The digital legacy project started in 2014 with a business case for a digital preservation and access solution which built on the Suffolk Record Office (SRO) Digitisation Strategy for Suffolk's Heritage Collections and encompassed government policy - Archives for the 21st Century in Action Refreshed 2012-15 and showed:-
- secure digital storage and processes meeting 'trusted digital repository' standards were needed not only by SRO but also by Suffolk County Council (SCC), as existing systems did not meet archive digital preservation specifications.
- SCC was replacing its electronic filing system with SharePoint (another electronic data management system).
- general lack of awareness of the importance of digital preservation amongst directorates developing their own digital storage solutions.
- SRO needed to improve its digital offer to online collections and services.
- SRO was below comparator authorities in the volume of digitised collections available.
The Suffolk Record Office Team
It set out options and recommendations for investment in a new digital offer for SRO which ensured digital records receive the same level of selection, preservation, maintenance, storage and care as physical documents so their information remains accessible to users now and indefinitely. It considered the resources required for initial investment and ongoing revenue costs and savings concluding that a fully integrated system was required across SCC, so electronic files could pass seamlessly from current use, to semi-current use and then to the permanent archive or be securely destroyed. Its four strands were:-
- securing digital storage and systems to house 'born digital' archives and digital surrogates that provided both secure preservation and public access copies.
- procuring a modern, user friendly website to replace Suffolk Heritage Direct (SHD) enabling customers to have: improved access to digital catalogues, 'born digital' archives and digital surrogates, electronic bookings and e-commerce.
- creating digital surrogates of popular collections to preserve the originals from further wear and tear whilst making them more accessible locally, nationally and internationally • upgrading the CALM collections management software to link with the digital preservation system and website.
The main risks associated with inadequate digital preservation were discussed. SRO was concerned failure to improve the digital offer would adversely affect long-term viability, as it would not be as attractive to external depositors and funders or be able to develop its online services and grow and broaden its user base.
SRO gave a presentation based on the business case to ICT, the Information Team , 'Strategic Information Agents' representing directorates and the Assistant Chief Executive on the fragility, vulnerability and risks associated with digital files and the problems that could result for the organisation and its customers from their loss or the loss of informational content. This discussed the:
- important assets within SCC's bank of information which contribute to its efficiency and competitiveness, demonstrate integrity, accountability and ownership and fulfil statutory obligations.
- legal, fiscal and audit responsibilities of SCC to look after and provide access in an integrated and cost effective way to its own records and those of others it is responsible for.
- social, cultural, historic and economic value of the county's records, which raise Suffolk's profile and support council objectives.
- increasing retention periods resulting from high profile cases and the problems of accessing electronic files not encountered in traditional records.
- differences between file management and digital preservation.
- merits of having on-premise digital strongrooms rather than cloud based for commercially and personally sensitive information and copyright.
- investment in generating digital surrogates in-house and national projects which will be wasted if they cannot be accessed in 10 years due to inadequate preservation.
Key messages were SCC's digital material and that on deposit needed to be preserved, not just stored and SCC cannot wait to identify digital files for long-term preservation due to hardware and software obsolescence.
SRO made a similar presentation to the Information Governance Board, the investment case was approved and SRO, Procurement and ICT developed tender requirements and specifications for the:
- new website and
- digital preservation solution
ICT helped compare preservation options that would store all SCC digital materials and run the required digital preservation workflows.
Orangeleaf was chosen to develop the website and the Preservica digital preservation system for the automated nature of workflows, G-Cloud availability, and "Out of the box" compatibility with CALM, SharePoint and Outlook. It was important for data sensitivity and copyright that Preservica uses Amazon Web Services data centres in Dublin.
SRO and ICT staff worked with OrangeLeaf, Preservica and Axiell to develop protocols and processes linking Preservica to the CALM catalogue and the new website. Ingesting SIPs (Submission Information Packages) to Preservica for preservation from SRO's Network Attached Storage (NAS) started with Tiff image files. Workflows create a Jpeg only if the file is open and exchange metadata between the CALM catalogue and Preservica, verify the file preparing the AIP (Archival Information Package) for long-term storage.
Catalogue information, including some Preservica fields, is uploaded to the website which searches for newly ingested Jpegs pulling them down from Preservica creating an initial thumbnail DIP (Dissemination Information Package) for viewing online with the associated catalogue record. (This ensures closed sensitive material is preserved but cannot be viewed.) Delivering smaller Jpeg images appropriate for most purposes protects right's owners and enables faster transfer.
SRO has for the first time a functioning trusted digital repository and access system. The NAS continues as a temporary holding area for digital files supplied by external organisations, so Archivists can check whether they are in acceptable storage formats, with all the descriptive and technical metadata required, prior to ingesting into Preservica.
The new, fit for purpose, interactive website is an information source, marketing tool and virtual shop providing easy access to 900 years of Suffolk's history and over 326,000 electronic catalogue records helping the public research family history, discover local stories, or investigate buildings, organisations and individuals.
The public can now view born digital and digitised records — either paying to download images from the comfort of their own home or visiting a Record Office branch and viewing for free. The first batch of digitised records released — wills - are a rich source for family and local historians.
- Find out more: http:www.suffolkarchives.co.uk