T2 blueprints will require Science 5 in addition to one or more of Electronics, Engineering or Mechanic for their respective blueprint skills.
 
  
Racial Decryptor skills:
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== Tech 3 production ==
* Amarr / Minmatar / Caldari / Gallente Encryption Systems
+
{{main|Tech 3 Production}}
: These skills are required to use the respective decryptors.
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Tech 3 ships, also known as Strategic Cruisers and tactical destroyers have their own specialised construction process, which is a combination of [[invention]] using ancient relics from relic sites, and including datacores gathered from data sites - to discover the BPCs for hulls and subsystems, and then built using those BPCs with materials gathered from within w-space - including gas clouds (which are reacted in a reactor array), [[Sleeper]] salvage and normal minerals.
  
Electronics skills: (These skills require Science and Electronics 5)
+
== Capital ship construction ==
* Electromagnetic Physics
+
Capital ship construction can be an extremely lucrative business, although requiring a large initial investment, and, depending on what capital you are constructing, may need to be based in lowsec, or even sovereign nullsec.
: Used for Electronic Warfare, Railguns
 
* Electronic Engineering
 
: Used for Electronic Warfare, Webbers, Scramblers and Drones
 
* Nanite Engineering
 
: Used for Armor/Hull, Repair Systems
 
  
Engineering skills: (These skills require Science and Engineering 5)
+
* {{sk|Capital Ship Construction|mult=yes}} is required to build capital ships or capital ship components. The following levels unlock the following blueprints:
* Graviton Physics
+
: ''Level 1:'' all capital ship components, all capital modules, freighters, [[Orca]]
: Used for Cloaking, Webbers, Scramblers
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: ''Level 3:'' carriers, dreadnoughts, fighters, fighter-bombers
* High Energy Physics
+
: ''Level 4:'' supercarriers, jump freighters, [[Rorqual]]
: Used for Energy Systems, Laser Weapons
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: ''Level 5:'' titans
* Hydromagnetic Physics
 
: Used for Shields
 
* Laser Physics
 
: Used for Laser Weapons, Mining Lasers
 
* Nuclear Physics
 
: Used for Projectile Weapons
 
* Plasma Physics
 
: Used for Blasters
 
* Quantum Physics
 
: Used for Cloaking, Energy Systems, Shield Systems
 
  
Mechanic skills: (These skills require Science and Mechanic 5)
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Capital ships are built from capital ship components, which are in turn manufactured from minerals. There is no restriction on where capital ship components can be built, and apart from the increased skill requirement, there is no difference from other Tech 1 manufacturing. Freighters and the Orca can then be constructed in any manufacturing facility using the relevant Tech 1 ship BPO or BPC, from the components previously built.
* Amarrian / Minmatar / Caldari / Gallente Starship Engineering
 
: Used for Racial Ship Construction
 
<!-- * Astronautic Engineering
 
: Used for  not currently available -->
 
* Capital Ship Production (also requires Material Efficiency 5)
 
: Used for Capital Ship Production
 
* Mechanical Engineering
 
: Used for Repair Systems, Starships, Railguns, Blasters, Projectiles, Mining Lasers, Missile Launchers, Drones
 
* Molecular Engineering
 
: Used for Armor/Hull, Propulsion Systems
 
* Outpost Construction (Also requires Anchoring 5)
 
: Used for Outpost Construction
 
* Rocket Science
 
: Used for Propulsion Systems, Missile Launchers
 
  
=== Invention  ===
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Carriers, dreadnoughts & the Rorqual are capital ships that may not enter hisec, and so you cannot build them in hisec either. They can be constructed in any station in lowsec or nullsec with a manufacturing facility, but apart from that restriction, are constructed in the same way as freighters or the Orca.
[[Image:Invention quote.png|thumb|left|180x120px|Installing an invention job.]] [[Image:T2BPC BOM.png|thumb|right|200x180px|Cap Recharger II]]
 
[[Image:Invention_Success.png|thumb|left|180x120px|Success!]] [[Image:T2BPC BOM2.png|thumb|right|250x200px|Jaguar]]
 
  
Currently, T2 blueprints are available through the Invention mechanic, which replaced the old and controversial T2 Lottery. While T2 BPOs still exist, and have much better efficiency than available T2 BPCs, there are not enough to keep up with current demand for T2 items and it is fairly viable for newer players to get into the T2 market.  
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These ships may also be constructed at a Large or Extra Large size citadel or engineering complex (i.e. Fortizar, Azbel, Keepstar, or Sotiyo) with a '''Standup Capital Shipyard I''' module installed. This module is installable in lowsec and nullsec only. Engineering complexes, and structures with appropriate rigs, will provide their usual cost reductions as applicable.
  
T2 BPCs are created with the related T1 BPC, a couple of specific datacores, a data interface (which is only needed to start the job and is not consumed), and an optional decryptor. T2 blueprints also require a fairly large number of skills, dependant on the specific blueprint, that are found in the Science category. Notably, T2 Invention jobs do not have a guaranteed chance of success. An approximate formula for the chance of success in T2 invention is implemented in the [http://games.chruker.dk/eve_online/invention_chance.php Invention Chance Calculator].
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=== Supercapital construction ===
 +
Supercarriers and titans cannot even dock in NPC stations, never mind enter hisec, and so you cannot build them in stations either. They must be built at a Sotiyo engineering complex with a Standup Supercapital Shipyard I service module. installed. This module may only be brought online in systems where the complex owner has sovereignty, and has installed a Supercapital Construction Facilities infrastructure upgrade. Supercapital construction takes an [[Media:Avatar construction.png|exceedingly long time]]).
  
The success chance can be altered by the type of decryptor used and by adding a named variant of the item you are producing into the mix. Due to the price of decryptors they are typically reserved for expensive inventions so that the invented bpc will have a better ME/PE. For example the Anshar BPC would normally have -4/-4 but by using the Collision Measurements decryptor (~4m) not only does that increase the chance of a successful invention but it will also result in a BPC with -1/-1, ~20m saving and 11D faster production.
+
Note that while appropriately fit Sotiyo engineering complexes can build and launch supercapitals, such ships will not be able to re-dock once launched. The only structures that support supercapital docking are Keepstar citadels.
  
=== Datacores ===
+
Because supercapital ship construction must take place in a player-owned structure, this means supercapital ships under construction are vulnerable to attack, unless you can defend your infrastructure effectively. Many titans have been 'aborted' by a hostile force destroying the POS and assembly array during construction.
Datacores are a consumable used in the invention process. They are gained through NPC Research agents, and can [[Datacore Farming|be farmed]] with a certain set of skills and some good standings.
 
  
Blueprints operations that require specific datacores will also require the relevant skill to level 1, listed in the skills section above.
+
== Useful links ==
 +
* [https://eveiph.github.io/ ISK Per hour] Very powerful windows program for Tech 1, Tech 2 and Tech 3 production as well as refining.
  
 +
== References ==
 +
<references />
  
==Weblinks==
+
[[Category:Industry]]
*[http://www.tetrr.com/kalkulator/ A Calc for T1,T2 and T3 production]
 
*[http://sourceforge.net/projects/eveiph/ ISK Per hour] local tool for T1, T2 and T3 production as well as refining.
 

Latest revision as of 14:06, 1 February 2024

In the EVE universe, the vast majority of items are manufactured by player characters and traded in a relatively free way in the marketplace. Students of economics will note that these markets are neither perfect nor efficient in the technical senses; volumes of many items are low enough that the market can be (and is) manipulated, and the supply of materials and modules is partly provided by loot drops in missions, which can be adjusted without warning by the game developers. Similarly, the developers may adjust the requirements for a manufacturing process, or increase the availability of ore, or otherwise mess in the sandbox.

Nonetheless, manufacturing and selling items can provide interest and ISK profit for the careful and canny player. The player must be aware, however, that there are plenty of items that destroy value - that is, there are a great number of Tech 1 items, modules especially, that are worth less than the cost of manufacture. Many more items can be sold at a profit, but only in a limited volume in certain markets. Manufacture in these cases may simply be an alternative to hauling stuff between markets.

Skills

The following skills are useful or required for all production that can be done.

  • Industry (1x) - 4% reduction in manufacturing time per skill level.
    At least level 1 is required to use most blueprints, and level 3 is required for further manufacturing skills. The speed bonus increases the rate at which you can produce items (and therefore, produce profit).
  • Advanced Industry (3x) - 3% reduction in all manufacturing & research time per skill level.
    This skill adds not only a fairly substantial further time reduction in manufacturing but also a time reduction in all research and invention jobs. Whilst less noticeable when building small items individually, these time-savers add up when doing multiple runs and building large ships.

Increase the number of concurrent jobs:

  • Mass Production (2x) - Allows 1 additional job per level.
    By default, all characters can run 1 manufacturing job at a time. Training this skill lets you run additional jobs simultaneously from 2 jobs at I up to 6 jobs at V. Any industrialist who wants to create things will need to train this to IV or V fairly early in their plans.
  • Advanced Mass Production (8x) - Allows 1 additional job per level.
    Once you train Mass Production to V, you can then train Advanced Mass Production, for a further increase in concurrent jobs. Having this skill at IV gives you 10 manufacturing lines (1 + 5 + 4), which is enough for most people. Training to V takes around 28 days, making it only of interest to dedicated manufacturing characters.

Allow remote management of jobs:

  • Supply Chain Management (3x) - Allows starting jobs remotely. +5 jumps per level.
    Without training this skill, you can start jobs anywhere in the current system. Each level in this skill gives you the ability to start manufacturing jobs an extra 5 jumps away, to the maximum of 25 jumps at level V (this may include other regions).
    This skill is more of a convenience skill than a must-have for a budding industrialist - allowing you to manage your production lines for a distance. If you invest in this skill, training to level III or maybe level IV would offer the most return on time investment. Note that you still have to haul the materials and blueprint to the relevant station.

Basics of production

Production of Tech 1 items - ships, modules, ammunition, rigs, or even components - is the simplest of manufacturing tasks, within reach of even the newest player to EVE. However, whether they will be able to make a profit is another question entirely. Very few skills are needed for Tech 1 production, and the materials are often fairly easily acquired.

All Tech 1 manufacturing jobs require a blueprint. These come in two forms: originals (BPOs) with infinite runs and copies (BPCs) that can only be run a limited number of times. For most blueprints, a single run of a blueprint will produce a single item, but there are some exceptions - most obviously ammunition, which produces 100 units per run.

Many manufacturers use BPCs, copied from a BPO, to manufacture, for a variety of reasons, including security and the ability to run multiple production lines. For more details, see Why should I copy my BPOs?

See Blueprints for more details on blueprints.

Selecting the item to produce

Tech 1 BPOs are seeded by various NPC traders, with costs varying from 100,000 to 75 billion ISK. This can be a significant cost, especially to new players. Also significant is the amount of research time that may be spent on the blueprint. Selecting a good one versus a bad one is important!

A good item will have these characteristics:

  • Inexpensive Materials - The material cost should be such that you can reasonably expect to manufacture a decent number of items, and you won't be bankrupt if you lose them while trying to sell them. There isn't a rule on how much cost is too much, but if you need a number then keep the cost of an item below 1% of your net worth. This will not be a problem for players with a large wallet but can be an issue for new players starting out in manufacturing. Loading the potential BPO into the Industry window will provide an estimate of the material cost.
  • Good Profit Margins - The difference between the selling price and the cost to manufacture should be worthwhile. Be sure to compare the absolute profit (ISK) and percent profit (% of selling price) and make sure both are worth your time. What makes it worth your time? It is up to the individual, but strive for at least 10% per item. Profits of 80% have been witnessed by players as young as 2 months to EVE, but they are rare and tend to disappear.
  • Good Transaction Volume - If you find an item that is extremely profitable but is only sold once per week, then it has poor transaction volume. There is no guarantee that you can capture all (or even most) of the sales of a particular item! To check the volume of an item, use the Market window. If you choose an item, click on the Price History tab. If it shows a graph, you can see daily sales volume by clicking the Show Table button in the bottom of the window. This will show you how many of an item were sold each day in the region over the past year.

Many items do meet all three requirements. Finding them is a matter of a lot of research time looking for items that meet your criteria. Typically it is easiest to search through the market tab looking for items with sufficient volume, then go to the BPO research calculator to compare the prices to selling volumes. Once you choose a blueprint, the BPO Research Calculator will also tell you what faction sells the BPOs you have chosen.

Total job cost

Raw materials are not the only cost of production. The act of installing the manufacturing job costs too and the job installation fee is a factor that cannot be ignored. In choosing where to base your manufacturing operation consider the installation cost of industry jobs. This cost is dynamic, so if a large number of other manufacturers join you in the system, it may save you money to move elsewhere (weighed against the cost in time and effort of moving all your materials to a new system).

[math] \displaystyle \text{Total job cost} = {\color{green}\text{Estimated item value} } \times ( ( {\color{blue}\text{System cost index} } \times \text{Structure bonuses} ) + \text {Facility tax} + \text{SCC surcharge} + \text{Alpha clone tax} )[/math][1]

The estimated item's approximate value is the cost estimation of the materials. The exact values can be calculated by multiplying the number of items with the adjusted prices of the items (found in ESI /markets/prices/ endpoint).

[math] \displaystyle {\color{green}\text{Estimated item value} } = \sum_{\text{all materials}} ( \text{Material quantity} \times \text{Material adjusted price} ) [/math]


Caution: the information about the system cost index calculation is probably no longer correct, considering this patch note "We have adjusted the System Cost Index formula to make it more volatile." which was published in the Version 21.05 Release 2023-09-12.1

The system cost index is calculated from the amount of production job hours done in system and the amount of production job hours done in universe.[2]

[math] \displaystyle {\color{blue}\text{System cost index} } = \sqrt{ \frac{ \text{Work hours done in system in past 28 days} }{ \text{Work hours done in universe in past 28 days} } } [/math]

You will also need to pay taxes. The taxes are based on the Estimated item value. The tax is composed of the following elements:

Facility tax
Fixed at 0.25% for NPC stations. Set by the owner for player structures.
SCC surcharge
Fixed at 4% [3][4][5]
Alpha clone tax
Only applicable to Alpha clones, set to 0.25%

The maximum tax that can be set for industry services will be capped at 10%.

Running jobs

Installing a manufacturing job is easy. Select the blueprint, select job type as manufacturing job, set the amount of runs and press start. If using containers or corporation hangars you may need to change the input and output locations.

Once you have a blueprint and materials ready, and decided which system to manufacture in, it's time to produce your goods. Most of the time you'll be using an NPC station to manufacture goods.

Engineering complexes and citadels with the appropriate service module online can also be used to manufacture goods. Engineering complexes provide a modest material savings (1%) and significant time savings (15% - 30% depending on size) over NPC stations; these savings can be further increased for certain categories of goods by installing the appropriate rigs to the structure.

Gather the materials and BPO (or BPC) in your station hangar, and open the industry window. You will need to find your blueprint using the drop-down selection boxes. Click the blueprint to install it to the main industry window. Or you can start the job from the blueprint in your hangar.

Simply choose the number of runs, check the input/output locations (most of the time this will simply be Item Hangar, but if you have your own personal corporation or use containers for sorting you may need to change them - note: if the industry window says you are missing inputs that you know you have, check to make sure all input/output choices are from/to the Item Hangar) and press Start.

While the job is running, you can check on its progress using the same Industry window, in the Jobs tab. Select the Jobs tab, and a list of your currently running jobs will be displayed. You can cancel the job if you want your blueprint back for some reason, but none of the materials used or installation costs will be refunded.

Finally, once the job is completed, job listed in the Jobs tab will contain a large Deliver button instead of a time remaining display; press this and the results & blueprint will be returned to the station.

Beware of rounding "errors"!

A particular problem that can quickly cost you a million ISK or two when manufacturing Tech 2 items is the rounding that is applied as an effect of material efficiency. The rounding is done per job instead of per run. a single industry job with 3 runs can use less material than 3 single jobs from the same blueprint!

Additionally, the manufacturing job will require at least one item of each type per run. This is most notable when the job requires one item per run. With 100 runs and 10% material reduction, you would assume that you would need 90 items but you still need 100 items.

Storyline production

COSMOS missions and data sites are a source of storyline module blueprint copies. These modules require rare components that can be found in data sites, relic sites, and COSMOS sites.

To manufacture them you will also need few extra skills:

Booster production

Industry map of drugs. Manufacturing of improved and strong drugs requires multiple multiple raw gas sources.

Boosters are manufactured from mytoserocin and cytoserocin gas harvested from clouds in cosmic signatures found in known space. These signatures only spawn in specific regions of New Eden. These gasses are distinct from the fullerine gasses found in wormholes, which are used to create Tech III ships and subsystems.

Booster production requires the following skill:

If you also want to refine the gas used for drug manufacturing you will need the relevant reaction skills.

Processing gas

Gas must be processed into pure booster material before the final product is created. This is done using reactors at a refinery structure.

Pure boosters use Simple Reactions at a Standup Biochemical Reactor I. These structures can only be installed at a refinery in 0.4 or lower security space. Besides the gas, the reactions also require an additional unit, which varies based on the grade of the booster. Synth reactions need Garbage, Standard reactions require Water, Improved reactions require either Spirits or Oxygen, depending on the exact product, and Strong reactions require Hydrochloric Acid.

Booster creation

Boosters themselves are created as a normal manufacturing job in industry window. This has no security requirements and can be done in high security space. Manufacturing the final booster product requires the pure booster material of the desired grade covered in the above section, megacyte, and an appropriate blueprint.

Tech 2 production

Not all Tech 2 manufacturing jobs require every single input material.

Tech 2 manufacturing requires Tech 2 BPCs, which are 'invented' through the invention process. This is a chance-based process, requiring a lot of skill investment in advance, and you are not guaranteed to get a Tech 2 BPCs at the end of it. Some Tech 2 manufacturers do not invent, but instead merely buy Tech 2 BPC packs from dedicated inventors. See Invention for more details on the invention process.

There are also limited number of extremely valuable tech II blueprint originals in circulation. These were seeded years ago in the so called "Blueprint lottery" and new tech II blueprint originals will never enter the game.

Tech 2 production also requires a much wider range of materials compared to tech I production.

Skills required

The main difference between tech 2 and tech 1 manufacturing is the increased skill requirement, and the many more different types of input materials required. Not all Tech 2 manufacturers will have all these skills, some may specialize in (for example) constructing only Minmatar ships, and thus have only those skills. Most of these skills are the same as those required for invention. Different blueprints require these skills at different levels, but in general: the larger the ship or item, the higher skill level will be required. Most of these skills also give a 1% time efficiency bonus per level.

Required to build Tech 2 ships of any size & race.
Required to build Tech 2 ships of the relevant race.
Required to build Tech 2 ships of the relevant size. These skills are not required for invention, only construction.
Two of these skills are required to build each Tech 2 (non-ship) item. These are the same as the skills required to invent that Tech 2 item. Consult a blueprint to find out which skills at which level are required to build that item. Example (see right): Nanofiber Internal Structure II BPC requires Nanite Engineering and Molecular Engineering.

Tech 2 required materials

Whereas the majority of Tech 1 production requires only minerals, the range of input materials required hugely expands for Tech 2 production - moons, planets, items and components are all potential sources of materials for Tech 2 production. Not all Tech 2 blueprints require every single source of input material, but one particular additional input required for most Tech 2 manufacturing is a Tech 1 item of the similar type. For example building a Tech 2 nanofiber requires a single Tech 1 nanofiber, some Remote Assembly Modules (Armor/Hull Tech R.A.M.s), extra minerals (Morphite) and some planetary materials (Construction Blocks).

Moon materials

Moon materials are produced via moon mining, which is an activity only possible in 0.5 security space and lower, and requires a Refinery anchored next to the moon mining beacon you wish to mine from and fitted with Moon Drill module. It is also very lucrative, and some moons are fought over regularly, so being able to defend your structure is necessary if you wish to maintain your moon mining operation. Moon mining is an activity carried out on the corporation or alliance level, and thus generally not possible (to run a profitable operation) as a solo player.

Moon materials - basic elements such as Chromium, Technetium, and Tungsten, which can be found in the Reaction Materials > Raw Moon Materials section of the market - are mined and then reacted together in the refinery to produce advanced moon materials - such as Tungsten Carbide, Fullerides and Fermionic Condensates. It is possible however to run a profitable reaction only operation: buying the raw moon materials on the market, reacting them together in your refinery (and it does have to be in lowsec or nullsec) and then selling or using the advanced moon materials.

These advanced materials are sometimes used directly in Tech 2 item manufacturing, but more often used in the construction of advanced components, which are then in turn used in Tech 2 manufacturing.

See Moon mining and Reactions for more details.

Components

Advanced components are the most common type, and are manufactured exclusively from moon materials. They are used in the majority of Tech 2 manufacturing, Tech 2 ships in particular using large numbers of multiple different types of components. Components come in Amarr, Caldari, Gallente and Minmatar flavours, with the icon coloured according to which race they 'belong' to. The advanced component manufacturing process is just like any other Tech 1 manufacturing process, except that the inputs are moon materials, and one particular science skill (see list of Tech 2 skills required above) is required for each component.

Tech 2 items frequently use these racial components as well as ships, and the particular racial component(s) they require will be the same as the racial encryption skill and the racial data interface item required to invent the BPC.

Robotic Assembly Modules (R.A.M.s)

Robotic Assembly Modules, more commonly known as R.A.M.s, are robotic assembly units that build things for you. They are manufactured from minerals just like any other Tech 1 manufacturing process. Nine different R.A.M.s exist, for different types of construction: Starship Tech, Ammunition Tech, Cybernetics, etc.

Planetary materials

Planetary Industry can be done with the same character you might use for production, and thus save you expenditure on the market (although, just like minerals you mine are not free, neither are planetary materials you produce).

Tech 3 production

Main article: Tech 3 Production

Tech 3 ships, also known as Strategic Cruisers and tactical destroyers have their own specialised construction process, which is a combination of invention using ancient relics from relic sites, and including datacores gathered from data sites - to discover the BPCs for hulls and subsystems, and then built using those BPCs with materials gathered from within w-space - including gas clouds (which are reacted in a reactor array), Sleeper salvage and normal minerals.

Capital ship construction

Capital ship construction can be an extremely lucrative business, although requiring a large initial investment, and, depending on what capital you are constructing, may need to be based in lowsec, or even sovereign nullsec.

  • Capital Ship Construction (14x) is required to build capital ships or capital ship components. The following levels unlock the following blueprints:
Level 1: all capital ship components, all capital modules, freighters, Orca
Level 3: carriers, dreadnoughts, fighters, fighter-bombers
Level 4: supercarriers, jump freighters, Rorqual
Level 5: titans

Capital ships are built from capital ship components, which are in turn manufactured from minerals. There is no restriction on where capital ship components can be built, and apart from the increased skill requirement, there is no difference from other Tech 1 manufacturing. Freighters and the Orca can then be constructed in any manufacturing facility using the relevant Tech 1 ship BPO or BPC, from the components previously built.

Carriers, dreadnoughts & the Rorqual are capital ships that may not enter hisec, and so you cannot build them in hisec either. They can be constructed in any station in lowsec or nullsec with a manufacturing facility, but apart from that restriction, are constructed in the same way as freighters or the Orca.

These ships may also be constructed at a Large or Extra Large size citadel or engineering complex (i.e. Fortizar, Azbel, Keepstar, or Sotiyo) with a Standup Capital Shipyard I module installed. This module is installable in lowsec and nullsec only. Engineering complexes, and structures with appropriate rigs, will provide their usual cost reductions as applicable.

Supercapital construction

Supercarriers and titans cannot even dock in NPC stations, never mind enter hisec, and so you cannot build them in stations either. They must be built at a Sotiyo engineering complex with a Standup Supercapital Shipyard I service module. installed. This module may only be brought online in systems where the complex owner has sovereignty, and has installed a Supercapital Construction Facilities infrastructure upgrade. Supercapital construction takes an exceedingly long time).

Note that while appropriately fit Sotiyo engineering complexes can build and launch supercapitals, such ships will not be able to re-dock once launched. The only structures that support supercapital docking are Keepstar citadels.

Because supercapital ship construction must take place in a player-owned structure, this means supercapital ships under construction are vulnerable to attack, unless you can defend your infrastructure effectively. Many titans have been 'aborted' by a hostile force destroying the POS and assembly array during construction.

Useful links

  • ISK Per hour Very powerful windows program for Tech 1, Tech 2 and Tech 3 production as well as refining.

References

  1. ^ Total job cost formula under Tax reforms
  2. ^ System cost index formula, under Basic Pricing section
  3. ^ Increase from 0.25% to 0.75% Patch notes: Version 21.05 Release 2023-07-06.1
  4. ^ Increase from 0.75% to 1.5% Patch notes: Version 21.05 Release 2023-09-12.1
  5. ^ Increase from 1.5% to 4% Patch notes: Version 21.06 Release 2024-02-01.1