JISC

JISC wishes to fund a study into the cost to institutions of long-term storage of research data. The study should:

• investigate the costs (direct and indirect) of preserving research data, from an institution’s point of view
• construct a list of issues which universities will need to consider when determining the medium to long-term costs of data preservation
• attempt to establish a methodology which will help institutions estimate the cost per unit of research data preserved
• compare the costs of each different model of preservation (eg. shared services, institutional repository, discipline focused, centralised)

It is anticipated that the study will consider the direct and indirect costs of data preservation in the next 5-10 years and beyond. Funding of up to £80,000 (inclusive of VAT and related travel and subsistence) is available for the study. The expected start date for the project is Monday 19 November 2007. This study should take place over a maximum period of 4 months.