#all #documentation #standard

1 Purpose

This process intends to:

• help team members avoid unnecessary tasks
• help team members set budgets for ongoing work
• help team members identify and organize non-recurring tasks
• create a priority ranking system between different project types

2 Scope

All team members.

3 Process description

Projects progress through three stages:

1. Draft stage
2. Open stage
3. Closed stage

3.1 Draft stage

To start a project, at least one team member shall propose the project by presenting a draft Project Document to other team members.

Authors shall begin with a statement of how it helps implement the team strategy or FRC season strategy. The members proposing the project shall seek approval from all members expected to help complete the project, and members expected to use anything created by the project. Additionally, depending on the required resources, the authors shall seek approval from these groups:

• If requesting funding: the department managing the requisite budget must approve.
• If requesting computing resources: IT must approve
• If requesting shop-tools, parts, or work space: operations must approve.

3.2 Open stage

Once the project authors obtain all approvals: they shall change the project status to Open and use the requested resources to complete the project.

If a team member wishes to change the project goals, objectives, or resource allocation: they must obtain approval from all team members who the change would affect.

3.3 Closed stage

Once team members realized all project goals, the project authors shall change its status to Closed.

To close a project before realizing all goals, all members working to complete the project must agree to do so.

4 Project types

This standard recognizes the following project types:

• Safety CAR Project:
  • Projects resolving a safety related Corrective Action Report.
• Safety Project:
  • Projects intended to rectify a potential safety issue that hasn’t yet lead to a safety incident.
• Standards Project:
  • Projects that would update an organization-wide standard.
• Robot CAR Project:
  • Projects resolving a CAR related to and FRC robot project.
• FRC Robot Project:
  • The FRC robot project for the current competition season.
• CAR Project:
  • Projects resolving all other types of CAR.
• General Project:
  • Any other projects.

4.1 Ranking projects

Project ranking shows team members what work should proceed where working on one project conflicts with work on another project such that only one may progress at the same time.

By default, project types have the following rank. From most to least important:

1. Safety CAR
2. Safety
3. Standards
4. Robot CAR
5. FRC Robot
6. CAR
7. General

Safety CAR projects shall take precedence over tasks connected to any other project type.

Where conflicts arise between Safety CAR projects, the team shall prioritize the CAR for the incident most likely to reoccur sooner.

Safety projects shall take precedence over all non-safety projects.

For projects not related to Safety or Safety CARs: projects take precedence over other projects of a lower rank, unless a team member initiates the process for waiving a projects rank.

4.2 Waiving project rank

This process shall not apply to Safety, or Safety CAR, projects.

When tasks connected to non-safety projects of different rank require the same resources: team members may give precedence to the task of lower rank if all members who approved the relevant projects agree.

5 Writing project documents

5.1 Store project documents in the correct folder

Authors shall store project documents in the "projects" directory of the Team Notebook

5.2 Number project documents

Authors shall start document names with:

1. The letter "P"
2. The last two digits of the year the project started
3. A dash "-" character
4. Index number, starting at zero
5. A final dash "-" before the title

[!Example] The first project of 2026 would start with: P26-0-.

5.3 Tag project documents

Authors shall tag project documents, at a minimum, with:

• Tags for the Departments.
• Tags for the tools or materials used.
• Tags related to the intended outcome.

5.4 Add standard sections first

Authors shall maintain the following sections in a project document in this order:

1. Purpose:
   1. Authors shall list the goals of the project.
2. Assignees:
   1. Authors shall list the departments and team members responsible for the outcome.
3. Project Stage:
   1. Authors shall state in one word the projects current stage. May be: Draft, Open, or Closed

5.5 Archive project documents

Authors shall move project documents to a directory called: "archive" after the project is Closed.