[Ian W.]

I think that the best way to do it is lay down a few simple rules.

1) A "part" is any individual piece or component (therefore a transmission is not a part, it's a collection of parts). This allows for teams to have spare parts manufactured, but they must build everything at the competition.

2) If a local team opens up their machine shop to any team, teams may manufacture and build whatever they want there, as long as it's done during between Thursday and Saturday. A local team may not however, go back to their own shop and work in it, without opening it up to other teams (this keeps everything fair). This does not replace the competition machine shop.

These rules are fair and simple to follow. They also take a huge burden off the competition machine shop. All too often, my team has needed a simple part made (perhaps a hole drilled through a steel axle), and it's taken over half the day because the competition machine shop is swamped. By allowing teams to bring prefabricated parts, the machine shop doesn't have to make all of those parts in three days.

Sure, this probably gives the advantage to local teams, but that's a non issue as far as I'm concerned, because most teams attend at least one local regional, and when they go off, well, they already have the advantage over other teams in other areas. The only other problem I see is regulating whether or not a "spare part" a team brings in is actually a spare part, or some new contraption they've designed. It's hard, yes, but I think that it will keep teams from making entirely new designs after ship, and through gracious professionalism it should be a non issue, but I have a feeling more than a few teams will try to sneak around the rule. It's unavoidable, with this many teams in FIRST.

It's impossibly difficult to pick one avenue of thought though, as FIRST has to balance every factor, from leveling the playing field to keeping the competition machine shops running smoothly to keeping volunteers from going crazy and giving all team members full body cavity searches. All we can hope is that FIRST picks a simple ruling, that everyone follows.