HAVEN'T HEARD A WORD FROM YOU FOR SOME TIME SO I ASSUME YOU ARE BUSYING YOURSELF IN OTHER ACTIVITIES.

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP89B00487R000300640028-3
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 9, 2011
• Sequence Number: 28
• Publication Date: August 5, 1955
• Content Type: LETTER

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August 5,1955
HIM
Haven't heard a word from you for some time so I assume you are busying
yourself in other activities. A new problem has arisen upon which I
would like to enlist your help. Because of the impact of our program
and several others, the corporation has found it necessary to increase
the size of our facilities by adding approximately 7,000 square feet of
building for engineering space. Following the normal practice of the
Perkin-Elmer Corporation., this bricks and mortar addition will be a
capital investment. It would be most helpful, however., if we could
write-off the cost of the addition over the five year period permitted
under emergency amortization rather than over the normal trty years.
This is probably the worst possible time for any corporation to attempt
the securing of a certificate of necessity because of Secretary Humphreys
recent blasts against such activities. In any case, we have had a rather
successful precedent in this sort of thing in the past and we are pre-
paring to approach the Office of Defense Mobilization in an effort to
obtain the required certificate. All of our military contacts are being
quite cooperative, and we are wondering if there is anything your office,
within the bounds of the necessary security., could do to help bolster our
case. This addition is primarily housing for engineers and draftsmen.
We plan to start construction almost at once and have it in full swing
by perhaps the end of the calendar year. I believe it is a fact that a
good deal of our pressure for engineering expansion does derive from the
impact of the Projector Project.
In this same general vain, we have been faced with another problem which
at the moment appears to be under control but may become hot again some-
time in the future. We have a large Blanchard grinding machine which is
the property of the Air Force but has been assigned to us and is now in
operation in our plant. We obtained this machine to work on the many
large pieces of glass required by some of our current Air Force contracts
and as usual in such cases, we agreed to use the machine exclusively on
such contracts. At the moment, the production schedule is such that the
machine is not heavily loaded and we have found it very advantageous to
make some of the larger pieces for our project on this machine. Of course,
within the plant all of our work is of a commercial nature and there have
been some eyebrows raised as to the propriety of using this machine for
our job. We have arranged a rental system which., at least at the moment.,
is acceptable to the Air Force but if the question of priority should ever
arise I expect we will have a little difficulty. I do not, at this time,
request any attention to this matter on your part. I simply describe it
so that if you receive a hurry up call for assistance you will have the
background information.
I believe you will be pleased to know that when I board nor airplane for
the trip West in the early hours of the 9th, I will have, figuratively
speaking., the first charting camera in np arms. I had hoped that I would
have a negative to enclose with this letter. While such negatives are in
existence andihey look quite good, they are geographically separated from
me at the moment so none is available. They make the Herald Tribune's
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August 5, 1955
double spread pictures look like Brownie camera stuff. This first camera
is still very much of a prototype and there are a number of things built
into it which we know will not be completely satisfactory. We want to ob-
tain some operational experience before freezing on the details for the
production run. I have not yet received any film from FT but he has the
necessary spools and I suspect the film will arrive in the next few days.
The first periscope and hand control will be shipped from Norwalk on the
12th and so, at the present moment, it is in a rather advanced stage of
assembly. Here again there are some things which we are putting into the
prototype for educational purposes for a little service experience will
be of tremendous help.
The first computor and memory unit was checked out and accepted the other
day. This little black box works beautifully, and it is of interest that
of all of Configuration "C", this particular item should be the first
completed and so far ahead of schedule.
I will have with me at least four 24" lenses reworked from the original
Pacific Optical units. I have received these on a conditional acceptance
for I do not believe they are nearly as good as they can be made since
they do not perform as well as the prototype. They are, of course, very
much better than the original lenses but I would like to have them at
least up to prototype performance before actual final acceptance. The
new design 21" is well along but the pressure of getting the first half
dozen reworked lenses tested and calibrated has loaded our test facility
to the point that I do not have data on the prototype 2I" as yet.
I have heard no word from Jim on his re-examination of the performance of
the 36" for the B system, which, as you remember, we built up in prototype
form and analyzed thoroughly so that Jim could improve his design. You
will be interested to learn, if you do not already know, that the last week
or so of July caught Jim in a bad schedule bind and so he has postponed his
European trip for about two weeks. The wife and family went ahead and he
is staying behind to live with the computing machines. We are still waiting
for a definitive design for "C" and for a design for the optical test equipment.
I recently received a draft of the test program for the camera equipment and
I will go over this with the boys thoroughly during my visit. I am not
planning to go out to the site until perhaps my next trip, which should
straddle the first of September. It might be for a period considerably
longer than has been nor habit. I am very interested to know who will be
in over-all command of the operations at the site for I think it would be
worthwhile for me to sit down with him and get to know him better than
perhaps I do now. In addition, I would like to know who will handle the
details of transportation and housing since he would probably appreciate
advance information concerning the visits of various personnel. If you
have any recent data or details on the over-all programming of the base,
I would very much appreciate it.
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One last item to give you something to think about. Jim's new business
manager, is talking such that it may be quite difficult for
Perkin-Elmer to contract for the consulting portion of our requirements
from I think we will have no difficulty in contracting for the
specific designs and such activities as lead to definable drawings or
formulas but in that area of consultation for guidance and advice we will
have some trouble. Would you be receptive to a prime contract directly
with - for such activities? is not quite sure of exactly
what he will request in the way o a con ract bat a week from Monday I
plan to sit down with him and go over the details of his requirements.
I will certainly keep you informed as to how we proceed.
RMS/dmg
25X1
25X1
25X1
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