Industrial Research 



367 



Impressed bj- the great importance of promoting the appU- 

 cation of science to industry in this country, the National 

 Research Council toolc up the question of the organization of 

 industrial research in the belief that this matter should be 

 furthered in every way possible and as rapidly as may be. The 

 National Research Council considers that cooperation among 

 capital, labor, science, and management constitutes the best 

 general means of financing and directing the extended laboratory 

 investigations and the large scale experimental and develop- 

 mental work required for adeqviate industrial research. Ac- 

 cordingly it inaugurated an Industrial Research Section to 

 consider the best methods of achieving such organization of 

 research within an industry or group of related industries. 



On this basis place was made in the permanent 

 organization of the Council for an agency to serv^e 

 the research interests of industry. It was felt at firet 

 that tliere was need in many industries for an increased 

 appreciation of the value of research in industrial 

 development. In the years unniediately following the 

 First World War much of the attention of the Division 

 of Engineering and Industrial Research of the Council, 

 and of a Div-ision of Research Extension (maintained 

 in the Council for several years for this express purpose) 

 was devoted to encouraging a recognition in industrial 

 circles of the unportance of making research a guide 

 in manufacturing processes and in the supplying of 

 new and attractive products. 



This function has been carried out in various waj-s 

 in addition to the studj' of direct research problems in 



industry. For instance, a number of conferences have 

 been held for the consideration of the important 

 potential relationships between industry and the uni- 

 versities in research matters. These relationships con- 

 sist in part of means for utilizing university research 

 facilities for work upon fundamental research problems, 

 and the draft upon universities for the training of 

 scientific personnel in industry. In the opposite 

 direction, also, industry has a distinct contribution to 

 make to university research work through intrinsic 

 additions to knowledge and through the stimulus that 

 comes to research and the sharpening of its focus from 

 the insistence of manufacturing needs and operations. 

 It is distinctly a two-way cooperative relationsliip. 



Through its Division of Engineermg and Industrial 

 Research the Council has also conducted special studies 

 of such matters as the effect of the depression of 1930 

 and subsequent years upon the course of research in 

 certain industries. It has encouraged the publication 

 of volumes commenting upon the industrial research 

 situation, such as Profitable Practice in Industrial 

 Research, and Industrial Explorers. Representatives 

 of the division have frequently appeared before trade 

 associations to encourage applied science. 



This division has conducted a number of tours to 

 selected industrial research laboratories m the United 

 States and one such trip to visit laboratories in Eng- 



iiiii I i i I 



Figure 104. — National Academy of Sciences and National Research Council, Wasliington, D. C. 



