An RDC in Your Backyard

Bo WandschneiderUniversity of Guelph

CAPDU 2004

Outline

• SWORDC– Structure and operation– DLI/RDC relationships– How is it working for us

• RDC Developments impacting SWORDC– What changes are coming– Satellites

SWORDC

• South Western Ontario Research Data Centre

• Waterloo– Survey Research Centre– Guelph, Brock, WLU, Windsor– Western getting their own now

SWORDC Facilities

• Physical location at Waterloo– 3 rooms

• Stat Can Analyst Office• Meeting Room• Lab/Workspace

– No internet - LAN– 12 machines – no disks– Significant start-up cost and there will be

maintenance on hardware– Software is local decision – extensive– M-F 9:00-4:30

SWORDC - Analyst

• Stat Can Analyst on-site– Backed up from another RDC– Strong but focused statistical knowledge– Limited knowledge of Stats Can data– Very different from what we might

describe as ideal data specialist– Very little understanding of what ‘we’ do– Seems to vary across centres– A costly resource

SWORDC – Relationship to DLI

• DRC manages the SWORDC website– Struggle to keep up to date and

complete– Direct links from DRC metadata

• Publicize RDC in DRC newsletter and website

• Should be a continuum of access– Still very much one way effort

SWORDC Website

SWORDC – 2 years in

• Costly for faculty to travel there– Time and lack of own environment

• Some frustrations with applications but improving

• Making more use of synthetic files• Making use of RJS• Not a lot of use

SWORDC - 2 Years in

• We try and get to researcher first– They need to know data and stats

packages

• Need to track output – List of papers, reports, thesis– This will fall to us

RDC – What’s New

• May use students to extend hours– No vetting during these hours

• Changes to publication requirements– May only need to show that results

reported – thesis, article, conf paper…

• Census synthetic file may go in RDC– this is yet another model – concerns?

• Satellites

RDC - Satellites

• Designed for partners, or those without RDC

• Establish satellite site– Facilities

• Similar to RDC – room, hardware, software• Cost would be significant• Is this necessary?

RDC - Satellites

• Facilities– Staffed by student– No vetting on-site– Results encrypted and sent off-site for vetting

• Should some of our RDC’s be Satellites– More cost effective?– What is value added of Stat Can analyst?– Is there a role for local data professionals?

RDC – Sample costsAVGRDC

SATELLITE

Annual Local CostsOperating

Statistics Canada Analyst and support $100,000

Director buy-out of time andresponsibilities $18,000 $6,000

Student support for longer openinghours $10,800 $15,000

Statistical and methodological services $35,000 $7,000

Secretarial services $20,000 $3,000

Supplies $2,000 $2,000

Computer software and supplies $10,000 $5,000

Computer assistance (on campuscontracts) $25,000 $10,000

Computer depreciation and replacement $20,000 $7,000

Local governance, conferences,receptions $2,500

Travel costs for Stats Can Analysts $2,000

Workshops (3,000 per workshop, 2 peryear) $6,000

Total $249,300 $57,000

University Overhead (40% of eligiblecosts) $99,720 $22,800

Total local costs per Centre $329,020 $79,800