[How do I force a merged component to respect saved orientation?]

In attempting to create a new component I'm having a nightmare of a time getting the component to respect it's saved orientation when I merge it into another component.

 

I.E.: I have it rotated (QWES Rotation, not "3" Rotation) such that the it should face a certain way.

However, when I merge the component in, it always loads facing the "default" direction.

When I try and rotate it after merging it in, it %&*!s up the radial orientation so it ends up inside the component I'm trying to mount it to.

 

Help?

[Please let us lock pieces in place.]

Love the game. Has totally consumed my life in spite of my short temper and lack of patience.

May have already been suggested but nothing sets me off quicker than going to click on anything and the game registering (either by mistake or because I clicked on something else) that I clicked on what I wasn't trying to click on.

Please give us an option during designing our space ships and space planes that enables us to, maybe through a right-click context menu option, lock an item (and by extension all it's mirrored components) in place so that it can't be interacted with any further.