Ore Factory Squad licenses guide: Metal Processing and Warehouse Automation unlocks, level thresholds, and buy-order tips for co-op squads. Verified July 2026.
Metal Processing and Warehouse Automation license unlocks in action.
Ore Factory Squad licenses are the permanent unlocks that turn a one-crusher hobby dig into an actual factory — each one gates a specific system: a smelting machine, a warehouse automation feature, or the ability to negotiate better prices. They are not skill points or a class tree; they are named certificates you buy once a level requirement is met, and they stay unlocked for the rest of the save.
This guide covers the two confirmed license lines — Metal Processing and Warehouse Automation — what each one actually unlocks in the level-up screen, how they connect to machines and properties, and the order most squads should buy them in so cash does not sit on unlocks you cannot use yet.
Licenses arrive bundled into a level-up screen — hit the level threshold and the game pops a panel titled "New Level Unlocked" with every license, tool upgrade, machine, and property that just became available. Only two license lines are confirmed by name so far: Metal Processing License and Warehouse Automation License. Both are locked behind a level requirement first, then cost cash to actually purchase once unlocked.
| License | What it unlocks | Paired unlocks at the same level |
|---|---|---|
| Metal Processing License | Metal Processing License #1 — first tier of metal goods processing | Shovel digging damage, Dynamite, Ore Detector range |
| Warehouse Automation License | Smart Warehouse Management — automated warehouse routing | Warehouse Robot, Pallet Drop Zone, Smelting Furnace |
| Additional license tiers | Verify in-game past level four — needs-check on later builds | — |
The same level-up screen also lists tool and ability upgrades — a sharper shovel, longer ore detector range, better trading ability, employee management — that are not licenses at all, just paid upgrades. It is easy to lump them together because they unlock on the same screen, but only the two entries actually labeled License gate a whole system rather than a single stat bump.
Trading Ability and Employee Management, for example, raise market visibility and work efficiency respectively — useful, but they do not unlock a new machine category the way a license does. Treat the level-up panel as one shopping list with two different price tiers: cheap stat upgrades and pricier system-unlocking licenses.
Both confirmed licenses appeared together at level four in the footage we reviewed, bundled with a Smelting Furnace, a Warehouse Robot, a Pallet Drop Zone, and access to the Forest property tier — a single level-up can hand you five or six new options at once, which is exactly when new squads overspend.
Tool tiers follow their own, separate level gate: the pickaxe was purchasable early for around $300, but the jackhammer stayed locked until level six in the run we reviewed. Do not assume every tool is available the moment you have the cash — check the level requirement first.
| Milestone | Level seen | Cash cost (verified · needs-check per build) |
|---|---|---|
| Metal Processing License unlock | Level 4 | Purchase price varies — buy once contracts justify it |
| Warehouse Automation License unlock | Level 4 | Purchase price varies — pair with Warehouse Robot |
| Pickaxe | Available early | ~$300 |
| Dynamite | Level 4 tier | ~$600 |
| Jackhammer | Level 6 | Needs-check — locked until level six in reviewed footage |
The most common self-inflicted setback is spending every dollar the moment a level-up screen appears. Squads that clear out their bank account on a license and its paired machine in the same breath often cannot afford the pickaxe, dynamite, or a property purchase that would have paid for itself faster.
A safer approach: bank the level-up notification, keep digging and delivering with your current toolkit for one more contract cycle, then buy the license alongside the specific machine it unlocks — not every optional stat upgrade on the same screen. See contracts guide for which jobs fund a license fastest.
Buying a Warehouse Automation License with no Warehouse Robot placed, or a Metal Processing License with no smelter feeding it, wastes cash on a certificate sitting idle. Confirm your machines hub setup can actually use the unlock before spending on it.
The reverse mistake also happens: squads buy a property they lack the license or machine tier to use profitably. Licenses, machines, and properties unlock together on the same screen for a reason — treat that bundle as a single purchase decision, not three separate impulse buys.
Two are confirmed by name so far — Metal Processing License and Warehouse Automation License. Both appeared together at level four in the footage we reviewed; additional tiers past that level are needs-check until confirmed.
Both. A level threshold unlocks the option to buy the license, then you still pay cash for it — the same pattern as tool and machine unlocks.
It enables Smart Warehouse Management, the automated routing feature paired with the Warehouse Robot and Pallet Drop Zone unlocks at the same level.
Not if it leaves you unable to afford tools or dynamite you need for the next dig. Buy a license alongside the specific machine it enables, not as a standalone flex purchase.
Progress and purchases are shared across the squad, so one player buying a license benefits everyone — coordinate in co-op or Discord before spending group funds.
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