Research data management services for a multidisciplinary, collaborative research project: Design and implementation of the TR32DB project database

Abstract

Purpose – Research data management (RDM) comprises all processes, which ensure that research data are well-organized, documented, stored, backed up, accessible, and reusable. RDM systems form the technical framework. The purpose of this paper is to present the design and implementation of a RDM system for an interdisciplinary, collaborative, long-term research project with focus on Soil-Vegetation-Atmosphere data. Design/methodology/approach – The presented RDM system is based on a three-tier (client-server) architecture. This includes a file-based data storage, a database-based metadata storage, and a self-designed user-friendly web-interface. The system is designed in cooperation with the local computing centre, where it is also hosted. A self-designed interoperable, project-specific metadata schema ensures the accurate documentation of all data. Findings – A RDM system has to be designed and implemented according to requirements of the project participants. General challenges and problems of RDM should...