We still need people to sign our Petition

[archiver]

Posted by Joe Taylor at 05/13/2001 1:48 PM EST


College Student on team #461, West Side Boiler Invasion, from West Lafayette High School and Purdue University .


In Reply to: Material Lists
Posted by Kyle Fenton on 05/12/2001 10:36 PM EST:



Kyle,
If you check out some of the other 3rd party vendors that sell similar products (such as Grainger or McMaster-Carr) you'll see that the prices small parts offers us aren't much, if at all, higher. For example, a 32 tooth 3/8" pitch sprocket costs $15.06 in small parts, and $21.04 from mcmaster. when you figure that in addition to this, small parts is giving us a 50% discount on our first $1000, I just don't see where your getting these cost savings from. You have to realize that FIRST teams are buying parts in extremely small quantity compared to the industrial companies these companies are designed to serve, and consequently the cost is much higher. We also have to take into consideration the fact that only small parts has provided us with specialized items, such as the wheel hub kit for the skyway wheelchair wheels, or the drill motor shaft coupling kit.