I. SUMMARY OF CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 

 Committee on Instrumentation 



A. INTRODUCTION 



Historically the Hydrographic Office has interpreted its mission 

 as primarily that of performing surveys with equipment available 

 commercially or from other agencies. Consequently, in the past this 

 Office has looked to others for leadership in the development of survey 

 instruments. The establishment of the Instrumentation Division and, 

 more recently, the Committee on Instrumentation resulted from the 

 recognition that instruments available through these channels are not 

 always adequate and that the Hydrographic Office must provide more of 

 the leadership for the development of oceanographic and other marine 

 geophysical instruments. 



It has been suggested informally that the Hydrographic Office should 

 act as the material bureau for geophysical instrumentation for the Navy. 

 The Committee does not feel that it is within its purview to comment 

 on such a suggestion. However, it does seem evident that this Office 

 must play a dominant role in the development of geophysical instruments 

 to meet peculiar Navy requirements, most of which concern surveys 

 conducted by the Hydrographic Office. With the recent publicity given 

 to oceanography, numerous corporations have submitted proposals for 

 development of oceanographic instruments. To evaluate these proposals 

 properly and to give mature guidance for the expenditure of such funds 

 as might be made available for this purpose, the Hydrographic Office 

 must have greater firsthand experience in the development, calibra- 

 tion, use, and maintenance, of a variety of instruments. The value of 

 this firsthand experience cannot be overemphasized; lack thereof 

 results in mistakes, indecision, and instability in long-range plans. 

 Facilities not now available at the Hydrographic Office will be re- 

 quired and inevitably will entail funding at a level not heretofore 

 provided for this purpose. 



B. POLICIES AND PROCEDURES 



The three major problem areas of instrumentation are: (1) design 

 and development, (2) test and evaluation, and (3) maintenance. 



The first of these, design and development, demands the use of all 

 of the ingenuity available within an organization, if it is to be produc- 

 tive. The second, test and evaulation, requires adequate central facili- 

 ties, a competent staff, and the development of standard techniques. 



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