Products

The ADRI Digital Record Exchange Specification project was set up to simplify the transfer of custody of digital records from one system to another. This is achieved by specifying a standard representation for a record during the actual relocation of the records from one system to the other, and a simple process for performing this relocation.It only deals with the actual digital records from one records system to another. Aspects of transfer of custody not dealt with in this specification include, for example, the negotiation of the transfer, decisions about what to transfer and monitoring the quality of the transfer.

The scope of this specification is to define a transfer process and a Submission Information Package that may be used by all records systems in all organizations when transferring records between records systems. The systems may be located in the same organization or in different organizations. The specification is primarily intended for use when transferring records from a producer to an archive, but may be used for other types of transfer (e.g. from an agency to its successor, to and from secondary storage, and from one archive to another).

The production of this specification was undertaken by a group of experts of the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN) ISSS/eBES/EG13 group.

in coordination with the United Nations Centre for Trade Facilitation and Electronic Business (CEFACT) TBG 19; both groups dealing with eGovernment business processes. It was supported by the International Congress on Archives (ICA) and liased with ISO. ADRI undertook the role of project editor. The specification was heavily based on earlier work undertaken by ADRI. It is currently undergoing standardisation within CEN.

In 2005 the Australasian Digital Recordkeeping Initiative agreed to work with the International Council on Archives (ICA) to co-sponsor a project under the ICA's Electronic Records and Automation Priority Area to produce globally harmonised principles, functional requirements and generic guidelines for software which is used to create and manage electronic records in office environments.

This project, which was led by the National Archives of Australia and which featured participation from twelve other archival institutions from around the world, has realised its aim with the publication of three separate but inter-related modules:

• Overview and Statement of Principles
• Guidelines and Functional Requirements for Electronic Records Management Systems
• Guidelines and Functional Requirements for Records in Business Systems.

ADRI and the ICA agreed to sponsor this project in recognition of the fact that, while many individual jurisdictions have developed statements of requirements for electronic records management software (ERMS) products, it is important for the international archives and records community to agree on a single generic set of requirements to foster cross-jurisdictional harmonization and to help ensure that we communicate consistent messages to the global software market.

In addition to harmonising existing requirements for ERMS software, this project has also taken the important step of developing guidelines and requirements for managing records in business systems. This recognises that for reasons of business efficiency many important records are only ever managed in line of business systems, rather than in dedicated ERMS systems. Increasingly, the developers and vendors of such business systems are recognising the importance of incorporating records functionality into their software applications.

The three key audiences for these modules are:

• Software developers and vendors
• Jurisdictional standards setters
• Organisations wishing to build or buy software products that will be used to capture and manage records in office environments.

This standard prescribes the physical representation of electronic records that are to be transferred to an archive. It specifies:

• The metadata that must be transferred with each record or file
• Optional metadata that may be transferred with each record or file
• The way the record (including both metadata and content) is physically represented as an XML document.

This plan has been developed in response to an ADRI project charter to produce: 'A list of the components, tasks and resources required for an archival authority to develop the capability for digital recordkeeping and archiving (including end to end processes for appraisal, transfer, documentation, preservation and access).'

The plan addresses the building of capability to implement both digital recordkeeping standards and guidance across a government sector and to develop and implement a digital archives repository with associated business rules and tools.

Statement developed by ADRI and endorsed by the Council of Australasian Archives and Records Authorities, August 2008.

CCTV has been increasingly deployed across public authorities for a variety of visual surveillance purposes. Challenges which impact the management of CCTV records include the proliferation of proprietary visual surveillance systems and encodings, overcoming poor picture quality owing to the lack of operational standards, the divergence in business processes to manage the records, and a lack of recognition of the total cost of ownership in managing records throughout their lifecycle.

These comprehensive guidelines outline the legislative and regulatory requirements for the management of visual surveillance records; provide an organisational framework for the management of CCTV records; and detail the recordkeeping processes in the creation, use, storage, retrieval and disposal of CCTV records. The Guideline provides practical advice, key considerations, and step-by-step guides to all aspects of managing CCTV records. The Guideline can be used by public authorities to assist in either implementation of CCTV systems or in the evaluation of existing CCTV processes against specific minimum recordkeeping and legislative requirements.

While the guidelines have been written specifically for Queensland Public Authorities, the operational issues and advice provided can be adapted to apply across Australian and New Zealand jurisdictions.

Cloud computing is an increasingly common business practice, which provides new opportunities and challenges for storing digital records. Often cloud computing is an internet service where data is stored by a service provider which may be outside of Australia and New Zealand territory borders.

In addition to offering substantial cost savings, it can reduce the pressure on ICT departments to provide ever increasing storage capacity. However there can also be risks associated with the use of cloud computing services where they are used to manage official government information.

This new guideline provides a list of practical measures to advise how government organisations can best utilise this emerging technology. It provides a checklist for organisations to determine which records could be kept using cloud computing applications. It details the potential risks that need to be considered, and offers a list of useful contractual arrangements, as well as questions to ask of internet service providers.

By clarifying the what how and why, these guidelines allow government organisations to maintain the integrity of their recordkeeping and fully benefit from the advantages of cloud computing.

Archival staff training workshops in digital recordkeeping

Course 1, Introduction to Digital Recordkeeping and Archiving (2 day course)

Workshop plan

Facilitator's manual and course material

Participant Manual and course material

Course Objectives:

Day 1:

1. Define the terms “digital records”, “digital recordkeeping” and “digital archiving”
2. Identify the principles of recordkeeping within a government environment and discuss the issues relevant to both paper and electronic recordkeeping
3. Develop solutions to the problems associated with managing digital records in a contemporary recordkeeping environment

Day 2:

4. Discuss current processes of archival management
5. Identify models for digital archive development and the elements that contribute to its functional entities
6. Identify and prioritise elements of a digital archiving model for functional application
7. Use a functional model to develop solutions to archiving digital records in a contemporary archival environment

Course 2, Community Training

A short training course to introduce members of the community to digital recordkeeping and archiving. The course provides background and definitions to the digital recordkeeping environment and demonstrates how to access digital records online.

Course 3, Manager Training

A short training course targeted at public service managers, detailing the challenges with digital records, the principles of digital archiving, and defining the roles and responsibilities of agencies, executives, managers, and staff.

Course 4, Records Manager Training

A short training course for the Recordkeeping Manager, which expands on the material in Course 3, Manager Training. This course also describes the Electronic Document and Records Management System (EDRMS), how metadata is used in digital recordkeeping processes, and current standards and models for digital archives around the world.