Costs to consider

How much does it cost? This may be the first question you ask when the discussion turns to digitising your collection. The answer is that cost will depend upon many issues; the size of your institution and the collection, the number of 'scanning-ready' images already on hand, how well documented your images are and, of course, your defined requirements. There really is no 'one size fits all' solution.

Whether digitising in-house or contracting the work out, it is important to anticipate costs and budget for them. Among the various constituents of total cost for a digitisation project which should be considered are:

Documentation and preparation

• Photography and/or treatment of current photographs,
• Film processing and/or scanning,
• Image manipulation, i.e., adjusting images for their intended purpose,
• Ensuring copyright status of images.

Material or capital costs, including:

• Hardware and software, scanning equipment, digital cameras and image manipulation software,
• Equipment costs for image capture, digital image storage and maintenance of digital images.

Human resources

• Hiring new or training existing staff and any staff turnover,
• Sufficient space and facilities for equipment and any necessary new staff,
• Training of staff to assist or oversee the movement of objects.

Transportation and handling

• Transportation and handling of objects to be photographed or images going to an outside source (mainly for two-dimensional objects - costs will be higher, space needs may be greater and the logistics of artefact handling may be more complicated for three-dimensional objects),
• Insurance costs related to objects being transported off-site.

Ongoing maintenance of equipment

• Annual maintenance agreement with equipment or service provider.

Other hidden costs

• Telephone line for data transfer, voltage controller (surge protector), LAN connections, and upgrades to workstations, possible treatment of objects,
• As outlined in the Planning module, it may also be helpful to consider possibilities for cost sharing with another institution and pooling resources for equipment and/or staff costs. (See more on resources and reducing costs in the Planning module)

Digitising images: In-house vs contracting out

When deciding on whether or not you can undertake a digitisation project one of the most important considerations is whether or not the project can be undertaken by staff using resources within the museum (in-house) or utilising local contractors, or indeed a mix of both. When deciding which route to take it is important to consider the following advantages and disadvantages:

Contracting out: Factors to consider

Recognise that it is best not to send certain objects, such as the following, to commercial digital service providers: Original art works, fragile textiles, early printed materials, book-bindings - tooled book covers, large-format originals.

If time is of the essence and you do not already have scanning facilities and trained staff available, you may wish to consider contracting some tasks out. However, a project that is contracted out will still require some training of staff who may still need to carry out preparation, documentation and object movement work etc.

For a short-term project, you may choose to use an outside digital service provider, as a trial, with a plan to review after the first phase. If you decide to contract out you must carefully define your needs to your digital service provider. Be clear about what you want, especially in terms of size and resolution. Whether you do your photography in-house or by contracting out, it is important you include grey- and colour-scales in each image. You must clearly outline the need for consistent results, and set benchmarks to check the quality of the digital images compared to both the original image and the original object. Be sure to include in the contract a clause outlining action you may take  in case of poor quality output by your service provider.

You may also wish to share costs by pooling your expertise and funds with other museums interested in digitising their collection. To successfully achieve this kind of collaboration you will need to ensure you can agree on a set of imaging standards and deadlines.

If you are seeking a commercial service, you might use the following table to get an idea of the cost of scanning your materials. You should ask for their prices for the following:

It is also worth noting that the majority of digitisation projects use a combination of in-house and external contractors, who prefer to base themselves within the museum. Sometimes arrangements can be made with photographic contractors to set up a temporary studio in the museum so there will be no need to remove objects from your premises. If this is an option you will need to make sure your museum insurance, or the contractor’s insurance, covers them for injury and theft or damage to equipment. Another issue to consider is the security and access to photographic equipment. Will the studio need to be packed up every day, or can it be housed in a secure area. If you have a large photographic collection, complete with its own cataloguing and filing system, it again may be easier for a contract scanner to set up temporarily in your museum. Again you will need to think about insurance.

These kinds of arrangements are contingent on having sufficient space and have the added benefit of allowing museum staff to supervise object handling. However, you will need to consider which staff will be able to assist and ensure they are available whenever the contractor may need them. Or alternatively arrange for the contractor to be on the premises only when you have sufficient staff.

Financial assistance

Whilst there are a limited number of grants specifically for digitisation projects, there are a wide variety of grants and agencies who in the past have been willing to accept submissions that include staff, equipment and training for digitisation projects. The following details have been kindly supplied by the Museums and Galleries Foundation of New South Wales.

Exercise

The following exercise will help you estimate the time and likely staff and equipment costs, involved in your digitisation project. Most importantly it should help you determine whether or not you can afford to hire new staff or bring in a contractor. To make best use of this exercise you will need to also find out how much contractors may charge per hour. At the same time you may wish to work out an hourly cost for your own staff, as sometimes their limited time may be better spent on other projects.

Potential Costs

Try to estimate how much time you think your own staff, or a contractor might take to complete each of the following tasks. You may also wish to assign an hourly cost to this work.

A) Image and copyright assessment

Identifying images

Determining legal restrictions (copyright, donor rights, etc.)

Investigating the availability of digital and other versions of the image

Determining the available documentation for the objects and images

Name/Title

hours __________ at $ ________ /hour

B) Object preparation and movement

Retrieving and preparing objects for Photography

Curator/Photographer to determine set-up needs

Curator/Conservator to determine suitability of 2D or 3D objects for direct digital capture (scanning directly)

Name/Title

hours __________ at _________ /hour

C) Preparing images or objects for scanning or photographing

Assessing Image attributes to determine scanning requirements (resolution, bit depth, enhancements, file format, compression)

Creating documentation/instructions for scanning

Retrieving images from storage

Checking the information associated with the images

Recording the physical condition of the image

Preparing (cleaning transparencies, disbanding, removing staples or otherwise preparing documents)

Name/Title

hours __________ at $ _________ /hour

D) Cataloguing and transportation

Preparing inventories for contractor

Arranging shipping and insurance

Creating catalogue entries for images lacking good documentation

Name/Title

hours __________ at $_________ /hour

E) Imaging/Photography

Time and expertise to set-up imaging station/ photographic studio

Photography/scanning

Name/Title

hours __________ at _________ /hour

F) Quality control and storage

Perform on-screen inspection

Accuracy of file naming

Corrections where necessary

Loading digital files

Ongoing maintenance of the database

Name/Title

hours __________ at $_________ /hour

G) Other costs

Equipment: hardware and software

Scanner, digital cameras, computer, storage media

Equipment for archiving / migration

Printers

Renovation costs (if necessary) for appropriate space

Adapted from RLG Worksheet for calculating costs

Do you understand:

• The costs you will need to consider before starting your project?
• The advantages and disadvantages of digitising images in house?
• The advantages and disadvantages of contracting out part or all of the project?
• Who you can approach for support and grants to help you digitise?

Date published: 1 August 2001