Not who won or lost — but the decisions that made each team's journey unique.
Digby
The Automation Play
Digby ran the most automated plant in the class, and the ledger showed it: $337.50M in cumulative profit, more than double any other team's, on a 73.8% contribution margin that was also the class's best. Automation was set to a class-high 6.5 average, and labor cost per unit came down to $3.15, the lowest in the class. The one emergency loan came early: in Round 3, Digby launched Deft and Duck and borrowed $19.90M, in a round that still closed profitable. From there profit rose every round, to a $119.79M Round 8 that was the biggest single round any team posted. Four products, the lead in both tiers, and the top stock in the class from Round 5 to the close.
$337.50M
Cumulative Profit
$3.15
Labor Cost per Unit
Chester
The Steady Climb
Chester's profit rose in each of the seven rounds after Round 1, from a $3.77M loss in Round 1 to a $48.32M profit in Round 8, without a single emergency loan. Cake did the volume work at 2.04M units sold and a 74.5% contribution margin, while Cone was the highest-volume High Tech product in the class. The plant reached the class's top 130 productivity index, with Cake automated to 6.5, alongside the second-biggest HR investment in the class. It finished second on profit, sales and stock, and paid the largest dividend in the class at the close.
$162.02M
Cumulative Profit
7
Straight Rounds of Profit Improvement
Irving
The High Tech Specialist
Irving went all-in on High Tech and ran the tidiest operation in the class: zero emergency loans, zero unsold units at the close, and $79.08M in cumulative profit, third in the class. Ignite and Indigo both sold out, carrying the tier's second-largest market share at 22.6%, behind only Digby. Labor cost per unit came down to $4.71 on a 130 productivity index, alongside the class's biggest HR investment at $18.50M. Profit rose every round from Round 2 on and doubled in the final round, to a $37.58M profit.
$79.08M
Cumulative Profit
22.6%
High Tech Market Share
Ferris
The Cost Cutter
Ferris went after unit cost: material cost fell to $5.14 per unit, the lowest of any team, and labor to $4.35, second only to Digby, for a 70.52% contribution margin that ranked second. No emergency loan was ever taken, the ledger stayed profitable for six straight rounds from Round 3, and the best round came in Round 7 at $27.33M in profit. Automation had been set to 5.55, second-highest in the class. The one thing left on the floor was inventory: 1.03M units at the close, most of it Fast, the product with the class's fourth-highest margin.
$76.86M
Cumulative Profit
$5.14
Material Cost per Unit
Garrett
First Off the Floor
Garrett was the first team off the $1.00 stock floor and stayed off it: its stock stood at $9.51 after Round 2 while every other team's was still at the floor. The Round 1 loss was the smallest in the class at $2.36M, and every round after it was profitable, seven straight, tied for the longest run in the class. Gaffe sold out with zero inventory at 100% plant utilization, and Garrett's labor came down to $5.41 a unit across its lines. Three emergency loans came in Rounds 5 through 7, each in a profitable round: in Round 4 Garrett added capacity and raised automation, then borrowed in Round 5; in Round 5 it added more capacity, then borrowed in Round 6. Return on assets closed at 40.4%, second in the class.
$59.39M
Cumulative Profit
Jasper
The Second Half
Jasper's run split in two: three losing rounds, then five straight profitable ones from Round 4 to the close, finishing with its best round at $18.39M in Round 8. The stock left the $1.00 floor in Round 5 and rose every round after. Juice did the heavy lifting, 1.53M units sold with its plant running at 182% utilization, while labor cost per unit came down to $8.84. Return on equity closed at 46.5%, second in the class, and Jasper was one of only two teams to pay a dividend at the close.
$27.06M
Cumulative Profit
Baldwin
The Late Turn
Baldwin closed the run selling clean, zero unsold units on Baker and Best, and in the black, with a $2.30M profit in Round 7 and another in Round 8 after six losing rounds. Its $9.00M Round 1 Advanced Operations investment matched Digby's as the biggest opening-round investment in the class, and the module spend rose again in Round 6 and stayed elevated through Round 8. The line was all High Tech, holding 7.5% of the tier's market share, with Best carrying a 56.6% contribution margin. Two emergency loans came in Rounds 5 and 6, both in losing rounds.
0
Unsold Units at the Close
Erie
The Round 3 Breakout
Erie's Round 3 was the class's fourth-best that round on both profit and stock: a $4.04M profit and a $7.33 stock price. In Round 4 Erie launched Epic and took the first of five emergency loans. By the close the plant was running hot: Eat sold 1.07M units through a plant running well past capacity, Erie's 183% mean utilization was the highest in the class, and labor cost per unit finished at $17.10. The last round turned a $2.21M profit.
183%
Mean Plant Utilization
Andrews
The Sold-Out Line
Andrews ran a single product, Able, and closed with nothing left on the shelf: 694K units sold at 110% plant utilization, zero inventory. The eight rounds all closed at a loss, with an emergency loan each round and the stock at the $1.00 floor throughout. Material cost per unit was cut to $6.49 from the $16.17 every team started with, the third-lowest in the class, with most of the Advanced Operations spend going to Suppliers. Round 5 came within $460K of break-even, the closest the ledger got.
0
Unsold Units at the Close
$6.49
Material Cost per Unit
Harper
The Clean Floor
Harper closed with a clean floor and the leanest crew in the class: every one of Heft's 337K units sold, zero inventory, and 111 employees. The ledger never turned: all eight rounds closed at a loss, an emergency loan came every round, and the stock stayed at $1.00 from Round 1 to the close. Material cost per unit came down to $9.95 from the $16.17 start, while the productivity index held at its 100 starting mark, the HR module went unused, and the plant ran at 61% utilization. Heft still closed with a positive 24.4% contribution margin on a single line.
0
Unsold Units at the Close
