HOMS is the acronym for the Hydrological Operational Multipurpose System established by the World Meteorological Organization for the transfer of technology in hydrology and water resources.
This technology is usually in the form of descriptions of hydrological instruments, technical manuals or computer programs, material which has been made available for inclusion in HOMS by the Hydrological Services of member countries of WMO from the techniques which they themselves use in their normal operations. This is an important aspect of the HOMS philosophy in that it ensures that the technology transferred is not only ready for use but also works reliably.
Structure of HOMS
The technology available through HOMS is provided as separate HOMS components which, for easy reference, are classified into sections according to their subject matter (see list). Each section is indicated by a letter first and then subdivided into subsections designated by two digits.
Organization of HOMS
HOMS is organized as a cooperative effort of WMO Members. Participating countries designate a HOMS National Reference Centre (HNRC), usually in the National Hydrological Service. This centre provides national components for use in HOMS, handles national requests for HOMS components to be supplied by other HNRCs, advises users on HOMS, and generally coordinates and publicizes HOMS activities in the country.
New features
The Advisory Working Group to the Commission of Hydrology, in its capacity as the Steering Committee for HOMS, is constantly trying to keep the system updated, to increase its level of usefulness. That is why, after having promoted the establishment of an online version of the HOMS Reference Manual (HRM), which was launched in 2000, found it necessary for the wider dissemination of the system to translate the HRM in other languages. We are very pleased to announce that, since October 2005, the French, Russian and Spanish versions of the HRM are finally online and, together with the traditional English version, should facilitate the use of the system as widely as possible.
A word to our contributing HNRCs
As always, you are encouraged to submit new HOMS components. To prepare the submission of a new component, see the Guidelines (in English , French , Russian or Spanish ) for writing a HOMS component description. If you wish to learn about the plans for the future development for HOMS, see the Implementation Plan for HOMS in the 21st Century (pdf format in English , French , Spanish )
To assist you in promoting HOMS in your country, a HOMS Presentation and a brochure have been prepared. The presentation is available in two downloadable versions (currently available in English only):
Power Point slide presentation with a script [1876 Kb] ( Download )
Power Point automatically running slide show [1893 Kb] ( Download )
