Contact: Michele Kimpton <[log in to unmask]>, Evelyn McLellan <[log in to unmask]>

Read it online: http://bit.ly/1srx8y4

DuraSpace and Artefactual Partner to Offer New Hosted Service
New End-to-End Digital Preservation Service is Designed for Universities, Archives and Cultural Heritage Organizations
Winchester, MA Universities, archives and cultural heritage organizations want it all when it comes to ensuring that their digital holdings remain both safe and accessible for future generations. Archivematica, a preservation workflow tool designed by Artefactual, and DuraCloud, an archival cloud storage and preservation service from DuraSpace, are pleased to announce that they have teamed up to provide just that–an end-to-end open-source digital preservation solution based on Archivematica and DuraCloud that will set the standard for one-stop durable, safe, and cost effective long-term preservation and storage.

"We are extremely enthusiastic about our new strategic partnership with Artefactual Systems,” said DuraSpace CEO Michele Kimpton. “Artefactual are experts in archiving digital material and we are experts in managing open source projects and running software in cloud infrastructure.  With our teams working together we can achieve a truly robust, open, easy to use digital archiving solution I think the community will be excited about."

Archivematica and DuraCloud are unique among long-term preservation and storage solutions. They are both built on open-source software which is documented and freely available. Users can download their data at any point. This means that users of the new service do not have to worry about data lock-in and the service can be run locally at any time. AVPreserve has called DuraCloud “unique among the services covered” in their Cloud Storage Vendor Profiles series [1] because users can download the entirety of data at any point and/or host the system locally without additional cost.[2]

"The launch of an Archivematica DuraCloud hosted solution is a timely addition to the digital preservation community, offering a configurable preservation planning option at the intersection of OAIS-based workflows (Archivematica) and archival storage services (DuraCloud),” said Nancy McGovern, Director of DPM Workshops. “When providers choose collaboration over competition, the gains to our community can be significant. A partnership like this that brings together open-source providers each with a solid track record promises to result in just that kind of benefit." 

Users of the service will have access to a robust suite of digital preservation functions via the online dashboard. Archivematica is well known for its ability to produce highly standardized and interoperable Archival Information Packages; these packages will automatically be placed into DuraCloud for long-term secure archival storage. Some of the key features of Archivematica include assigning permanent identifiers and checksums, virus checking, identifying and validating file formats, extracting technical metadata, normalizing files to preservation-friendly formats, and generating detailed PREMIS metadata to facilitate inter-repository data exchange.  Key features of DuraCloud include automated health checking of the content, reporting, and the choice to store multiple copies at multiple storage providers.

If your organization is interested in learning more about this offering please contact Michele Kimpton ([log in to unmask]) or Evelyn McLellan ([log in to unmask]), or complete the inquiry form at http://duracloud.org/archivematica

About DuraSpace
DuraCloud (http://duracloud.org) is a service from DuraSpace (http://duraspace.org), an independent 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization providing leadership and innovation for open technologies that promote durable, persistent access to digital data. We collaborate with academic, scientific, cultural, and technology communities by supporting projects (DSpace, Fedora, VIVO) and creating services (DuraCloud, DSpaceDirect) to help ensure that current and future generations have access to our collective digital heritage. Our values are expressed in our organizational byline, "Committed to our digital future."

About Artefactual Systems
Artefactual's (http://artefactual.com) mission is to provide the heritage community with vital expertise and technology in the domains of digital preservation and online access. We develop open-source software (Archivematicaand AtoM) and promote open standards as the best means of enabling archives, libraries and museums to preserve and provide access to society's cultural assets. We are archivists, librarians, software developers, systems administrators and systems technicians, all working together to advance the capacity of heritage institutions to meet their mandates in a rapidly changing world.

[1] Cloud Storage Vendor Profiles: http://www.avpreserve.com/avpsresources/papers-and-presentations/
[2] http://www.avpreserve.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/AVPreserve_DuraCloud_profile.pdf