Modular Mining Lift Guide
Master the Ore Factory Squad Modular Mining Lift: shaft placement, stop floors, cargo capacity, conveyor links, and co-op vertical mining.
Why the Lift Defines Your Factory
The Modular Mining Lift is Ore Factory Squad vertical backbone — without it, deep Copper, Iron, Gold, and Diamond mining devolves into manual stair hauling that breaks contract timers. Lift modules stack in a central shaft, stop at configured floors, and dump ore onto surface conveyors or underground collection bins so miners stay underground while automation feeds smelters.
Demo Next Fest builds introduced lift construction underground; the July 2026 full release scales shaft depth across four dig sites including Forest, Construction Site, and Quarry. Co-op squads should designate one builder to own shaft blueprints before miners commit jackhammer depth.
Read mining guide for tool progression and conveyor automation for belt connections at the lift exit.
Placement and Surface Layout
Place the shaft core where surface conveyors can run straight to smelters without crossing truck loops — every bend between lift dump and first machine adds latency when bins overflow. Leave buffer tiles around the shaft head for co-op players unloading during lift cycles and for future module upgrades.
Align lift stops with stable landing floors — dynamite rubble or unsupported ceilings under a stop force rebuilds before auto cycles run safely. v1.0.1 fixed secret cave spawns in Forest and Quarry; explorers blasting into cave pockets should still verify stop alignment before enabling continuous lift schedules.
Factory layout diagrams on factory layout guide show common choke fixes between lift exits and warehouse roads.
Watch Video Guide
Underground Stops and Collection Bins
Configure stop floors where ore faces cluster — one stop per active mining tier beats a single deep stop with long lateral runs. Underground collection bins at each stop let miners dump inventory without riding the lift every pocket fill.
Placeable lights from demo updates clarify fork tunnels between stops — flood and hanging lamps reduce mis-digs in co-op when voice callouts reference "west branch stop two." Pair lighting with day and night fatigue planning for long shifts.
Split roles: miners expand stops downward while builders extend surface trunks from the lift dump upward through crushers and smelters.
Upgrades and Depth Caps
Lift module tiers raise travel speed, cargo capacity, or maximum stop count depending on shop unlocks. When jackhammer teams hit depth walls or ore carts outpace smelter cycles, upgrade lift components before buying another property deed — deeper digs without lift throughput stall Gold contracts.
Multi-property squads may run separate shafts per deed — truck logistics between sites consolidate at the city warehouse per vehicles guide. Quarry and Forest deeds from launch each support secret cave branches off main shafts; plan dynamite access before carving cave entrances below your lowest stop.
Machine stats on machines reference list lift-related modules alongside smelters and robots.
Co-op Lift Etiquette
Call "lift up" on voice when ascending with full crates — foot traffic at shaft heads takes damage from careless drops in some configurations. Pause auto ascent when a miner is mid-shaft unless your squad uses explicit all-clear signals from demo v1.7.0 voice chat habits.
Do not block shaft egress with parked forklifts — logistics jams mimic lift failures during contract crunches. Foreman role monitors whether lift throughput matches active contract ore types on the warehouse board.
After v1.0.1 connection fixes, verify all four clients updated before blaming desync on lift cargo — host restart resolves most stale shaft states.
Frequently Asked Questions
When should I build my first lift segment?
After first smelter need exceeds manual hauling from shallow digs — usually early Iron contracts in full release.
Can lifts be built underground?
Yes —Next Fest demo notes confirm underground Modular Mining Lift placement for material transfer and vertical movement.
Do lift modules cap depth?
Base tiers limit stops and depth until upgraded at the machine shop — upgrade before chasing Diamond strata.
How do conveyors connect to the lift?
Link belt intake to lift dump platform output arrows — mismatched facing is the top cause of idle smelters.
Did v1.0.1 change lifts?
v1.0.1 focused on tutorial, caves, and connections — lift mechanics unchanged but Quarry cave spawns were fixed.