THE FIFTH International Conference on Metrology and Properties of Engineering Surfaces again maintained its international reputation. This was the first conference in which there were more overseas delegates than attendees by the home country. The main emphasis of the conference, like its predecessor in Washington DC, reflected the developments which have been occurring in 3-Dimensional (3-D) surface assessment. This time the growth in the international activities in optical assessment exceeded the more traditional 3-D stylus instrument developments. This Conference was timely in that a number of manufacturers of surface texture measuring instruments were launching, or had recently launched, commercial systems. This development has started to take 3-D analysis of engineering surfaces away from the exclusive domain of the researcher and broadened it to the domain of the end user. It is therefore not surprising that much of the discussion which surrounded the Conference sessions became both heated and passionate as participants in the event sought to understand the functional significance of the parameters that they could now measure.
This meeting brought together for the first time a more diverse audience who were both willing and eager to sha.re their experiences with colleagues in wide ranging industrial environments. Thus, in the few months between this international Conference and the publishing of these Proceedings, a fitrther two day EEC sponsored meeting held in Brussels has agreed the basis for the development of a coherent group of parameters which could be usefully employed in the communication of 3-D surface information. It is my belief that this Conference was partly responsible for bringing together the people for this latest development and much of the work described in this Conference played its part in the formation of ideas for the later meeting.
As with all Conferences, the success of the meeting was not only due to the academic sessions but also related to the social activities and two ladies played a major role in ensuring the smooth running of the whole event. I would like to thank both Margaret Liggett and Valerie Kilby for their unstinting efforts in coping with the foibles of the typical Conference delegate throughout the event. Without their help this Conference would not have been the success that it was.