List and description of potential records recovery services



List and description of potential records recovery servicesThis information is designed to help with planning, and isn’t intended to be a definitive list, cover all possible options, or provide professional advice for specific applications. It’s a summary of information from the sample contract provided, which is based on the NARA Blanket Purchase Agreement for records recovery services. NARA identified commercial services that might be required for incidents at NARA storage facilities, to handle and treat the range of records formats and quantities that could be affected. Vendors would work with NARA specialists to select and adapt services to meet the requirements for records recovery for each incident. Facility Stabilization for Preservation of Records Stabilization of the environment including dehumidification, air circulation and cooling. Removal of mold, dirt, soot, insects and/or sewage on the building, furniture, or equipment, structural cleaning and/or drying of the building.Ask the contractor to outline methods and materials to be used for deodorization, sanitization and smoke neutralization, including proprietary products and cleaning materials used in records/holdings areas. Remove carpets, wallboards, and other damaged building materials. Re-housing Records into New Containers Transfer wet, frozen or dry records to new, dry boxes. If there is significant damage to the original container, the agency should approve the proposed procedure to transfer records to new containers maintaining original order. The agency should approve the new folders, boxes and other containers, which should be provided by the contractor. These should meet size, labeling and other requirements for records control and return of the records to permanent storage and use. The contractor must retain all original documentation and accompanying materials and any label or information written directly on the container. This information including the original labels should be placed inside the new container, where possible. Provide the contractor with labeling information. Containers should also be labeled with recovery actions taken such as drying procedures or decontamination. Transporting Damaged Records (usually to a vendor storage or treatment facility) The contractor must provide transportation meeting agency records safety and security requirements and comply with all local, state and federal rules and regulations. See the contract template for recommended security requirements.Documentation including a signed manifest listing each shipping container should be provided when materials leave the site.Prompt notification of receipt of shipment and inventory tracking will be needed at the contractor’s facility. Climate-controlled trucks may be required to move records/holdings, particularly wet records that will be frozen to stabilize them for safe storage until drying treatment can be carried out. Trucks with the capacity for freezing records during transport are preferred unless freezing is not specified. Retrieval and Packing of Water-Damaged Paper-based Records Remove records in original boxes and enclosures to a triage packing location whenever possible. Keeping original boxes and enclosures is preferred. The contractor may be required to provide rolling carts or similar wheeled conveyances to transport materials within the facility. Carts and/or conveyances must be clean of foodstuffs, chemicals, oil or grease, mold or other hazardous materials. If the original box or container is significantly damaged and unable to safely contain/support the records, or will interfere with salvage and treatment, re-housing may be required.Records being rehoused must be kept in original order, identified/labeled and not commingled with other records. New containers must be able to hold the weight of the materials, not packed too heavily, easily moved, and appropriately labeled. Large shipments should be loaded onto pallet stacked for optimum stability, secured with stretch wrap or similar materials, and labeled according to the manifest. Corner supports and interlayers of corrugated board between each level of boxes is recommended. Security tape can be used to show tampering.The contractor may need to supply pallets which should be good; e.g. structurally sound, clean and dry with no evidence of mold, oil/grease, previous stains or insect infestation. The contractor may be required to provide fork lifts or similar vehicles to transport pallets loaded with records within the facility directly into the trucks. 5. Recovery of Bound Volumes (not already stored in boxes) a. Volumes not already boxed must be packed for transport. b. Individual volumes should be wrapped in freezer paper prior to boxing to keep individual books from sticking to one another, and packed spine down or flat. c. Extremely large, heavy volumes can be stacked flat on pallets, supported by thick cardboard sheets inserted between layers. d. All identifying information for the volumes must be retained, and added to wrappings and boxes. 6. Oversized Records (e.g. Maps/Cartographic Materials) a. Flat oversized paper-based or photographic print materials housed in flat file drawers may be left in the drawer to transport for freezing and/or vacuum freeze-drying. Drain excess water from the drawer, and provide a top cover such as cardboard wrapped in polyethylene sheeting for protection during transport. b. Rolled oversized materials must be supported to keep the rolls from bending or being crushed.c. All identifying information must be maintained. 7. Freezing Water-Damaged Records a. Paper-based records should be frozen for transport and storage until drying treatment can be carried out. Freezing in transit in a freezer truck is preferred.b. The temperature of the transport truck and storage facility should be monitored and documented, to ensure that the records stay frozen. 8. Vacuum Freeze-Drying Water-Damaged Records a. NARA prefers to use vacuum freeze-drying for paper-based records, since the materials can usually remain in boxes and enclosures at the contractor facility.b. Records should be dried using a 24-hour computer-monitored vacuum freeze-drying process to return the moisture content of water-damaged records/holdings to single digits (5-8% preferred). c. The contractor should be able to provide data documenting the conditions to which records have been exposed, and the duration of these conditions. The records should be frozen to a temperature of at least -25° F during the process, and if heating is used the temperature of the drying chamber should not exceed 120° F. 9. Desiccant or Air-Drying of Water-Damaged Records a. Desiccant drying may be used to drying out the facility and furnishings, and is an option for paper-based records and may be required for some media formats as noted in the specialized service recommendations below.b. If air- or desiccant-drying is used, records will be removed from boxes and some enclosures, so the contractor needs to provide procedures to ensure original order and identification is maintained.c. Coated paper and photographic materials may be interleaved during the drying process if records are in contact with other records. d. Appropriate conditions and safeguards must be in place to eliminate the possibility of mold growth during the drying process. 10. Sanitization and/or Decontamination of Records a. Records can be affected by leak or flood water, bird guano, rodent feces and other such biological contaminants that leave harmful residues. b. Wet records should be dried before cleaning and sanitizationc. Cleaning or sterilizing methods may require the contractor remove records from their storage containers to ensure successful treatment, so agreed procedures must be used to ensure the records kept in original order and identified. Returning the records in the original box and enclosures is preferred. d. Physical cleaning is an option for particulate contamination as noted below, but sterilization may be required as well. Mass treatment using disinfectants will damage records, so the usual treatment is gamma radiation which will deteriorate paper at high levels. e. If gamma irradiation technology is used, the minimum gamma radiation dose for effective remediation is 4.5 kilograys (kGy); a dose of 10 kilograys (1 megarad) or higher is considered too high as it accelerates paper aging processes by 50-100%. f. Contamination levels both before and after treatment should be documented, and the boxes labeled with the method of sanitization or decontamination. 11. Cleaning of Records a. Materials that may require cleaning include grease/oils and surface particulates such as mold, insect or animal waste, mud and heavy soil, soot/ash and other residues which can stain or cause chemical deterioration of records and pose health hazards.b. Cleaning using water or solvent treatment will need advice from a conservator or specialist to ensure the records will not be damaged. For example, inks may be soluble in water or the proposed solvent.c. Cleaning methods will require the contractor remove records from their storage containers to ensure successful treatment, so agreed procedures must be used to ensure the records kept in original order and identified. Rehousing is usually recommended since boxes and enclosures will also need to be cleaned. d. Physical cleaning procedures and equipment used should be described, and meet health and safety requirements as well as precautions to protect fragile records. Standard practices for include using variable-speed vacuums with attachments and HEPA-filtration, by trained and experienced staff. 12. Recovery of Flat Photographic Records (on paper, film, glass or other supports) a. Paper-based photographic records can be handled like paper-based records, but records on film and other supports may need different handling and treatment so specialist advice may be needed. The contractor should provide a description of proposed procedures for discussion. b. Some film-based records can be damaged by freezing and vacuum freeze drying, so the recommended treatment is to wash if required to remove contaminants before air drying without heat if time and resources permit. c. Records on glass and metal supports should be air dried. If non-paper or film supports are broken, the contractor will keep the photographs flat, retain orientation of all parts, and repackage.d. Air-drying will required removal from storage containers and enclosures, so agreed procedures must be used to keep original order and identification. The records should be rehoused when dry in new enclosures, though the originals may need to be retained for information. 13. Recovery of Microfilm Rolls and Motion Picture Film a. Water-damaged motion picture film or microfilm in good condition should be washed and dried before it can dry, using appropriate industry procedures and processing equipment. b. The contractor should pack and ship the materials in the original film cans or boxes so they don’t dry out before treatment. c. If treatment can’t be provided within 48 hours, each film can or box can be packed in a sealed plastic bag for freezing.d. Reels may be rehoused when dry if the original can or box is damages, with identification transferred to the new container and originals retained as required for information. d. Specialist advice may be required for damaged or deteriorated motion picture or microfilm. RECOVERY OF DYNAMIC MEDIA RECORDS a. Analog magnetic media (audio and videotape), phonographic discs and similar media may need data as well as physical recovery using appropriate industry methods and equipment. The contractor should provide written procedures and specialist advice may be needed.b. Recovered data should be transferred to an accessible format in appropriate housing, with clear identification and documentation of the original indicating whether all data could be recovered, and steps taken. c. Originals are returned as well, along with original containers if rehoused. 14. Physical recovery of magnetic media (audiotape, videotape, etc.) a. Magnetic media/tapes can be air-dried or vacuum freeze-dried without heat. b. For shipping to a treatment facility, wet tapes can be packed in individual plastic bags without changing the tape’s physical orientation to maintain initial wetness and decrease the risk of seepage through undamaged pack areas.c. Tapes may need to be removed from cassette housing and the water cannot be removed through normal drying. Removal and replacement should be carried out using written procedures meeting industry standards. 15. Physical recovery of phonographic discs a. Phonographic discs can only be air-dried; never frozen, vacuum freeze-dried or exposed to heat when drying.b. Discs must dried separately from sleeves, jackets and other enclosures, with appropriate procedures to ensure that all accompanying identification is preserved and enclosures are retained with the discs even if the discs are rehoused. c. Discs must be supported during drying to ensure they remain flat/undistorted, and the contractor must not use materials or techniques that could scratch the playing surface.RECOVERY OF ELECTRONIC RECORDS a. Physical recovery of electronic records is usually carried out only to enable data recovery and transfer to a specified format. b. Data recovery procedures should be described by the contractor, and include security procedures and equipment.c. The contractor should label the recovered data clearly on individual housing indicating source, and document any gaps or losses.d. If originals are not returned, the contractor must document and certify the custody of all records from receipt to destruction. 16. Recovery of Data (Computer Hard Drives and storage devices, etc.) a. The contractor should provide a description of procedures that will be used to extract hard drives and other storage devices from housings. b. Recovered data should be reviewed along with documentation of gaps or losses. When the copies are accepted, the contractor will destroy any other copied of recovered data so not data can be reconstructed. c. If requested, the contractor may also destroy original hard drives instead of returning them and submit appropriate certification. 17. Recovery of digital discs/recordings (CD, DVD, Optical Disc, etc.) a. Discs can only be air-dried; never frozen, vacuum freeze-dried or exposed to heat when drying.b. Discs must dried separately from sleeves, jackets and other enclosures, with appropriate procedures to ensure that all accompanying identification is preserved and enclosures are retained with the discs even if the discs are rehoused. c. Discs must be supported during drying to ensure they remain flat/undistorted, and the contractor must not use materials or techniques that could scratch the playing surface.18. Recovery of Playback Equipment for Sound, Moving Images, etc. a. Playback equipment for obsolete media can be difficult or impossible to replace.b. The contractor should recover equipment using appropriate industry methods and provide written procedures.c. Damaged equipment must be appropriately packed to minimize damage in transit, with a detailed shipping manifest to identify each piece of equipment by serial number and/or other identifying information. 19. Recovery of Artifacts/Objects (including any records containing parchment) a. Specialist advice may be needed to identify specific requirement for salvage and recovery, due to the wide range of materials under this category. b. Wet artifacts should usually be kept at the same level of wetness as found until appropriate procedures have been determined and can be followed; many artifacts require controlled drying. c. Avoid moving or applying pressure to wet or damp artifacts, or allowing them to come into contact with other materials until assessment and decisions on appropriate treatment are made.d. Determine the stability of artifacts before handling and transport, and avoid shocks and jolts during handling and transport. e. Don’t subject artifacts to freezing or thermal treatment without specialist advice. Air-drying is generally recommended, but may require techniques to slow air-drying process. f. Retain all identifying or associated information with each artifact and provide association tracking (i.e. ability to reunite disparate elements after drying).g. If storage boxes or containers are damaged, the contractor should rehoused according to a plan following specialist guidelines for enclosure replacement. h. The contractor may be required to provide storage boxes or other containers appropriate to the artifacts, and move and transport large and heavy holdings such as vehicles, sculpture and paintings. If storage boxes or containers are damaged, the Contractor, in consultation with the CO/COR, must develop a plan to transfer the artifacts to dry and clean boxes following guidelines for enclosure replacement. 5.21 Task 21 – Reformatting of Records after Recovery a. Copying may be needed to preserve information and provide effective access to records, but original records should always be retained.b. Reformatting techniques and equipment must not cause further damage to recovered records, and the contractor should provide written procedures and equipment to be used for reformatting, for COR approval..c. Records will be reformatted in accordance with relevant international standards and using appropriate industry methods that are suitable for use with permanently valuable records. d. (Agency name) may require that the copy/reformatted record indicate that it is a copy/surrogate. Contractor must label all reformatted/copied records clearly on individual folders, boxes and/or containers indicating source of records d. The contractor must provide a written description of security procedures for COR approval. The contractor must document and certify the custody of all records from receipt through reformatting and return, and the records must remain within the contractor’s custody and control at all times.e. Records may only be opened or viewed by the approved contractor personnel and only as necessary to perform reformatting operations retaining original order and identification. f. The contractor must not release records or copies of records to third parties. g. Following CO/COR review and written approval of reformatted records, the Contractor must destroy all copies of reformatted data in their possession in such a manner that no data can be reconstructed and provide certification to this effect. 5.22 Task 22 - Reformatting of Records after Recovery – Paper-based a. Digital copies of paper-based may be acceptable as an alternative to analog copy techniques. b. All requirements listed under Reformatting Records after Recovery (Task 21) must be applied. 5.23 Task 23 - Reformatting of Records after Recovery – Film-based and Dynamic Media a. Digital copies of film-based and dynamic media may be acceptable as an alternative to analog copy techniques. b. All requirements listed under Reformatting Records after Recovery (Task 21) must be applied. 5.24 Task 24 – Reformatting of Microfilm Records a. Microfilm copies will be printed in their original format to preservation standards to ensure that the intellectual content of the original remains intact. b. The contractor must provide a list of the equipment that will be used, and provide a detailed description of procedures to the COR for approval. c. Inspection and quality control analysis must be carried out before acceptance. 5.25 Task 25 – Reformatting of Motion Picture Film a. The contractor will copy motion picture film in the original format (16mm to 16mm, etc.), and use applicable preservation standards to ensure the intellectual content of the original is retained.b. The contractor must provide a list of the equipment that will be used, and provide a detailed description of procedures to the COR for approval. c. The COR will provide oversight and quality-control analysis before acceptance. 5.26 Task 26 – Reformatting of Magnetic Motion Picture Tracks a. The contractor must copy each magnetic track of motion picture films on a 16 mm full-coat magnetic sound recording on polyester base stock containing all sound track material found on the original. Recording will begin no later than at the head sync mark to be found on the original film document and continue to no less than the tail sync mark at the end of the original film. If the head and/or tail sync marks are not found, the contractor must insert them on the original rolls in accordance with standard film laboratory practice. b. Each new sound track roll must be wound on a 3-inch diameter industry standard core (Kodak Type Z or equivalent) and secure the free end in an approved manner. 5.27 Task 27 – Reformatting of Audio Recordinga. Copies of audio recordings are more likely to serve as replacement preservation copies, so approved copying procedures, documentation and quality control are crucial. b. The Contractor must copy each audio recording and create a digital Waveform audio format (WAV) file at a bit-depth of 24, and a sample rate of 96K, onto a gold reflective layer CD-R disc. 5.28 Task 28 – Reformatting of Video Recordings a. Copies of video recordings are more likely to serve as replacement preservation copies, so approved copying procedures, documentation and quality control are crucial. b. The contractor must copy each video recording and create a first generation Digital Beta-cam on an (Agency name)-specified tape stock, purchased new from a recognized major manufacturer. c. The contractor must electronically insert an opening slate at the head of each new Digital Beta-cam. The slate must be composed of three lines as follows: a) (Agency name) item number (example: 111ADC1234); b) The sentence “This replacement copy was made from an archival original” on DATE; c) Total running time of the program content written using the industry standard TRT: hh:mm:ss. d. The Contractor’s corporate name or logo must not appear on the slate. e. The Contractor must record no less than 20 seconds of SMPTE color bars at the head of the recording. f. The Contractor must use hard plastic library cases that completely enclose the Digital Beta-cam videocassette and meet (Agency name) specifications. 5.29 Task 29 - Conservation Expertise for Assessment and Advice During Recovery a. If the Agency does not have in-house preservation or conservation expertise, it may be necessary to request sub-contracting of this expertise as a part of the contract. The Agency will need to determine if this expertise should be contracted independently or be a sub-contract with the Contractor. b. Independent advice is also available from professional organizations including the American Institute of Conservation and Heritage Preservation. ................
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