Preserving Built Environment Data at the ORD Day with CA–O–RD
CA-O-RD
Presented during the Open Research Data (ORD) Day of the ETH Domain, the CA–O–RD project aims to preserve over 300,000 digital files related to the built environment. Based on standardized protocols, it automates format migration, metadata extraction, and processing documentation, addressing the technical challenges of data obsolescence and interoperability within an open science framework, supporting research, teaching, and the professions of the built environment.
ORD Day of the ETH Domain – Bern, 12 June 2025
On 12 June 2025, the Archives de la construction moderne – EPFL (Acm-EPFL) took part in the ORD Day of the ETH Domain, a national event dedicated to Open Research Data (ORD), organized under the auspices of the ETH Board. The event brought together researchers, information professionals, digital infrastructure experts and institutional representatives around a common goal: to promote openness, reuse, and long-term sustainability of data produced in the context of scientific research, within a broader perspective of Open Science.
On this occasion, the Acm presented a poster on the project CA–O–RD – Contemporary Architecture Open Research Data, selected in the 2024 ORD call for projects of the ETH Domain, and developed in collaboration with the ENAC IT4R unit.
Information science in the service of research
This project aims to process, preserve and provide access to over 300,000 digital files from contemporary archives related to the built environment – whether they are born-digital or digitized from paper records. At a time when construction archives are predominantly digital, their long-term preservation requires dedicated technical infrastructures. Unlike analog media, digital files (.dwg, .dxf, .pln, .jpg, .pdf, etc.) are dependent on formats, software, and hardware environments in constant evolution, and have no intrinsic capacity for self-preservation.
The CA–O–RD project implements a processing chain based on international standards (OAIS / ISO 14721:2012, METS, ISAD(G)) and relies on proven open-source tools – Archivematica for long-term preservation, and AtoM for dissemination via the Morphé portal. This system will automate the migration to sustainable formats, extract and structure technical and contextual metadata, and document all processing operations, thereby ensuring full traceability.
FAIR data
Beyond preservation alone, the project addresses major scientific challenges. When permitted by the legal framework, the processed data can become compliant with the FAIR principles — that is, Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable. They can then be reused in multidisciplinary research contexts, with guarantees of reliability, accessibility, and interoperability.
Data for the built environment
The participation of the Acm in this event highlighted the strategic role of archival infrastructures and information science within the open research ecosystem, especially in the fields of architecture, urban planning, civil engineering, and construction. By offering concrete solutions for managing complex digital objects, the Acm actively contributes to enhancing transparency, traceability, and accessibility of research sources for the academic community and stakeholders in the built environment.
