ARC Raiders introduced Planks and Sheet Metal with Frozen Trail update on October 8, 2026. Both are used to build your Outpost. You need an initial batch for the project that unlocks it, followed by more materials for furniture crafting.
You can find both resources across several areas, but they favor different loot spots. Planks appear in residential furniture and shop containers, while Sheet Metal has plenty of possible spawns on shelves, tables, and train seats. Keep an eye on items left out in the open while searching buildings.
Both resources can be found around Old Town and Commissary Supermarket on Pendola Pass. Start with homes if you need more Planks, or supermarket shelves if Sheet Metal is running low. Celeste's shop can save you a dedicated farming run when you only need a few pieces. 
How to Get Both Materials?
For Planks in ARC Raiders, prioritize kitchen cupboards, kitchen benches, wardrobes, and drawers. Suitcases and stacking boxes can also contain them. Drawer types matter: small desk drawers cannot drop Planks, so opening every drawer you see will waste some time.
Sheet Metal mainly appears as Loose Loot, meaning items placed directly in the environment. Check shelves, tables, seats, train interiors, and cars, along with eligible industrial crates, lockers, and tool-trolley trays.
A map marker identifies a possible spawn location. Other items can appear there too, so check the item name when you arrive.
Best Planks Farming Spots
Old Town has 665 possible Planks spawn locations, with kitchens and storage furniture packed into its homes. Search the kitchen first, then work through drawers, cabinets, and stacking boxes. If you also want other ARC Raiders items, finish searching the same house before crossing the street again.
Of the 231 potential Planks spawn points at Commissary Supermarket, 180 are associated with stacking boxes. Focus on boxes in the aisles and stockrooms, then check cupboards in the cafe area.
Researcher Lodgings has 160 possible spots, mainly involving suitcases, closets, and drawers. Piazza della Rupe adds another 122 locations worth checking when it is on your route.
These figures count possible spawn locations in the game data. They do not indicate how many Planks you will collect per raid or the drop chance at each spot. Skip refrigerators, freezers, and cash registers when farming Planks specifically. Search them according to your other objectives if you need different supplies.
Best Sheet Metal Farming Spots
Commissary Supermarket in ARC Raiders has 960 possible Sheet Metal locations, including 828 shelf spots. Walk the aisles and inspect the items on each row before checking lockers in the back rooms. Leaving after opening a few containers would miss the supermarket's largest concentration of opportunities.
Old Town has 525 possible locations on shelves, tables, sofas, and kitchen surfaces. If you spawn near the railway, Almatera Station and Northern Tracks are convenient alternatives, with 361 and 230 possible locations, respectively. Focus on tables and seats inside the train carriages.
Nature loot spots and research-facility machines cannot spawn Sheet Metal. Research-facility lockers are eligible, however, so check those when searching the surrounding rooms.
Farming Routes for Both Materials
When gathering several ARC Raiders items in one raid, choose your search order around the material you need most. For Planks, start in Old Town's homes.
Begin in the kitchen, checking cupboards and counters before moving into other rooms for drawers, wardrobes, and stacked boxes. Pick up Sheet Metal from tables, sofas, and shelves along the way.
If you need more Sheet Metal, start at Commissary Supermarket. Begin with the aisle nearest your entrance and scan the shelves row by row.
Then check stacking boxes in the aisles, followed by stockrooms and cafe cupboards. In a squad, split shelf checks and container searches between players to avoid covering the same spots twice.
Before heading elsewhere, check how much you have collected, where enemies are active, and whether the next stop fits your extraction route.
If the other location takes you away from your return route, leave it for another raid. Completing the full route is optional, especially when it would take you through a firefight.
Getting Materials from Celeste
Celeste in ARC Raiders offers Planks and Sheet Metal for 3 Assorted Seeds per piece. Check her stock and your seed supply before heading out. Trading is often convenient when you are only one or two pieces short. For ongoing furniture crafting, combine shop trades with materials collected during raids.
Stage two of Sheltered Retreat Project requires 3 Planks, 5 Sheet Metal, 10 ARC Alloy, and 3 Advanced Electrical Components. Getting all eight Planks and Sheet Metal from Celeste costs 24 Assorted Seeds.
That calculation covers those two materials only, and further project objectives remain after the second-stage delivery.
Weight and Carrying Plans
Planks and Sheet Metal each weigh 0.1 kg. The 3 Planks and 5 Sheet Metal needed for stage two weigh just 0.8 kg combined. When organizing your ARC Raiders items, allow room for that batch alongside your other targets and supplies.
Their low weight makes both materials convenient to collect during regular raids, though larger quantities still add up. Carrying 35 Planks adds 3.5 kg. Work out your crafting quantities before setting a collection target so you can account for the weight before filling your bag.
Outpost and Furniture Uses
Outpost in ARC Raiders unlocks through a project, and its later material requirements are larger than the initial delivery. Upgrading Research Station to level 1 requires 35 Planks as one part of its cost. Crafting an Archive Floor Lamp requires 15 Sheet Metal and 3 Light Bulbs.
If you only want to unlock Outpost, satisfy the project requirements first. Set aside additional Planks afterward if Research Station is your next goal. Furniture also needs components such as Light Bulbs, so check the full recipe once you have enough Sheet Metal to identify what you still need.
After returning from a raid, deliver the materials for your current Sheltered Retreat stage, then review Research Station upgrade and furniture recipes you have unlocked.
Use what remains in your inventory to decide which materials to collect on your next raid. Leave space in your stash for supplies you will use sooner.
