With the addition of inductively coupled plasma–atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES) to the chemical laboratories on the JOIDES Resolution (Murray et al., 2000), shipboard scientists have been able to generate extensive, near real time elemental databases on expeditions targeting paleoceanographic (e.g., Leg 199: Lyle, Wilson, Janecek, et al., 2002), geochemical (e.g., Leg 204: Tréhu, Bohrmann, Rack, Torres, et al., 2003), and igneous (e.g., Leg 187: Christie, Pedersen, Miller, et al., 2001) objectives. Sediment chemists in particular have been able to quickly and accurately characterize stratigraphic sequences, calculate mass accumulation rates of different sediment components, and provide first-order paleoceanographic interpretations throughout the duration of a cruise. Now, with the potential for a significant retooling of the shipboard preparation and analytical capabilities, possibly including ICP–mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), the preparation of samples for which is essentially identical to that for ICP-AES, with the onset of the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP), shipboard scientists will have the capability of extending the element menu to less abundant trace elements and broadening initial geochemical interpretations. Therefore, in order to further quantify the effectiveness of the Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) sample preparation protocol for future IODP expeditions in which ICP-AES or ICP-MS will be used, we compared shipboard ICP-AES initial results generated during Leg 206 to shore-based results generated by ICP-AES and ICP-MS using the Analytical Geochemistry Facility in the Department of Earth Sciences at Boston University.