Data submission

It is the responsibility of the data originators to supply fully processed, quality-controlled data sets with comprehensive supporting metadata. The goal is to distribute data to others without recourse to the originator. The Laboratory Liaison Officer (LLO) will provide comprehensive assistance and guidance, but regrettably the level of funding does not allow for processing of raw data. In some circumstances BODC will process data, but only with prior agreement.

The SAMS Data Manager, Steve Gontarek, and the BODC Laboratory Liaison Officer (LLO) for SAMS, Mark Hebden, are working together to enable easy submission of SAMS data to BODC. BODC can now download SAMS data directly from the internal data submission system developed by Steve Gontarek.

This application should be used in accordance with SAMS internal data management procedures and is accessible via the SAMS intranet. For queries relating to the data submission system please contact Steve Gontarek, the Data Manager at SAMS.

Mark Hebden has been given remote access to allow him to view data information and check metadata entries. Once he is happy with the details of the submission, he can download the data directly to the BODC archives without further action from the originator.

To ensure a unified approach this will be the preferred method of data submission to BODC for current SAMS employees.

What should I do if I cannot access the SAMS intranet?

For people without access to the SAMS internal system, submissions should be made directly to BODC. Information on data file formats, parameters and basic metadata are provided in our ‘General guide to data submission’. We have also prepared a series of guides detailing metadata requirements for various data types. These may be accessed from the ‘Submitting data to BODC’ section of our web site.

When data processing has been completed, please send a copy of each data set to BODC by one of the following methods

• Email Mark Hebden, and attach files (zipped if large)
• Put data on an accessible FTP site and provide instructions for collection

Please note — unprocessed data cannot readily be incorporated into our relational database system so distribution would be limited to copies of original data files. In the case of NERC funded research, the submission of unprocessed data does not meet the data management criteria of the grant nor satisfy appropriate legislation and Government guidance.