Digital Preservation Coalition

The Digital Preservation Coalition is delighted to welcome as members the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland and the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales, acting jointly through the 'SWISH Partnership'.

'The Royal Commissions collect, record and interpret information on the architectural, industrial, archaeological and maritime heritage of our countries,' explained Kirsty Lingstadt of RCAHMS.  'We have been doing this for more than a hundred years so our archives are vast and continue to expand.'

'Our digital collections are growing rapidly. Between us we curate more than 300,000 digital objects totalling over 11TB and we expect this to increase by more than 50000 objects and 3TB annually. We have very diverse types of data including GIS data, vector graphics and laser scanning.

'In 2003 RCAHMS and RCAHMW established a joint venture called - SWISH (Shared Web Information Services for Heritage) to share maintenance and development costs and to create a shared vision for future enhancements of our online resources. The partnership enables us to share ideas and experiences and develop joint strategies'

'We are looking forward to working with DPC so that we can develop a trusted digital repository that will help us curate and provide access to these important and popular collections.'

Richard Ovenden, Chair of the DPC said 'Naturally I am delighted to welcome these new members to the Coalition.  The organisations within the SWISH partnership have outstanding collections and a lot of experience within their staff: I expect we will learn from them as well as assisting them to achieve their own goals.'

'These latest recruits bring the membership to a new high of 32. That's very pleasing but it's not surprising. Digital preservation and issues relating to long term access to digital information can seem daunting: by working together, the Digital Preservation Coalition is developing the skills and approaches needed for our members to ensure the proper preservation of their collections, and continued services to their users.'

 For more on RCAHMS and their collections see: www.rcahms.gov.uk

For more on RCAHMW and their collections see: www.rcahmw.gov.uk

Archaeology Data Service - 11th January 2010

The DPC is pleased to announce that the Archaeology Data Service at the University of York has become the latest organisation to join the coalition.

'The Archaeology Data service is a national data archive for archaeology and related disciplines in the UK', explained Prof Julian Richards, director of the ADS.  'We are the mandated archive for archaeological data for the AHRC and NERC and work closely with a variety of national agencies such as English Heritage, to ensure the long term preservation and dissemination of digital data. We currently curate more than 250 archives covering thousands of archaeological projects, as well as a wealth of digital library resources.  There is a broad range of data types and several terabytes of data.'

 'The DPC is the lead UK forum for the promotion of digital preservation policy and best practice. We have worked with the DPC before - although our membership was as a constituent of the former Arts and Humanities Data Service. With the demise of AHDS we see the need to be directly involved with developments at a national and cross-sectoral and cross-disciplinary level.'

Welcoming the ADS, Richard Ovenden, Chair of the DPC commented 'We're really pleased that the ADS has joined the Coalition. They have been long time supporters and have a great track record of effective action as well as leadership within their community. Participation in our activities and events will be a great benefit to them and will keep them up to date with a fast moving field. But it is also good news for the other 30 members that we'll be able to access their expertise and experience.'

For more about the Archaeology Data Service see http://ads.ahds.ac.uk

English Heritage  - 29th September 2009

We are delighted to announce that English Heritage has become the latest organisation to join the Digital Preservation Coalition as an associate member.

English Heritage is the lead body for the conservation of England’s historic environment. The research and documentation which EH carries out and which it funds in the wider sector to support this remit is increasingly created and disseminated in digital formats, sometimes using techniques which are at the cutting edge of new technologies. It is crucial that this work remains accessible to future generations so that it can continue to inform understanding and management of the historic environment.

 Mike Evans, Head of Archives for the English Heritage National Monuments Record, explained, 'Over 18.5 Tb of data is held by the National Monuments Record and very large volumes of data collected or funded by EH are held on local servers or curated by third parties.

'In an era in which the study and the management of the past around us depends more and more on digital tools and communication, we believe that the work of the Coalition and its members can help EH make a real contribution to safeguarding the collective memory of the historic environment sector

 'We're very pleased to be joining the Digital Preservation Coalition.'

Bruno Longmore, Acting Chair of the DPC and Head of Government for the National Archives of Scotland, welcomed English Heritage to the coalition. 

 'Our members represent very diverse agencies, in public and professional practice.  This is not surprising: the challenge of long term and reliable access to data is one that many organisations face.  By joining, English Heritage have not only got access to the resources and support of the coalition to help face that challenge, but they have also clearly signalled that they are serious about working to resolve this challenge.'

Full List of Members