We have a "few" rapid prototyping machines at work. They make all the difference in the world when you can simply email a .stl to the machine shop and get your part back in a few hours (if it is short). Even better, as an EE I can hand a model of my circuit board to an ME and get a box back the next day
You really have to see what the higher end models can do. There is a demo piece in the machine shop - a bicycle 3 inches long. The wheels have treads, the handle bar turns the front wheel, and the back wheel spins. Gorgeous. I _think_ that that one has sub thou tolerances.
If you can't get access to a 3D, a 2D can do some cool things to (they just need a little love). Try castleating some polycarb. Looks great.
In any case, I hope this type of stuff becomes accessible to more FIRST teams. Thanks Brad for the cool pictures.