Kira Sobers Smithsonian Institution Archives Alison Reppert Gerber

Kira Sobers, Smithsonian Institution Archives Alison Reppert Gerber, Smithsonian Institution Archives Smithsonian Institution

Kira Sobers Alison Reppert Gerber

Mission Priorities Funding Workflows

Are our audiovisual collections in boxes with other media? Are they item-level cataloged? Is this information accurate? How many copies of this content exist? Do we have the playback equipment? Do we have the infrastructure for digital preservation? Are we staffed appropriately? Is everyone trained? Are our collections in optimal storage conditions? 4

SO HOW DID WE DO IT?

Identify stakeholders and unit points of contact Develop the survey methodology Hire a neutral, third party 6

SURVEY INVENTORY CONDITION ASSESSMENT MS Excel QUESTIONNAIRE Google Form INTERVIEW MS Word

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§ 1 – Institutional Mission § 2 – Access and Use § 3 – Collection Content § 4 – Intellectual Control § 5 – General Preservation § 6 – Environment § 7 – Housing and Stabilization § 8 – Storage § 9 – Education and Training § 10 – Digitized AV Collections 9

INTERVIEW 10

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PRIORITIZATION EVALUATION MS Excel, MS Word ASSESSMENT SURVEY MS Excel, MS Word, Google Forms

Total Assets – 293, 586 Top 5 Formats Compact audio cassette 67 050 1/4 inch audio tape 71 022 Audio 60 355 Film: 16 mm 55 169 Film 151 577 70 987 Video VHS 20 367 Grooved Audio Disc 14 026 0 10 000 20 000 30 000 40 000 50 000 60 000 70 000 80 000 # of Assets 13

- Simple to use - Tool for annual reassessment - Consistency in prioritizing among units - Builds onto inventory data PRIORITIZATION – what to do first? 14

- Preservation workflows Equipment inventory Cost of preservation (in- and out-of-house) Time required for preservation Current rate of preservation Risk of collections loss Preservation scenarios - Time constant – 15 years - Cost constant - $5 mil IN-HOUSE (per asset) OUT-OF-HOUSE (per asset*) COST (avg. ) $137 COST (avg. ) $231 COST (highest) $161 COST (highest) $560 COST (lowest) $120 COST (lowest) $131 TIME (avg. in hours) 3. 5 TIME (highest) 10 TIME (lowest) 3 TIME (lowest) 0. 75 Preservation Rates (per unit | per year) CFCH ACM AAA NPG NASM NMAH-AC SIA NMAAHC SAAM NAA-HSFA NMAI 170 150 124 106 68 51 0 0 0 EVALUATION – how are we doing? 500 2 880 666 1000 1500 2000 Number of assets 2500 3000 15 3500

Current Workflow: • Current Annual Rate of Preservation: 485 assets • Estimated Number of Assets Preserved: 65, 475 assets • Estimated assets lost: 188, 893 • Estimated time to preserve: approximately 394 years Scenario One: 15 Years to Preserve All Unpreserved Assets • Estimated Annual Rate of Preservation: 16, 958 assets • Estimated Number of Assets Preserved: 254, 368 assets • Estimated assets lost: 0 • Estimated time to preserve: 15 years • Estimated Cost to Preserve: $40, 823, 625 Scenario Two: One-time $5 Million Dollar Budget • Estimated Number of Assets Preserved: 32, 783 assets • Estimated assets lost: 221, 585 16

WHAT TO DO WITH ALL THAT DATA?

Create visuals! + QUANTIFIABLE DATA + COLOR CHARTS/GRAP HS CLARITY 18

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Travel Equipment Workshops Projects 24

Professional development and training

From tape cleaners A to D converters playback decks

Video digitization

Projects § Vendor digitization § Transcription services § Internships § Contract services for collections care § Software development

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§ 272 ¼-inch open reel audiotapes § Two SI units § Vendor digitization § Establish workflows for scalability § Planning for future SI projects 30

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Initiative Coordinator Media Conservation Specialist (2) Audio Engineer Video Engineer Rights & Reproduction Specialist Curator 32

01 02 03 04 05 Facility Development Collection Prioritization Workflow Development Increased Digital Infrastructure Effective Communication & Access Solutions 33

Secure funding Identify existing resources Launch initiative management platform Onboard Initiative Coordinator Finalize overall goals 34

National Collections Program Kelli Hix, Marie Lascu, and Moriah Ulinskas (Community Archiving Collective) Audiovisual Archivists Institutional Leadership 35

Kira Sobers (sobersk@si. edu) Digital Media Coordinator, SIA Alison Reppert Gerber (reppertgerbera@si. edu) Preservation Coordinator, SIA 36