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Press release: Washington DC, 13 December 1999
The United States National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) has selected the OLIB™ product, from Kansas City based FDI, for the maintenance and Web publication of its descriptive records.
Contacts
- FDI USA – Ralph Horton
U.S. (913) 649-7213
- FDI UK – Sarah Shorten
U.K. 0114 281 6000
- NARA – Debra Steidel Wall
U.S. (301) 713-6730
- PTFS – Marie Kaddell
U.S. (301) 654-8088
- UHD – Mike Manos
U.S. (301) 926-8000
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NARA’s collection includes not only millions of archival records but also digital copies of many materials – including
the records of US government agencies and ten Presidential Libraries.
The introduction of OLIB as part of NARA’s Electronic Access Project will offer significant opportunities for the
enhancement of these resources for the on-line user – including cross-referencing with controlled lists of names, agencies, places, and subjects, for guided access and
accurate retrieval. The resulting Archival Resource Catalog (ARC) will be a state-of-the-art upgrade of the current NARA Archival Information Locator (NAIL) Web site.
The phased implementation of ARC is tentatively scheduled for completion in November, 2000.
Initial phases focus on determining specialized NARA requirements. Subsequent phases involve enhancing OLIB to meet these requirements. FDI will draw on its design experience with
the UK Public Record Office throughout the enhancement phases of the ARC implementation.
The OLIB product suite is currently used throughout the world by over 200 research, knowledge,
and ‘memory’ organizations including archives, libraries, academic institutions, national agencies, and corporate organizations. OLIB is a key component in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ‘Family Search’ Web site. This site has recently attracted over 1.5 billion
hits in its first six months.
The ARC project is being undertaken jointly by Progressive Technology Federal Systems (PTFS) and Fretwell-Downing Informatics (FDI), with Universal Hi-Tech Development (UHD)
providing contract management support and IV&V expertise.
David Kay, FDI’s Strategic Director identifies the significance of this development : ‘After an
initial wave of typically unfocused and sub-functional Web offerings, we are now seeing major information and knowledge organizations developing services that add value to their data and
sites that provide well purposed interfaces for the patron; we are proud to see key FDI clients such as NARA and Family Search taking a committed and innovative role in this respect.’
John Yokley, President of PTFS, emphasises that "PTFS has long recognized the value in
providing a means for rapid access to hard copy and electronic information. PTFS has worked with corporate and government clients, expanding access to vast collections and integrating
digital content into existing system infrastructures. PTFS will draw on this past experience in the ARC development, to provide researchers world-wide with access to the descriptions of
documents held by NARA. PTFS looks forward to the opportunity to work with FDI to develop an exceptional information system."
Jerry Lin, President, UHD regards the teaming as a winning combination : "UHD is excited to
be part of the team providing NARA with the best technology available to achieve their goals. The expertise of UHD and PTFS, combined with a strong software product from FDI, is the
right mix of skills to make this project a great success."
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