SUMMARY:

The increasing digitalization of administrative processes generates ever-growing volumes of electronic documents. Files, records, and archives accumulate in management systems that must ensure their availability, integrity, and accessibility over time.

INFORMATION:

In Uruguay, the preservation of electronic documents is linked to the current regulatory framework. Law No. 18220 established the National Archives System and sets out principles for the management and preservation of public records, while Law No. 18600 recognizes the legal validity of electronic documents and digital signatures. In addition, technical guidelines promoted by AGESIC and archival criteria defined by the National Archives regulate the document lifecycle and the preservation of information with permanent value.

In this context, STATUM presents Archivum, a platform designed to manage digital documents. The system aims to address two needs that are often handled separately: long-term digital preservation and the management of intermediate archives.

Digital preservation poses specific challenges. Unlike paper documents, electronic files depend on technologies and formats that evolve over time, which may affect their accessibility or interpretation in the future.

To address this issue, the system incorporates document processing procedures. Files undergo various operations that allow them to remain usable over time. These include mechanisms for processing and converting digital formats. The objective is to ensure that documents remain usable even when the original technologies are no longer available.

Archivum organizes the storage, control, and processing of documents intended for permanent preservation.

A second level of archiving

In addition to the preservation component, Archivum incorporates a second level of archiving aimed at managing files and documents that are still part of administrative processes but no longer need to remain in primary operational systems.

Many organizations use transactional platforms to manage electronic records and administrative documentation. Over time, these systems tend to accumulate large volumes of information, which can affect their performance and make management more difficult.

In this way, transactional systems can free up space and reduce the amount of actively maintained information. At the same time, documents remain available within a dedicated archival infrastructure.

The transfer to this intermediate level occurs once documents have met the initial retention period established for their document type. This period may vary depending on the nature of the record or the applicable regulatory framework. For example, certain files may remain for several years within the original management system. Once this period ends, they are transferred to the second level of archiving.

At the end of this second retention period, documents may have different outcomes. In some cases, regulations allow for their permanent deletion once the established timeframes have been met. In other cases, when dealing with records of permanent value, the files are transferred to the digital preservation module, where they enter a process designed to ensure their long-term conservation.

This structure enables a staged management of the digital document lifecycle. Archivum integrates the different phases, from initial administrative management to intermediate archiving and final preservation.

The system is also designed to integrate with ApiaDocumentum, allowing different applications to send documents to the intermediate archive or the preservation repository.