Integrating Research Data management and digital preservation systems at the University of Sheffield

Integrating Research Data management and digital preservation systems at the University of Sheffield. Chris Loftus. Digital Preservation Coalition. 31 May 2017.
     The University Library is leading the active management and curation of research data within the institution. This includes implementing a research data catalogue and repository powered by Figshare. They safeguard library collections and University assets of the University using Rosetta, a digital preservation platform from Ex Libris. "We are now working with figshare and Ex Libris to integrate both services to provide seamless preservation of published research data across the research lifecycle." Which will

• provide a complete lifecycle data management service for the university’s research community; 
• identify, understand and act on risks associated with preserving data sets; 
• better inform advice and guidance around use of data formats for sharing and preservation purposes; and 
• encourage researchers to share their data more openly with others by guaranteeing the long term sustainability of that data.

Initial integration work uses the OAI-PMH protocol and METS packages to transfer content efficiently. Rosetta will be the dark archive, with figshare the interface for researchers and external users.

File formats issues: Research data is often in niche and proprietary formats. Of the material currently deposited in the archive, only a small percentage was recognised by a Droid survey. They will need to invest some time to identify and plan for these formats, and hopefully the work will be of use to the wider digital preservation community.

Metadata: They plan to improve the quality and volume of metadata accompanying research data. Material from researchers often lacks needed metadata, which can cause future data access issues. They are investigating solutions.

Digital Preservation Matters.