Slides from a presentation given at the JISC RIM Programme Kick-Off Meeting, Leeds, UK, 6 May 2010

1. Research Information Management
Michael Day
Research and Development Team Leader
UKOLN, University of Bath
JISC RIM programme Kick-off meeting, Leeds, 6 May 2010
UKOLN is supported by:
www.ukoln.ac.uk
A centre of expertise in digital information management

2. Agenda
• UKOLN introduction
• Data exchange for RIM
– Context
– Harmonisation
– Data models
• Programme support activities
www.ukoln.ac.uk
A centre of expertise in digital information management

3. UKOLN introduction
• A centre of expertise in digital information management
– Core funding from JISC and Museums, Libraries and Archives
Council (MLA)
– JISC Innovation Centre
– Range of additional project-based activities
– Based at the University of Bath
• Some areas of interest:
– Metadata standards development
• DCMI, metadata application profiles, registries, SKOS, etc.
– Repositories
• Role in wider infrastructures, preservation roles
– Digital preservation and curation
• Research data management, Digital Curation Centre
www.ukoln.ac.uk
A centre of expertise in digital information management

4. RIM data exchange - Contexts
• HEIs
– Institutional level - convergence of several activities, e.g.:
• Responses to research evaluation processes (REF)
• Research grant management, business planning (research support
offices)
• Institutional repositories - as one of several potential providers of
data on research outputs
– Research staff
• Staff Web pages, grant preparation, reporting
• Funding body requirements
– HEFCE (REF), research councils, other funding bodies, HESA
• National infrastructures
– Examples in Belgium (FRIS), Denmark (PURE), Norway (Frida), the
Netherlands (METIS, linked to DAREnet repositories via NARCIS)
www.ukoln.ac.uk
A centre of expertise in digital information management

5. RIM data exchange - Harmonisation
• A wide range of potential sources of data:
– Bibliographic, e.g.:
• Institutional publications databases (typically developed to
support research evaluation)
• Institutional repositories (source of metadata and/or full-
text)
• Web of Science, Scopus, publishers databases
– Other, e.g.:
• Administation: HR, Student administration, finance,
research support
• eResearch, VREs, etc.
– Impact?
• No single consistent approach
– Challenges for the harmonisation of data
www.ukoln.ac.uk
A centre of expertise in digital information management

6. RIM data exchange – Data models
• Standard data exchange model
– Exchange format would facilitate data exchange between
institutions, funding bodies (and potentially support a future
national RIM infrastructure)
– EXRI-UK report (December 2009) recommended exploring the
potential of CERIF 2008 as a data exchange format
– Several projects (DoTAC, Readiness4REF, St Andrews and
Aberdeen projects) have attempted to map their own data
models to CERIF
– Detailed questions about harmonisation of data structures,
vocabularies and syntax remain
• Potential alternative approaches:
– Linked Data (RDF), OAI-ORE (e.g. UCLA project on seismology
data)
www.ukoln.ac.uk
A centre of expertise in digital information management

7. UKOLN RIM Support Activity
• RIM Web pages: http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/rim/
• Series of briefing documents:
– Data exchange requirements
• Institutional drivers
• Funding bodies
• UK infrastructure needs
– RIM Data exchange standards
• CERIF
• Linked Data
• Workshop series (e.g. to explore details of data harmonisation)
• Case studies:
– Data exchange scenarios
• Support e-mail list (or helpdesk)
www.ukoln.ac.uk
A centre of expertise in digital information management

8. Other UKOLN activities
• Knowledge Exchange CRIS-OAR interoperability
project
– Collaboration between funding bodies in UK, Denmark,
Germany and the Netherlands
• Organisational identifiers scoping study
– Planning currently underway
– Draft scheduled for August 2010
www.ukoln.ac.uk
A centre of expertise in digital information management

9. Thank You!
Michael Day
Research and Development Team Leader
UKOLN, University of Bath
E-mail: m.day@ukoln.ac.uk
Web: http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/rim/
www.ukoln.ac.uk
A centre of expertise in digital information management

10. Acknowledgements
• UKOLN is funded by the Joint Information Systems
Committee (JISC) of the UK higher and further education
funding councils, the Museums, Libraries and Archives
Council (MLA), as well as by project funding from the JISC,
the European Union, and other sources. UKOLN also
receives support from the University of Bath, where it is
based.
• More information: http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/
www.ukoln.ac.uk
A centre of expertise in digital information management