Power Control Station

This article has not been revised for the current version (***U50-587362***). It was last updated for *RP-381414*. It may contain inaccuracies.
This article has not been revised for the current version (***U50-587362***). It was last updated for *RP-381414*. It may contain inaccuracies.

## Power Control Station

Produces Microchip to increase the Power output of generators.
Assigned Duplicants must possess the Electrical Enginering Skill

This building is a necessary component of the Power Plant room.
Only one Duplicant may be assigned to a station at a time.

### Requires

Refined Metal: -5 kg per use
Duplicant operation
Electrical Engineering skill
Dedicated Room: Power Plant

### Auto In

**Green**: Enable
**Red**: Disable

## Materials

### Refined Metal

200 kg

**Power Control Station** is a building used to process refined metals into Microchips to give **Engie's Tune-Up** modifier to one generator in the same Power Plant room, which increases electricity production by 50% with no additional resource consumption for 3 or more cycles (regardless if the generator is running or not).

Duplicants need the Electrical Engineering skill to operate the Station.

## Details

The Power Control Station consumes no power but requires duplicant operation. It uses 5 kg of Refined Metal per microchip. Errands will only be queued for the station if at least one eligible generator in the Power Plant lacks the Engie's Tune-Up boost. If no microchips are available, duplicants will use the station to manufacture one; otherwise, duplicants will deliver the microchip to the generator and tinker the generator (applying the boost when finished).

For a duplicant with zero Machinery, It takes 15 seconds to manufacture one microchip and 180 seconds to apply one microchip to one generator. Additional levels of Machinery will reduce the duration of these errands, as well as increase the duration of the Engie's Tune-Up boost.

 5 kg

Since the Engie's Tune Up buff lasts for 3 cycles or longer, the cost to boost a single generator continually is at most ≈ 1.67 kg / cycle (≈ 2.78 g / s). However, this does not factor in the time needed for a duplicant to fabricate a microchip, deliver it to the generator, and tinker the generator, so the real cost per generator is likely to be lower. Higher levels of Machinery reduce the time spent on these errands (which increases the average cost), but also increases the duration of the buff (which decreases the cost). For example: assuming zero time spent travelling or supplying, a duplicant with 20 points of Machinery takes 5 seconds to fabricate a microchip and 60 seconds to tinker the generator, and the buff will last 4.5 cycles (2,700 seconds), for an average cost of ≈ 1.09 kg / cycle (≈ 1.81 g / s).

## Tips

* Due to the high value of Refined Metal in the early/midgame, wide-scale microchip production is usually not worth the opportunity cost until you can obtain a renewable supply of metal (e.g. Meteor Showers or Metal Volcanoes).
	+ However, since the cost is fairly low (at less than 2 kg / cycle per generator), it is feasible to boost a small number of generators in the midgame: Metal Refineries produce refined metal in 100 kg batches (enough to boost a single generator for over 50 cycles), and asteroids with Oil Biomes can gain access to potentially hundreds of tons of Lead easily in the midgame.

## Notes

* Duplicants will only fabricate more microchips if none are available to use.
* Solar Panels are not eligible for boosting.

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