Resources

This page provides links to and short descriptions for some of the publicly available resources we have produced. You will find additional material such as other reports and books, recent talks and presentations, and published articles by staff listed on our publications page.

Keeping Research Data Safe Project Website

This website has been set-up to support dissemination of information from the "Keeping Research Data Safe" (KRDS1 and KRDS2) projects funded by JISC. The KRDS2 project aimed to extend previous work on digital preservation costs for research data. It identified long-lived datasets for the purpose of cost analysis and built on the work of the first "Keeping Research Data Safe" study completed in 2008. The first Keeping Research Data Safe study funded by JISC made a major contribution to the study of preservation costs by developing a cost model and indentifying cost variables for preserving research data in UK universities. That work has had considerable impact and received international interest. Over 3,400 copies of the report were downloaded from the JISC website during 2008 alone making it JISC's most popular publication in 2008.

The KRDS website includes a User Guide, Factsheet, and templates, advice and guidance on cost models and benefit analysis for research data management and curation. 

Digital Preservation Policies Study

This JISC funded study aims to provide an outline model for digital preservation policies and to analyse the role that digital preservation can play in supporting and delivering key strategies for Higher and Further Education Institutions. Although focussing on the UK Higher and Further Education sectors, the study draws widely on policy and implementations from other sectors and countries and will be of interest to those wishing to develop policy and justify investment in digital preservation within a wide range of institutions.

Two tools are included in the study:

  1. A model/framework for digital preservation policy and implementation clauses based on examination of existing digital preservation policies;
  2. A series of mappings of digital preservation links to other key institutional strategies in UK universities and colleges.

JISC DMI Programme: Business Models, Cost and Benefit Analyses Support Role

This JISC funded support action provides a programme guide on cost/benefit analyses for research data.There are still only a relatively small number of socio-economic studies focussing specifically on data services or research support rather than research per se. A bibliography with short summary abstracts of such studies is provided in the programme guide. For assessing costs we  recommend the activity-based costing approach, which is widely used in other sectors and has been taken up by projects such the NSA Cost Estimation Tool(NASA CET), the LIFE project, and Keeping Research Data Safe (KRDS). KRDS is our recommended tool for the DMI programme as it has been specifically developed for research data in the UK by JISC and builds on and leverages any relevant work completed by NASA CET and LIFE.

For assessing benefits, KRDS also contains a benefits taxonomy and two benefits case studies. The activity based costing approach can assist in quantifying director counter-factual economic benefits. For assessing intangible benefits, the balance score card has been widely used in the not for profit sector and was applied in the JISC funded espida project. Although espida focussed specifically on preservation, its general discussion of the balanced scorecard method also may be helpful to the DMI programme projects.