Unless certain materials/components are very rare, it would make more sense for a crafter to build a useful item and put it on the market.  That way it is available to everyone and the builder doesn't even have to be logged on.

Only where one or more ingredients is very expensive compared to the total added value of the combine does this break down.

For example, if we "slice" a weapon to improve it, it makes sense for the slicer to buy a bunch of weapons, slice them and sell them, unless the cost of the weapons does not warrant him tying up his cash in buying the original weapons.

it also works if something is "customized" for a character.   if a player has a shield which is "tuned" for them, then it makes sense to have someone "enchant" it to improve it.  (rather than have the enchanter simply buy a shield, enchant it, and sell it.  (Obviously any"customization" process would be a form of "soul binding", which I don't think is planned for this game, but I don't really know).

Hmm, makes sense.  However, standing in a Continoma factory and yelling "Will combine Nior range extenders to your rifles for cash!" doesn't seem like a very healthy thing to do either.
At least from a RP perspective.

Where did you read this?

That's how it seems to have been announced.

We know that in-tact buildings are turned over intact to the capturing guild.  Self-destructed buildings may  or may not leave salvageable components based on current jobs.  Disassembled buildings will presumably allow you to save anything in the,

I assume that the guild will have a warehouse (such a thing has been referred to before in dev comments but can't remember where.)

I HOPE factories are attackable!! If not loss of material, at least disabling of assembly lines until players repair them.  It gives small-scale economic / roaming warfare a purpose and a measurable effect.  It gives crafters a reason to be interested in the protection of their active jobs.  It deepens the economy.

Frankly, losing all of your game assets to a KNOWN vulnerable target is just stupid gameplay: it's like the people in eve who have intel and local channels minimized, dont bring any anti-PvP mods, and complain when they die to roaming hostiles: there's 1000 ways to protect 95% of your assets, why the heck are you throwing them all away and then blaming griefers?

This game is about WAR.  sure, the NPC controlled factories will undoubtedly be well-guarded safe-havens (well, the medium-grade city ones, anyways), but to extend that relative invulnerability (relative, I"m sure we'll still get  suicide bombers ) to player-controlled territory that has active wars around it is, IMO, ludicrous.

They aren't going to program the game to force a smart (or even just a stupid but  at least literate) player who reads the warning labels to risk an insane amount of assets to craft, but those assets that ARE used should be  put at risk.

Although it sound fun on paper but..

Why should you fail critacally? I mean we "live" in the future, knowledge will be more important then now, and I think learning how to craft a gun will be easy to learn, because you are able to absorb info better (heck its the futur). Also, the machines are way more automized. Only thing I see them feel is of poor maintenance.

If I remember right, the critical failure was "rolling a 1" on the final assembly step.

Mmmmm, sounds like it'll be difficult for a crafter to specialize in even one general area of crafting (like weaponry for example). It sounds more as if each technology will be hard to learn in and of its own, so crafters will have to rely on each other to build full products. I'm not quite sure if I like that idea, but it would be better for the economy.

Hmm, the production unit erupts in flame!  Firemen rush to put out the fire before it spreads to the neighboring units.  A visibly angry floor steward steps forward, hands you a bill for the charred unit and kicks you out of the factory, yelling "don't come back until you get a grip on your quality control!".