[Andrew]

Some other random thoughts on this subject....

Predesigning has been OK for my time in FIRST. Most teams design and prototype critical components. If FIRST changes KoP parts (like they did with the Chiphua output shaft in 2003 and the new drill motor in 2003), we have to scramble to redesign. It's a risk to invest design time up front, but generally it pays off. Since most teams are pretty free about sharing information with other teams, this seems to be a good thing all around.

CNC programming and fixtures...Under last year's rules, it would be OK for a team to come up with a design, program and debug a CNC machine and make whatever fixtures are necessary. When build phase hits (assuming no major KoP changes), the program can be dumped into the CNC machine and parts can be banged out automatically at much lower machining time.

Design for Manufacturing...designing both for function and to make it easier to manufacture takes the art of design to the next level. If you accomplish this in the off season, you can reduce the number and complexity of parts that you must make.

Competitiveness...designing and prototyping in the off season builds a team's knowledge base, which is ultimately what makes a team more competitive. Fabrication resources, OTS parts, etc. are available if you need them.

There are even other ways to save fabrication time during build phase...making fixtures in the off season, buying materials which are precut to length, designing around OTS material sizes to save cuts, ...

Whatever the rules, mature teams are going to find ways to improve their design efficiency based on knowledge of competitions past.

Finally, SLEEP...the reason that most of us spend time in the off-season getting a jump on next season is so that we can have more sleep time and more family time during build phase.