requires detailed coordination with Los Alamos and with Santa Fe Operations Office,
but it reports to AEC staff divisions in Washington.
Full field responsibility for performance of mission assignments continues to rest

with the Manager, SFO.

The parallel full field authority delegated in 1947, in keeping with

the original philosophy of full decentralization, has been progressively limited, in keeping
with an apparent swing toward a philosophyof centralization which seemingly accelerated

after late 1950. These limitations have not been expressed in a redefinition of Operations
Office authority, but in a series of actions each of which removed the control of some aspect of day-to-day performance and placed it with a Washington headquarters staff office.
There have been two major changes since 1947 affecting the line of command through
which the Commission directs the field program, In 1947, the Manager, SFO, reported to
the General Manager, the chief executive officer, with the Division of Military Application

in the position of a staff division; in September, 1948, the General Manager delegated direct

supervision of SFO to the Director, DMA. Paralleling the swing to centralization which
became apparent in 1950 there has been an intensification of direct control exercised by
specialized Washington staff offices over counterpart phases of field operation, expressed
not through the command channelbut directly through functional channels.
The expressed philosophy of AEC operation has remained constant, being that the
maximum degree of operations and supply will be performed through contract with private
enterprise. The dpplication of the philosophy in SFO has been reviewed on several occasions, specifically with regard to the Zia and the University of California contracts at

Los Alamos and on occasion with regard to operation of production facilities by the Military.

In keeping with this philosophy, SFOO's plan of management has been to retain final field

responsibility and control, providing policy and regulatory framework, and requiring per-

formance.

Manufacturing responsibilities are assigned by SFOOto its contractors in order

to utilize to the fullest extent possible the management know-how, operating skills, and
efficiency of private enterprise. To the fullest extent possible, authority is also delegated

by SFOO to its field offices and to its contractors, Staff functions are retained by the Operations Office headquarters and field office organization. Technical and manufacturing functions are delegated.

5.

SANTA FE OPERATIONS OFFICE

Prior to 1947, the Manhattan Engineer District managed and operated the nuclear
weapons field organization which was largely centered in Los Alamos. From January 1,
1947, when the newly-created Atomic Energy Commission took over responsibility for the
atomic energy program, until July 1947 the Military continued to provide supervision at
Los Alamos. On July 2, the AEC established the Office of Santa Fe Directed Operations
(now known as Santa Fe Operations Office) to conduct the weapons program. Two weeks

later Carroll L. Tyler arrived at Los Alamos, becoming the first direct AEC Manager.

One of his immediate jobs was to organize a staff. There have been numerous reorganizations since, but the general outline of the staff formed by late 1948 has remained
' constant, changes largely reflecting new areas of key interest. Near the end of the first

three years, the Santa Fe Operations Office headquarters and field staff was revised as a
start toward providing, on the one hand, an operations-wide administration and, on the
other, a more clearly-defined administration of the Los Alamos community.

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