Syringe Injector

The Syringe Injector is one of the Maker Machines in Big Pharma. Like other Makers, it converts a finished compound into a packaged drug that can be sold either loose or packaged. Of the various Makers, the syringe injector is particularly noteworthy as it can be the only way to make some cures more than marginally effective. Drugs shipped in syringes are provided in single-use disposable syringe kits, usually for intramuscular or subcutaneous injection, but occasionally for intravenous delivery. Pre-filled syringes are usually dispensed as a complete unit with a non-removable needle, and the entire unit is discarded after use.

Description
The Syringe Injector turns your drugs into Syringes which can be sold. Syringes have an increased combined value and effect strength compared to other delivery methods.

Function
The syringe injector has a 3x2 footprint and a process time of three. Its longer process time typically necessitates inclusion of multiple injectors on an assembly line lest it become a bottleneck. However, as its input and output ports are easily aligned, the injector doesn't create crossover problems like the Multimixer.

It is vitally important to note that the syringe injector is the only way to improve the effectiveness of a cure. As all cures have a base effectiveness rating - and most are less than 100% - without improvement, cures cannot help everybody. In some cases, such as HIV Cure or AIDS Treatment, the effective percentage is fairly low, meaning that the success rate of a drug will be low as well. The syringe injector acts directly on this effect by adding 50% even without any upgrades, meaning a 60% effective cure becomes 90% just by being packaged in a syringe.

Unsurprisingly, the syringe injector balances this performance with a high purchase price and process cost. As most assembly lines will require two or more syringe injectors to keep pace with production, costs can rack up quickly. Even so, the value and effectiveness bonus generally make the expense worth it.

Price increase compared to the Pill Printer
Using some simple calculations, the point at which the Syringe injector generates more profit than the Pill Printer s can be calculated. Assuming both technologies are at level 5 the final Combined Value of the product is determined by these equations:

Pill Printer: Final Combined Value = Combined Value + 35$ - 20$ (processing cost)

Syringe Injector: Final Combined Value = Combined Value x 1.4 - 100$ (processing cost)

This tells us that after a value of the drugs of 287.5$, the syringes make more profit. This doesn't account for the increase in effects by 50% that leads to better ratings and therefore better sales. This would move the margin to an even lower point making syringes the most profitable option for products without Side effects for almost all Cures past lvl 1.

Research Upgrades
Unlike most other machines, the syringe injector does not enjoy a decrease in process cost as upgrades are researched. Instead, research improves the effectiveness of positive effects in the finished product as well as boosting its market value. As syringes already produce a 20% value bonus, an upgraded injector can turn a profitable product into a cash machine.