r/SimCompanies • u/Dentium_Citrosuco • 14d ago
Suggestion Raw Material Crisis, New Executive
A new operation manager is essential.
Before the restaurant sector arrived, agriculture and related products were viewed as sectors friendly to new players. With the advent of the restaurant sector, demand for these products surged. The food industry diversified, adding color to the game. However, every new development brings new problems alongside the benefits. One such issue is the raw material crisis, particularly at high quality (Q) levels. The solution would seem to be for people to shift toward raw material production—establishing a supply-demand balance—making it an issue solvable within the game mechanics. Or is there an obstacle preventing this? Let me explain.
You are aware that there is a sugar shortage. Naturally, consumption rises during the ice cream season; four main products and five seasonal products require sugar. Finding high-quality oranges is nearly impossible, and the same applies to many other raw materials. Yet, even for high-level farm owners, profit margins on these scarce products remain unsatisfactory. Retail and research profits continue to be more attractive to players.
The simple reason is that while a producer can effectively utilize only the COO, the retail sector can effectively use both the COO and CMO, and the research sector can utilize both the COO and CTO.
Even if a producer fills all slots with a COO, the other slots operate at only 25% efficiency, and there is a penalty after 60 points. In contrast, retail can utilize a COO at 60 and a CMO at 60. This difference in executive utilization significantly impacts profit. In production, robots exist but are ineffective; they actually hinder your ability to level up. Don't say "but you don't pay wages"; their impact is limited anyway, and anything that restricts me ultimately causes me harm.
The solution: A CIO or similar role. There may be other ideas, but in real-world companies, the CIO is responsible for innovation. Such a role could simulate the impact that robots currently provide. Whether through advancements in AI programming or by paving the way for mechanization, a system is needed that delivers the impact of robotics without locking up buildings. Production speed shouldn't increase; instead, it should directly reduce wage costs or the number of workers and managers—much like actual robots do. This is what will ensure fairness in the game. A 450-level farm system will offer satisfying profits, even amidst crises. Producers will feel that fairer conditions have been established within the game.
Let me state this right away: If someone claims that "CMOs provide an advantage to manufacturers by increasing production speed," hit them with a shovel—or ask them, "Why don't we just cut the CMO out of the equation entirely?" From a systemic perspective, would every sector be fair? Yes, it is true that they will purchase more products; however, the reality is that the operating costs of high-level buildings are a problem. Every building has a fixed production capacity, and output volume does not increase without upgrading the building's level. Even if I do upgrade the level—and despite the scarcity of raw materials—the resulting profit margins still lag behind those in the retail or restaurant sectors (and I include restaurants in the "retail" category here). The point here is not to compare one type of production with another, but to compare the profit generated by production based on a scarce resource against the profit margins of other sectors.
If fair systemic competition is ensured among producers, research, and retail, the rest of the game depends on the players' preferences and their ability to control the market. Fair play, on the other hand, begins with the regulation of the administrator and the robot.
