Audit et conseil en stratégieMaking a success of your heritage digitisation project
Identifying the different types of documents to be digitised
You have extremely rich collections, and your digitisation projects often cover different kinds of holding. Every category (bound collections, large formats, small format iconography, etc.) and every document will need to be described in an inventory that sets out its:
- Typology (registers, plans, photography, etc.)
- Distinctive characteristics (size, opening angle, etc.)
What does your digitisation project hope to achieve?
We need to know how you plan to use your documents in the future so we can give you the best advice about which digitisation options you should choose. Our recommendations will be different depending on whether your digitisation project is intended for use on the web (a digital library), will be printed as a heritage book or will take the form of large format labels for a physical exhibition.
Your answers to these questions will affect the advice we give you not just about the digitisation itself but also about the related metadata used to enrich the digital images.
The right questions to ask yourself
- Is a standardised inventory available in Excel format?
- Do your documents have classification numbers?
- What are the sizes of the documents, and what is their state of conservation?
- What is the opening angle of your paper documents (180°, 120°, 90°)?
- What is the required scanning resolution (300 dpi, 400 dpi, 600 dpi, etc.)?
- Are there written texts buried in the binding?
- What are the documents packaged in (sleeves, boxes, etc.) for iconographic documents?
- What are the expected file formats and delivery media?
- Is the work to be carried out at the service provider or on your premises?
Scanners and related accessories
Our experts will be able to give you the best advice once they factor in how you intend to use the images from the campaign and the information contained in the inventory.
Arkhênum boasts over 100 heritage scanners, with their functions varying according to the documents that need to be scanned (sizes ranging from A6 to A00, etc.) and the required resolution. Our staff will use the appropriate scanners and accessories (such as a Roberval scale, heritage glass, vacuum table, etc.) in line with the relevant information (document size, opening angle, etc.) about your collection.
What metadata is best for your images?
Your documents may undergo special processing to embed metadata that will be vital for their use in the future.
- Optical character recognition (OCR) applied to printed documents
- Metadata embedded into the images (IPTC, Dublin Core, etc.)
- Creating tables of contents
- Article segmentation
- Manual indexing of handwritten fields
- DTP post-processing (sticking pieces together, etc.)
Image delivery formats
Arkhênum will digitise all your documents whether they are printed or handwritten books, old or recent newspapers, various types of registers or maps and technical plans (architecture, land register, etc.), posters, every type of iconographic document and even objects.
We will deliver your digital images in the most suitable formats for your project: TIFF, JPEG, JPEG 2000, simple PDF or with hidden text, TXT, E-pub as well as HTML 5, .obj for 360° or 3D objects.
Ready to digitise your heritage collections? Contact our experts for a free consultation and ensure your documents are preserved for future generations. Get in touch now!
Every page turned is an archived story
Bon Marché Rive Gauche: safeguarding the oral memory of the Parisian department store
09 April 2025Bon Marché Rive Gauche: safeguarding the oral memory of the Parisian department store© Bibliothèque Nationale de FranceClientBon Marché Rive GaucheExpertise implemented (Re)constitution of collections BACKGROUNDAristide and Marguerite Boucicaut founded...
Talent Story No. 5
Talent Story No. 5“I have the privilege of photographing documents that have never been handled in the 21st century”Turning a hobby into a jobYes, Stéphanie Cousin has turned her passion into her profession! The professional photographer began her career snapping...
Talent Story No. 4
Talent Story No. 4“Working towards something that is meaningful”Emmanuel Fremau, who joined Arkhênum twelve years ago, is now not just marketing manager but also responsible for the company’s digital library services. It’s a dual role that allows Emmanuel to showcase...