Re: Workaround for Non-local Transportation of Robots to Competitions
 

Second that. We also are able to support receiving a crate and have a pallet jack to be able to load into out team trailer. Coupled with 144 we could certainly help with QCR.

Re: Workaround for Non-local Transportation of Robots to Competitions
 

Dave,
great points.
We have actually addressed many of the things you point out.
Airfare costs, other important travel arrangements, and the timing of when all shipping arrangments are made cost us time/money when not done well in advanced. We are already paying $1100 per ticket just to fly to the events.
I have already asked for RD info, but with no responses yet.
FIRST doesnt have the drayage setup yet (Duluth), which makes it difficult to even get quotes on shipments from there to wherever we need to send it in Dallas for this season.
We are now lucky to have found a gracious team to help us in Dallas....one that is very well known.:)
However, the issue is much bigger IMO.

Re: Workaround for Non-local Transportation of Robots to Competitions
 

I think we can all agree that this is true.
However, FIRST also converted every regional to be a Bag/Tag event by default. Aren't the number of "ships" much lower as well?

FIRST just recently offered hardship grants for regional reg fees.
Why not offer it to teams attending outside regionals/international teams as well?
If FEDEX is sponsoring shipments, isnt it at no cost/much lower cost to them? Pass that down to the teams...

I'm still frustrated about the whole no PO from our school issue. Who is FIRST trying to serve? Schools right?

Re: Workaround for Non-local Transportation of Robots to Competitions
 

Explain this one to me. What are they not accepting a PO for?

Re: Workaround for Non-local Transportation of Robots to Competitions
 

The last couple of years, the State of Hawaii has a compliance vendor form that every entity we do business with be in compliance before a Purchase Order can be made in excess of $2500.00.
FIRST responsed by saying that they are a non-profit and that it didnt apply to them.
Our State procurement office noted that FIRST is not an exception and that they must do the paperwork in order to be registered.

I've done thousands, and I mean thousands of PO's over the last 20 years.
Part of my job requires doing the ordering for programs within our school and in many cases for our entire complex.

This is the 1st time I ever heard of an entity refusing to do it.

In response, our Friends of Hawaii Robotics 501c3 has offered to help by allowing us to make a PO to them, and then they would make the payment to FIRST for us.
No problem right? OK, but its been a paperwork nightmare for me and trying to help other public schools in our State pay the reg fees also.
I can only speak about Hawaii public schools doing FRC.
The registration fee is by far the biggest hurdle in doing FIRST. When the schools acquire funding to pay for registration fee, they need to be able to spend it. I know of several schools that dealt with it last year, and in the end, ended up using hard earned "cash" money to pay for it, while losing the allocated school funding to cover the reg costs. One of the schools outright didnt participate in FIRST during the 2013 season and are now coming back this season.
We never had the issue last year, because I got a University of Hawaii grant which covered all of my reg fees as well as donated funds. UH has a P-card (credit card) that allows them to charge and pay for the registration costs.

Re: Workaround for Non-local Transportation of Robots to Competitions
 

its sounds like someone missed a memo somewhere. Have you tried running this up the chain at FIRST? Their response doesn't make any sense.

Hey, Frank, if you are reading this, could you look into this one?

Re: Workaround for Non-local Transportation of Robots to Competitions
 

Perhaps FIRST needs some assistance in completing the forms? Or, they looked at the forms and (for some reason) do not comply?

I would surely make a formal request for some kind of answer on this. FIRST doesn't think they're going to change Hawaii's mind, do they? 40 teams is 40 teams...

Re: Workaround for Non-local Transportation of Robots to Competitions
 

Howzit!

Yes our fine DOE has many interesting approaches to spending as of late. Even the school's procurement credit card has a 2500 limit. Which used to be a work around for limited PO acceptance.

We are obviously in the same situation, sadly. Many times we end up using our hard earned fundraising cash to compete. This needs to be addressed promptly!

Also it was very hard for us to get into some of the mainland regionals this year. We try to compete during our spring break to keep the students from missing school which limits our choices of events as it is. Seems that the regional competitions are trying to keep the events more for local teams.
I guess this is a prelude to their district changeover.

Big question, how do we keep non mainland teams in FRC?
Dealing with higher costs across the board keeps many teams back.
Look what some of the Australian teams do, many just register to get a KOP and never attend a regional. They run a local non sanctioned event to compete but cannot qualify. Hopefully they will get their own regional next year. Let alone all the new teams coming in from abroad.

Our island can only support so much in sponsorships and donations since there are 6 teams here competing for the same dollars out of a rural island population of less than 130k island wide.

I find that the travel and interaction with teams outside our state inspire quite a bit. Many of my students here on the Big Island never leave the state. FRC is our best reason to get off the rock and show the students the bigger world.. It truly is inspiring to them and many have changed their college plans because of this.

Perhaps more shipping companies could become sponsors?
DHL, UPS, etc... Is FedEx the exclusive shipper for FIRST?
Maybe they can get the big shipping companies involved like Matson, Bekins, Sealine, etc. I know our robot cannot ever chance the 11+ day boat ride from here to the mainland but those companies must have a need for good PR or a tax write off.. Well maybe Matson doesn't at the moment due to the molasses spill on Oahu but surely there has to be more than FedEx..

Aloha,
Mike

Re: Workaround for Non-local Transportation of Robots to Competitions
 

Don,
FIRST doesn't need assistance in completing the forms. It was a simple "No."

The best response was "We've always done it this way in the past."
I beg to differ after 14+ years and traveling to many US regionals across the US.;)

Sorry for the rant......its quite the challenge being on a relatively small little rock in the middle of the Pacific Ocean trying to compete like everyone else.

Re: Workaround for Non-local Transportation of Robots to Competitions
 

Wow, we now have 2 options on places to ship to!
We are very grateful thanks to this great "company." and awesome team!

I just hope that one day, a discussion takes place on how they move forward with non-district, out of state teams that cannot drive from their home school to an event.

Re: Workaround for Non-local Transportation of Robots to Competitions
 

Mike,
if this is true, which I suspected as well, that is a problem.
I wondered why there were several Australian teams signed up, only to see some of them drop out very late....

Re: Workaround for Non-local Transportation of Robots to Competitions
 

Hey Glenn,

Hope you got to enjoy some of the holidays.

I learned about this on a post here on CD..

http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/sh...58#post1305058

Aloha,
Mike