Map the four public stages
The Steam description names chopping, log processing, furniture crafting, and distribution. Write those stages in order before placing another machine.
Automation Guide / checked 2026-08-12
Chop Chop Inc Automation Guide: Build a Reliable Production Line
How to plan machines and automation around the real bottleneck without inventing unverified recipes or unlock costs.
Direct answer
Automate the slowest stage first: measure where logs, planks, crafting, or distribution waits, then place the next machine close to its input and output.
Find the queue that grows
Run one small batch and note which input or output accumulates. That queue, rather than the most expensive-looking machine, is the current constraint.
Shorten the handoff
Place the machine beside the station that feeds it and leave room at the output. Short travel and visible output make failures easier to diagnose.
Test one change per run
Change one machine or layout variable, run the same size batch, and compare the stop point. Keep the layout only when the queue clears faster.
Failure branch
Automation is idle while materials exist
Check that the previous stage is producing the exact input shown by the machine, that output space is available, and that the stations are not separated by an avoidable travel path.
Completion signal
The same batch clears with less manual carrying
A useful automation upgrade has a visible completion signal: the bottleneck queue shrinks, the next station stays supplied, and you spend less time carrying between stages.
Start over
Recheck the first missing step
Return to the first condition that is not yet true before repeating the final action.