A procedure is outlined to meet simultaneous requirements to reduce overall size of a dry cooling tower for a large power plant, and to reduce the size (surface area) of the associated air-water heat exchanger. First, tower exit dimensions (or fan power) are specified as attainable fractions of their theoretical minima as found from a draft equation. Then a heat-exchanger type is chosen, having as small an air hydraulic diameter as feasible. Appropriate equations and assumptions dealing with air side and water side heat exchange and water pumping power then yield a full description of tower and heat-exchanger characteristics for a given tower duty. A specific example is worked out and compared with the tower at Rugeley, England. We find that a very open heat exchanger, of shallow depth (one in or less) results from our analysis, and in a proposed configuration of acceptable header loss gives a 1/3 height reduction and a four-fold reduction of heat-exchanger area.