This paper presents a mechanism which can serve as a National Conservation Institute, designed to satisfy the following constraints: national conservation is concerned with all varieties of object; there is a shortage of conservators which existing U.S. schools at their present level of funding are not able to remedy; an Institute should have practical expertise to offer; a conservator may have functions as a materials scientist and as a curator, in addition to his practical skills, functions which should where possible be devolved upon a scientific laboratory and museum curators. The suggested mechanism will enable the conservator to remain at his bench, will raise his standing in the estimation of his museum director and colleagues; will use the conservator to produce audio-visual teaching aids in the area of his own expertise for the benefit of his peers. It would operate by buying from every conservator copies of the technical portions of every report he writes, by abstracting this for entry into a computer store, by making it available to every other contributing conservator who finds that he has a similar problem and requests the information on it. Communication would be through the medium of a computer terminal or telefax machine installed at the conservator's bench. Audio-visual information on elements of practical technique would also be available. -- AATA