New Members

The Digital Preservation Coalition (DPC) is very pleased to welcome the Academic Preservation Trust (APTrust) as its newest associate member. Based in the USA at the University of Virginia, the APTrust is a 16-member consortium of American research university libraries committed to the creation and management of a sustainable environment for digital preservation.

The DPC is delighted to welcome the University of Bern, Switzerland as its newest associate member.

The University Library of Bern currently provides books and journals in print and electronic format as well as access to subject-specific databases. The team at Bern also aims to open its archive to the university community, incorporating access to more complex objects and formats in the digital editions it holds.

Marion Prudlo, the University of Bern’s Head of E-Library Service Centre explains why the University chose to join the Coalition. “Joining the DPC will move us forward another step towards our goal of providing a trustworthy preservation infrastructure to the university community in Bern. We are looking forward furthering our own knowledge, but to also engaging more with the digital preservation community at large.”

The DPC is pleased to welcome University College Dublin (UCD) as its newest Associate Member. Founded one hundred and sixty years ago, UCD has continued to make a unique and substantial contribution to the creation of modern Ireland and in particular to digital services through its UCD Digital Library, the UCD Institutional Repository and the national Irish Social Science Data Archive, operated through the Library.

“Digital preservation is a key part of our digital and data lifecycle,” explains Julia Barrett, UCD’s Research Services Manager. “Investing in digital preservation enables long term access to content for our users - providing greater access and increasing overall impact.”

“We see our DPC membership as a resource for the continuing development of our digital and data collections and services,“ she adds, “and feel that being part of the DPC will ensure that we develop best practice in this fast changing area.”

The DPC is pleased to welcome European Central Bank as its newest Full Member. Details will follow.

The DPC are delighted to announce Unilever Archives and Records Management (UARM) as its latest full member. Unilever consists of several well-known brands, including PG Tips, Lux, Persil and Marmite, all of which feature in the company archive. This internationally significant collection of business records has been recognised by The National Archives as being of a high standard and has received “Designated Status” by the Museums Libraries and Archives Council.

Claire Tunstall, Heard of Art Archives & Records Management at UARM said, “Joining the DPC will allow us to think strategically and extend our purpose of preserving and conserving the archives of Unilever, including born digital materials. We hope that by connecting with other DPC members, their expertise will help us to take active steps to prevent the creation of a digital black hole within our archive.”

The DPC is delighted to announce that a major international humanitarian agency has joined as a full member. Membership of the DPC will assist in their aim of ensuring both reliable and long-term access to records for and about refugees and displaced people globally.

The announcement can be found here (members only, login required).

Digital data exists in the British Museum in many different forms, from many different sources and for many different uses. It includes digital images registered as collection objects, photographic assets of the wider physical collection, scientific and conservation data related to the collection, and archival data amongst other things.

Laura Mitchell, chair of the DPC said “The museum sector is facing a wide variety of digital preservation issues and it is therefore great news, and very encouraging, to see the British Museum joining the DPC. This significantly increases our profile in the museum sector and I look forward to welcoming many others following the example set “.

“The Museum views the sustainable management of its digital assets as an organisational priority in attaining our larger goal of being a museum of the world for the world. This aim has been supported by the Museum’s African Rock Art Image Project which is registering some 25,000 digital photographs into the collection; a first for the Museum,” explained Glenn Cumiskey, Digital Preservation Manager at the British Museum. “We view membership of the DPC as an essential step in facilitating the capacity building necessary to enable our vision.”

The University of Bath has an excellent reputation for both teaching and research and has been ranked as the UK's top university in the Times Higher Education (THE) Student Experience Survey 2015. The Library manages and maintains a diverse collection including archival resources, historical records and other publications to support the University's teaching and research activities as well as those in the wider academic community.

Kara Jones, Head of Library Research Services at the University of Bath Library said 'One of the core activities of the Library is to provide advice, advocacy, expertise and skills training in accessing and using the available information resources, which in many cases is digital. Hopefully by joining the DPC, we can benefit from shared knowledge from other members within similar Institutions to help us meet the ongoing needs of all our library users'.

The DPC is delighted to welcome the Grosvenor Estate as its latest associate member. The Grosvenor Estate is responsible for a range of activities on behalf of the Grosvenor family (headed by the Duke of Westminster) and Grosvenor Estate Trustees, in addition to the management of four rural estates in the UK.

William Kilbride, Executive Director of the Digital Preservation Coalition said “I am delighted to welcome The Grosvenor Estate as our newest associate member as it is another step towards broadening our collaboration within the business community. The Grosvenor Estate is involved in a range of activities including property management, rural land management, insurance, charitable giving, and management of a fine art collection, so these diverse elements will add to the range of expertise within our current membership base.”

The National Archives of Ireland has today joined the Digital Preservation Coalition. The DPC is an advocate and catalyst for digital preservation, enabling its members to deliver resilient long-term access to content and services, and helping them derive enduring value from digital collections. The core mission of the National Archives is to collect, manage, and preserve the public record of Ireland and ensure its long term availability as a research resource and to underpin citizens’ rights. The long term availability of the public record demonstrates transparency and accountability in the democratic process.

Speaking today, John McDonough, the Director of the National Archives noted that ‘Joining the DPC will enable the National Archives to address matters such as the capture, curation and preservation of the public record which is increasingly generated in electronic format. The National Archives will be able to leverage experience, technical knowledge and policy development from amongst the members of the DPC. Membership of the DPC will ensure the National Archives is better placed to meet the significant challenges it faces in this area.’