Organizing an FRC Room

[kaliken]

We are in the process of still moving back into our shop after having it being remodeled for the past year+

What I ended up doing was create a Microsoft Visio diagram of the room based upon the architects drawings.

From there I went through all the work places and workflow we have as a team. This ranged from CAD/Design/Business areas to Electronics, and fabrication assembly areas. The visio diagram really allowed us to get an idea on how much room we had and how we could best store it.
Of course the plan wasn't perfect. But it was a great start. I have attached a PDF of a fairly current version of the plan. It went through many iterations.


As for parts storage, we ended up doing the following: General hardware such as bolts nuts, or anything along those lines were stored in plastic bins.
Mcmaster carries them though they are pricey. so we went to GlobalIndustrial for them. They come in a variety of bin sizes from 24-12 compartments. Plus we found that the carrying case is pretty good. Here is a link
http://www.globalindustrial.com/p/st...partment-boxes

For spacers, drill bits or standoffs, taps, and dies. Or anything really little... We went with the Akro-Mills storage as mentioned before. these also hold our end mills and drill bits in our machine shop.


As for bigger items we went with the hanging/stacking storage bins. These are also from globalIndustrial. Getting them in different sizes allowed us to match size with the items we had. Shipping was getting pricey on the large bins so look for a local reseller.

here is the link to the bins
http://www.globalindustrial.com/g/st.../stacking_bins

As for batteries, we have a 10 battery storage cart (6 charge) that sits next to the electrical area.


When we are back in our shop on Sunday I can take some photos to show how its been turning out. (its by no means done but its a good start.. we have til January to be ready!!!)