[Daniel_LaFleur]

There is always tension between sub-teams. FIRST wants the teams to have real world experiance, tension between subgroups is a normal part of engineering, especially when there is a hard deadline (like the ship deadline in FIRST). How we deal with that tension will say a lot about how well you will do in a team enviroment (most engineering is a team enviroment) in the real world.

One of the best tools to combat this tension is communication. Have regular design reviews. Make sure everyone knows the schedule. Make sure everyone knows the full impact of any delays. If your subteam cannot be working on the robot because another subteam is delayed, ask what you can do to help.

And above all else, remember, you win or lose as a team. You succeed or fail as a team. So anything you can do to help the team, even if its not working directly with your sub team, will contribute to the success of the entire team.