The PSDB was established in 1963 to plan police methods and equipment to improve police efficiency in dealing with crime. Annual programs of the branch are prepared by police representatives and presented to the Home Office. The PSDB has shown a marked preference for projects involving equipment and planning systems, especially because priority has been given since 1970 to rapid results and introduction of surveillance equipment. The PSDB has sought to increase police productivity by evaluating how modern technology can contribute to improved police performance and which forms of technology are most likely to fill that purpose. The experimental information system introduced in 1969 at Birmingham and later expanded to all of West Midlands is an example of such technological innovations. The group in charge of equipment at the Sandridge laboratories is expected to perfect and use equipment for police use; duplication of equipment available on the open market or of work done by other police units is to be avoided. A special unit, the technical support unit, has been established to interface between technologists who develop complex equipment and police users. Such units provide an effective method for improving police productivity and performance. Efforts are also being made to revamp the command and control units of all 43 police departments. Such systems as computer-aided dispatch are being introduced to aid patrols with information from crime reports and other documents. Through this system, information from a national computer and information on the local level together with information on juvenile delinquents are available locally without delay. Problems in this system relate to the uniformity of information and protection of private information. Finally, a system of minicomputers has been gathering data for 4 years to furnish traffic officers with information on the effectiveness of traffic control tactics, effects of visible police vehicles and motorcycle patrols, and tactics for reducing accidents. The overall object of such a system is to improve the productivity of traffic officers. Three reference notes and two appendixes with information on the work of equipment teams and command and control systems are supplied. --in French.