How to sort different output (like Plastic and Waste)?

Solution 1:

Components always output their produced items in set order, for example, Plastic maker first outputs 1 Plastic, then 1 Waste. There are three ways you can sort these:

• Using a Sorter component. This is a most straightforward way, it can be clearly configured, but needs to be researched for 150 000 Research points and needs quite some space.
• Using conveyor junctions. Items traveling on a conveyor will always be sent to each possible direction in clockwise order, starting from top. (Because of this, you can not simply assume that the first item will take the left-most way. If conveyor goes up and branches to the left, top route will be the first.) This way is potentially most space-efficient, as you can only use one conveyor tile to transport and sort both output items. This way is prone to breakdowns, though, if you join outputs from several components (i.e. outputs from two Plastic makers can join like Plastic-Plastic-Waste-Waste, an the sorting will break).
• Using multiple component outputs. Just create as many output conveyors as there are item types produced, and you are all set (remember the clockwise-from-top rule). This is the safest way, as different items never share the same conveyor.

When you upgrade your components to double the production, items are produced in the same order several times (in the above case, Plastic-Waste-Plastic-Waste), so all conveyor-based sorting mechanisms continue to work.

EDIT: There is one point when sorting will break, though. One of the later components produces 16 Diesel and 8 Waste per cycle. This works perfectly with 3 output conveyors or a 3-way conveyor split, but only until you upgrade your conveyors to carry 3 items at once. The components then only output goods if they have 3 or more of them, so production cycles become uneven:

  Cycle 1: +16 Diesel, +8 Waste                                  breaks here already
   Output: Diesel, Diesel, Waste, Diesel, Diesel, Waste, Diesel      <----/
Remainder: 1 Diesel, 2 Waste
  Cycle 2: 1+16 Diesel, 2+8 Waste
   Output: Diesel, Diesel, Waste, Diesel, Diesel, Waste, Diesel, Waste
Remainder: 2 Diesel, 1 Waste
      etc.

At that point, your only option is the Sorter.