I do not think the need is moddable industry as much as a total rethink of industry.
Industries and resource extractors are two entirely different things. Mineral resources, arable land and forests are where they are, so they have to be exploited there or not at all. And – importantly – resources are not usually found all over the place, they occur in specific areas.
Processing industries should be located in a reasonable place – they are not built and financed by idiots. Farms are the most fundamental, and must be on suitable land. Grains come from rich soil in the lowlands, pastures for dairy and meat production is found in the hills – at least early on.
Mines have to be where the minerals are, but should not be opened unless there is a way to process and market the product. Oil should not be found before 1860, and then only sparingly.
Early lumbermills should be next to rivers, later they can be steam powered. Many industries need a lot of water in any case. Industries need labour, so they will not be located far away from people unless they get people to move close to them. Generally, all industries belong with the “blue buildings” in towns and villages – but they have the potential to grow to huge sizes dominating their city.
The concept of industries making one product from one or two inputs is copied from earlier and more primitive games. It is a “game” concept rather than a “simulation” concept. Most raw materials should be used by many industries, and most industries need many input resources.
To make iron, you need at least charcoal (or, after early 1800s coke), limestone, ore and air. The huge amount of air would early on be supplied by bellows driven by a watermill, then a steam engine, and later by a gas engine.
Coal is also used by most other early industries, either for heat or to run steam engines. To get gas lights, towns built gas works which used coal. Most towns need coal up to the 1950’s.
It is also necessary to distinguish between perishable and non-perishable cargos. The 20-minute rule works only for people making their daily trips. Neither people on days off nor industrial goods have that kind of constraint.