Abstract

Although libraries, archives, and museums in North America and Europe have collected, preserved, and provided access to architectural design records for more than a century, significant changes in architectural modes of production following the introduction of Computer Aided Design (CAD) technology in the late twentieth century have significantly complicated this mission. This paper, the result of a self-directed independent study undertaken at the Simmons College School of Library and Information Science during the Spring 2015 semester, addresses the issue of how cultural institutions might provide long-term preservation and access of born-digital architectural design records such as CAD models. The first part of this paper provides some background on the development of these technologies, their complicating features, and archival literature and projects addressing this topic to date. In its second part, the paper looks at how these files might be preserved and made accessible in a digital archive through examination and application of the Open Archival Information System (OAIS) reference model, an international standard for digital stewardship.