And now for something completely different: Back to Slick's original question.
By the time you have lvl 3 in facilities, you probably have lvl 2 or 3 in shipyards.
Build your shipyard first!
Now, before you scream, "But that will cost me 5 *^%(#% turns!", let me point out the advantages. They are very simple: You can now build ships! You can build more units at one time! And do it right now! Your fleet gets decimated? You now have resources flowing out of your ears and 20 extra shipyards to use 'em up. Not to mention rebuilding your fleet in jig time.
But if nothing happens, you can merrily build your level 3 facilities in one turn. During the five turns of the shipyard build, your tech has improved too, so you will be building better ships if the disaster hits.
(Damn, I could sell ice to Eskimos!
)