How to build a
factory.

A factory turns a fuzzy request into finished, double-checked work.

Most people ask an AI for everything at once: “Build me the whole thing.” It often misunderstands, skips a step, or invents something. A factory fixes that by breaking the job into small, labeled stations and laying them out as folders on your computer.

The AI opens the right folder, reads the short note inside, does only that one step, writes the result into an “out tray,” and then stops so you can look. You approve or correct it, and it moves to the next station. The folders are the machine — there’s nothing to install and nothing running in the background.

Because every step’s instructions live in their own little file, the AI only ever loads what it needs for the step it’s on. That’s the whole trick: small notes, clear order, and a human checkpoint between every step.

What’s inside the building.

Here is the whole factory as a floor plan. Every room is just a folder; every sign is just a plain text file. The next section explains each one.

Every folder has a plain-English job.

Six stations, with you between each one.

Inside a workshop, the job moves down a short assembly line. Each station does one thing and then hands its result to the next. The diamond between stations is you — the AI stops, shows you what it made, and waits for your “go.”

The job card: three short lists.

Every station folder holds one small note (a CONTEXT.md file). It always has the same simple shape — three lists and a “stop.” Once you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all.

Seven habits that make a factory reliable.

You only need a folder and a text editor.

A factory is just folders and plain text files, so you can make one by hand — no coding. A .md file is simply a plain text file (the kind you’d make in Notepad or TextEdit); the “.md” just lets it carry light formatting like headings. Follow these eight steps.

The whole shape, ready to copy.

Here’s the full folder layout and two starter notes. Copy the layout to picture the finished factory, then use the two templates to fill in your “Start Here” card and your first job card.

# Your finished factory — every line is a folder or a plain text file
my-factory/
├── CLAUDE.md            # the "Start Here" card (also paste into your AI Project)
├── CONTEXT.md           # the reception desk: which workshop for which job
├── _config/             # the settings binder — your rules & facts, set once
│   ├── voice-and-rules.md
│   └── facts.md
├── shared/              # the supply room — reusable parts & examples
│   ├── examples/
│   └── parts/
├── skills/              # the toolbox — short how-to cards
│   └── build-it/
│       └── SKILL.md
└── workspaces/           # the workshops — one per kind of job
    └── my-first-job/
        ├── input/        # IN TRAY — drop raw materials here
        ├── output/       # OUT TRAY — each station's result lands here
        ├── CONTEXT.md    # this workshop's station map
        └── stages/
            ├── 01-explore/   → CONTEXT.md
            ├── 02-clarify/   → CONTEXT.md
            ├── 03-plan/      → CONTEXT.md
            ├── 04-build/     → CONTEXT.md
            ├── 05-review/    → CONTEXT.md
            └── 06-handoff/   → CONTEXT.md

# My Factory — Start Here

You are my work partner. Help me
produce finished, double-checked work.

## How this place works
- Walk the numbered station folders
  in order, top to bottom.
- Do ONLY the current station's job.
- Write each result into that
  workshop's output/ folder.
- STOP after every station and show
  me the result. Wait for my "go."

## Where to start
- Read CONTEXT.md to pick the
  workshop, then start at station 01.

## Rules you must not break
- Recommend, then let me decide.
- Never invent facts. If something
  is missing, ask me.
- <add your own rules here>

# Station 04: Build

## Inputs  (what to read first)
- output/03-plan.md   (the plan)
- _config/voice-and-rules.md

## Process  (what to do here)
1. Read the plan and the rules.
2. Build exactly what the plan says.
3. Reuse parts from shared/.
4. Check your work against the rules
   and note anything off.

## Outputs  (what to produce)
- output/04-draft.md
  (the result, for the next station)

## Stop
Show me the draft. I approve or
correct it before station 05.