Quote:
Originally Posted by artdutra04
Or if your team has these extra parts, and is in a graciously professional mood, why not donate them to a new rookie team to help get their team started? Surely, for a rookie team who doesn't have a huge (or at least modest) "archive" of parts on hand that established teams do, any additional parts for them would be a Godsend. 
Rather than FIRST [try to] overly complicate the Kit of Parts, why not have them officially "endorse" something like CD-Swap for the spare parts from Kit that teams are willing to donate/trade to other teams. It would take a lot less manpower on their behalf (which saves $$$), and would only strengthen the program while building gracious professionalism. Two birds, one stone. |
Did anyone else notice the questions skip from #5 to #12?
I agree with the tried and true system of one common kit of parts for everyone that is available to most right after kickoff. Not only does it cut down on additional sorting and tracking headaches for FIRST, but I've always liked the idea of every team starting out with the exact same base set of components. Here's your kit and the game rules - ready, set, go! Besides, you shouldn't let the extra parts from your build sit at home on a shelf somewhere! In addition to Art's excellent suggestions, another option is to bring your extra unused kit parts with you to competitions. Sometimes you don't know a part is useful until someone experiences that "Oh fiddlesticks I wish I had a so and so!!!" (*thinks of Paul Copioli*) moment during a robot crisis at an event. Also, we all know how shorthanded the spare parts table is with certain items. There's always that one major part everyone needs that the table just doesn't have. If you don't need it, chances are, someone else will. Not only is it fun to give your spare stuff away, it's practical - you will end up with less stuff cluttering your shop storage bins at the end of each season.
If each team makes an effort to support all other teams by using CD-Swap to exchange parts from their fixed kits and by swapping or giving them away at competitions, eventually the majority of the parts teams find useful will be distributed to the teams that need them.
From a supplier's perspective, how much of the kit is donated? What items are sold to FIRST at a discount? I imagine the suppliers who provide the "lesser used" parts all donate their products. That means a very justified tax writeoff. I don't know - would they rather hold onto their parts and not give them out ahead of time if these surveys generally classified them as "not useful", or would they instead still prefer to give their parts out to everyone with the knowledge that at least one team will use their products and find enjoyment in integrating them into the robot, and that is justification enough for donating? I thank the "little guy" suppliers who may not see much use out of their products but still manage to inspire a few FIRST students all the same.