recession to reassess its position and make a major investment in new technology, its principals say.

The firm which was formed in Bermuda in the 1930s and now has opffices throughout the Caribbean, is also looking at expanding to more islands.

Mr. B.W. "Jordy'' Walker, principal partner and director of the Bermuda private partnership, who joined the firm in 1966, said OBM used the recession "as an opportunity to see where the firm was going'' and concluded a technological upgrade was the way to go.

The firm's top executives will meet this weekend to put the finishing touches on the plan to have all its offices fully automated by the end of June.

OBM's projects in Bermuda range from establishing the "cottage style'' residential pattern, to work for the Bank of Butterfield, the Bank of Bermuda, H.A.& E. Smith, and ACE Ltd. Mr. Walker estimated the partnership, in the last year, has injected "a substantial portion'' of its $3 million in sales back into the company's technology and staff to face future challenges.

The firm also plans to renew its expansion to other small islands, said Mr.

Walker, nephew of the firm's co-founder Mr. Wilfred Onions.

"Having worked in isolated situations, we know what to expect,'' said Mr.

Walker.

This weekend Mr. Bill Bissell, president of OBM International and Mr. Tim Peck, secretary of the international company and managing director of the group's British Virgin Island's office will visit the Bermuda operations to discuss the group's strategic plan to automate all offices by June 30.

The Bermuda firm, which has 22 staff members, opened its first overseas office in Jamaica in the early 1960s but it closed a few years later.

It then established offices in the British Virgin Islands and in Cayman in 1967 while St. Maarten and Turks and Caicos operations followed in 1972. In the late 1970s the firm opened an Antigua office and a St. Kitts office in 1984.

The Turks and Caicos office, though closed in 1984, could be reactivated. OBM is considering opening offices in Belize and Guyana while Anguilla, Montserrat and St. Lucia remain potential additions.

In Bermuda, OBM sees the return of the Base lands as beneficial to Bermuda with architectural firms having a role to play in their development.

Mr. Walker suggested OBM sees potential for some of the Base lands to be developed to service yachts.

"We have avoided heavily structured tax-based locations. They tend to be detrimental to the free spirit of the enterprise,'' said architect Mr. Steve Osgoode.

"The pattern of collapse (in building associated with the recession) has been a horrible sight but I think it is right to say we are embarking on a new found view,'' he added.

Technology allows template production on any scale which reduces on site delays. The project can be changed on screen and acts as an inventory as well, explained Ms Joan Murdoch, OBM senior interior designer.

Computer models allow the architect to focus on specific areas of a project by unifying scales on screen.

The Bermuda partnership was started in 1936 and formalised two years later by Mr. Onions, and Mr. Valmer Bouchard while Mr. John McCulloch joined in 1945.

Thirteen years later he would attain associate partnership and assumed a major role in 1960.

Founding partners Mr. Onions and Mr. Bouchard passed way in 1959 and 1977 respectively while Mr. McCulloch retired at the end of 1992.

DRAWING FUTURE PLANS -- Members of OBM Architecture and Interior Design, (from left) Mr. Ted Wood, Mr. B.W. (Jordy) Walker, Ms Joan Murdoch and Mr. Steve Osgoode.