Guide to FADGI Compliance in 2024

What is FADGI

The Federal Agencies Digital Guidelines Initiative (FADGI) is a collaborative effort by U.S. federal agencies to establish comprehensive standards for digitizing and preserving historical, archival, and cultural materials. Initiated in 2007, FADGI aims to ensure that digitized content maintains the highest levels of quality, and accessibility, making it a critical framework for institutions involved in digital preservation. The guidelines cover various aspects of digitization, including image capture, metadata embedding, and quality control, ensuring that digital reproductions are accurate and durable.

Changes to FADGI in 2024

According to federal mandate M-23-07, all permanent records sent to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) after June 30, 2024, will be required to be submitted in an electronic format with a minimum FADGI 3-star rating. The 2024 updates to the FADGI guidelines include several significant enhancements to support this mandate. Key changes include new standards for embedding metadata in WebVTT files and updated guidelines for imaged audio systems. These enhancements are designed to improve the documentation and accessibility of digital records, ensuring that they remain useful and accessible over the long term.

Understanding the FADGI 3-Star Rating

A 3-star FADGI rating represents a high standard of digitization quality, balancing accuracy and efficiency. To achieve this rating, digitization projects should meet several criteria across multiple evaluation parameters, including spatial resolution, color accuracy, noise reduction, and metadata embedding. These parameters ensure that the digitized materials are of high quality and suitable for a wide range of uses. A 3-star rating is typically required for most professional digitization activities, making it a crucial benchmark for institutions seeking to preserve their digital records effectively.

interScan FADGI Compliant Scanners

We offer a comprehensive range of scanners that are fully compliant with FADGI standards, ensuring that your digitization projects meet the necessary quality benchmarks. Our product lineup includes:

• Desktop Scanners: Ideal for small to medium-sized businesses, these scanners offer high-quality digitization in a compact form factor, perfect for offices with limited space.
• High Volume Scanners: Designed for large-scale digitization projects, these scanners handle high throughput with ease, ensuring quick and efficient processing without compromising on quality.
• High Capacity Scanners: Suitable for institutions with substantial digitization needs, these scanners are built to manage extensive collections, providing robust performance and durability.
• Customizable Scanners: Tailored to meet specific requirements, these scanners offer flexible configurations and advanced features to cater to unique digitization challenges.

All our scanners are engineered to capture high-resolution images with precise color accuracy, minimal noise, and comprehensive metadata embedding, making them ideal for achieving a FADGI 3-star rating. For more information about our FADGI compliant scanners click here.

Leveraging JetStream for FADGI Compliance

JetStream is our advanced AI and machine learning software suite specifically designed to enhance digitization processes and ensure FADGI compliance. JetStream comprises three powerful modules: JetStream Recognition, JetStream Classification, and JetStream Extraction. Each module plays a crucial role in optimizing various aspects of digitization that could help to meet FADGI standards.

• Superior OCR/ICR Results: JetStream Recognition delivers exceptional accuracy in Optical Character Recognition (OCR) and Intelligent Character Recognition (ICR), handling distorted or poor-quality scans, machine-printed text, and hard-to-read handwriting with ease. This ensures that all textual information is accurately captured and preserved, aligning with FADGI’s emphasis on accurate data capture, consistent resolution, and precise metadata embedding.
• Increased Automation: JetStream automates the digitization workflow, significantly reducing the need for manual intervention. This not only speeds up the digitization process but also minimizes potential human error, ensuring consistent quality across all digitized materials.
• Rule-Free Few-Shot Learning for Document Categorization: JetStream Classification offers a rule-free, few-shot learning capability for document categorization tasks, significantly expediting the setup and maintenance of workflows compared to traditional methods. This efficiency supports streamlined processes and accurate metadata management, crucial for FADGI compliance.
• Intelligent Zonal Data Extraction: JetStream Extraction utilizes rule-free, few-shot learning for intelligent zonal data extraction, eliminating error-prone, time-consuming rule-based methods. Users can effortlessly capture individual data fields from documents, drastically speeding up workflow setup and maintenance, ensuring accurate data capture and streamlined processes.
• Enhanced Metadata Embedding: JetStream ensures that all digitized content includes comprehensive metadata, which is essential for documentation, discoverability, and long-term management of digital archives.
• Seamless Integration: Designed to integrate easily into existing digitization workflows, JetStream automates tasks such as metadata embedding, quality control checks, and file format conversions, ensuring that all digitized materials could meet FADGI standards.

Conclusion

FADGI plays a vital role in setting the standards for high-quality digitization and preservation of cultural heritage materials. As the guidelines evolve in 2024, achieving a FADGI 3-star rating becomes increasingly important for institutions involved in digital preservation. Our FADGI-compliant scanners and advanced AI-driven JetStream software provide the tools necessary to meet these standards, ensuring that your digitization projects are efficient, accurate, and fully compliant with FADGI guidelines. By leveraging our solutions, you can enhance your digitization efforts and preserve your valuable records for future generations.