This is a proposal for next year, the 2012-2013 season. BackgroundCurrently there are approximately 30 team members divided into 5 teams. Each team has approximately 6 members. At the beginning of the season a team of coaches take into consideration past teams and incoming members and try to fairly distribute the team members into teams. Each team has been provided the previous years robot and a budget for parts for the new year. Part requests are sent through the head coach who orders the parts. Parts are distributed at the request of the team members with the team members responsible for the pickup of the parts. Currently the use and distribution of the parts has been managed exclusively within the teams. At competitions, parts are openly exchanged between teams with little to no tracking. ProposalTeam AssignmentTeam assignment is NOT the main focus of this proposal, but some considerations are worth mentioning. As teams work together during one season, bonds and friendships are built. These friendships often are the motivation for members to continue year after year. Beyond history and friendships the following must be considered in team formation:
Discussion first between the adult coaches and then extending the discussion to the club is recommended. The current system of assignment may be working fine for all parties. Some other considerations:
Part DistributionThis is the main emphasis of this proposal. Initial distributionTo start each team the following items would be distributed to each team:
At the end of the season each team will be required to return the above parts in good working order. Additional PartsAll teams will have a budget to purchase additional parts. The budget will be set at the beginning of the season taking into consideration the current parts inventory and the funds available. Each team will be given a gift card already registered to the Bethoud Robotics Store (http://store.berhoudrobotics.com) . Each team will be assigned a login to the store where their gift card is registered. At this store, they can purchase either new or used parts. Used parts will be discounted to encourage teams to utilize existing inventory before purchasing new parts. In addition used parts will not carry a shipping charge or tax. Ordering procedure Team members will log into the site and purchase, similar to any other ecommerce site. |