That strap overall is a really manual labor intensive installation step, fairly risky in terms of failure, and mandates several additional (read: $$$) edge protection parts even without the bodged ones. I don't think it was intentional. I feel that while the wooden edging is a sign that production technicians were rushed and couldn't wait for a new batch of the specified part, the overall strap-supported condenser design is a sign that the engineering organization overall was also time crunched and couldn't respin the assembly.
The idea that they made a home depot run seems silly, if I had to guess, if you look at the breakroom in the telsa factor, you'll probably find some missing molding.
