The Cultural Center of the Philippines announced today that they are collaborating with EMC technology for a nationwide digitization project to convert and integrate CCP’s entire audio-visual collection to provide public online access to our country’s cultural and historical heritage.
The CCP Library has a vast collection of national, cultural and historical materials dating back as far as 1970 and being able to access these instantly from a computer will be a great help to those who need it. Also, this digitization project will also ensure further preservation of our country’s historical heritage by minimizing exposure and allowing the materials to be stored in a safer and controlled environment.
EMC, the world leader in information infrastructure solutions, supplied CCP with a scalable storage system (EMC Celera NS-120) that has an initial 18TB disk space. They will also be providing their ApplicationXtender Content Management Software that is designed to manage the digital repository for front-end applications.
“œPoetry, film, music, visual art and expressions of humanity are all part of a country’s national, cultural and historical heritage and, yet, many of these critical documents and cultural artifacts are at risk of disappearing without the right information infrastructure systems,” say David Webster, President of EMC in South East Asia, Australia and New Zealand. “œEMC recognizes and supports the protection of such important heritage of the Philippines for the enjoyment and appreciation of future generations of Filipinos.”
Actually, CCP has started the digitization project as early as 2007 with the use of 1TB disks. With their collaboration with EMC late last year, a better system was put into place that made the project go smoother.
“œWe commend EMC’s generosity and dedication as a responsible corporate citizen. CCP is honored to be a beneficiary of this digital preservation initiative. It shows EMC’s spirit and vision of making technology a vital tool in building a better Philippines and outstanding Filipinos. This partnership will benefit not only this generation but the youth of the future as well,” said Dr. Raul Sunico, President, Cultural Center of the Philippines.
There’s still a long way to go to complete the whole CCP archive. There are approximately 40,000 hours of audio, 30,000 hours of tapes from the film archive, 6,500 photos, 28,000 photographic slides and at least 56,000 manuscripts of literary works to digitize. The hard part is to acquire the necessary equipment to read those formats that are no longer used.
Currently, only visitors of the CCP Library can access the few digital content that has already been converted. CCP is expecting that in three year’s time, these files can be accessed online by the public wherever they are. Right now, there’s still a very long way to go but CCP is going in the right direction with this project.