[polytechnique]

The Georgia Power machine shop at the state championship this year really saved us.

They had a band saw, a milling machine, a belt sander, and a variety of hand tools like a hacksaw, set of files, etc. Particularly their access to a milling machine plus skilled machinists capable of handling large pieces of aluminum was vital to our robot's mechanics, which wouldn't have worked at all without their help.

I think the most important thing for any machine shop to be able to machine metals, especially aluminum pieces, quickly. Say some vital part breaks during a match and there's no replacement in sight, having a new one within minutes is just about a godsend to a team in the heat of competition. If the machines (especially milling machine and band saw) can handle solid square extrusions (we had to have a piece made from 1x1" solid stock, ugh) then that should reasonably cover the vast majority of jobs that any team will need.