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Engineering comprises a vast span of sub-disciplines including for example chemical, civil, electrical, and mechanical engineering. Traditionally, engineering disciplines apply scientific knowledge and empirical evidence to finding (innovative) solutions in areas that range from design, creating and building to production of software and innovative materials. Therefore, research in engineering disciplines is highly multi-disciplinary and works in close collaboration with industry. Hence research data management practices within these sub-disciplines tend to be unaligned with e.g. open data initiatives/requirements and the implementation of the FAIR data principles. Publishing research data, code and workflows is rarely considered even when the research has been completed and the economic interests are secured. Engineers think and work for the future, but they usually do not think about embargos for their data. Sharing data and information often just takes place in a closed user group. The interpretation of “as open as possible” is in engineering more as closed as possible.

The aims of the Interest Group “Research Data Management in Engineering” (IG RDM4Eng) are changing the culture of handling data, creating awareness and bridging (sub-) communities and existing initiatives, which often exist only within a research group. Moreover, the IG will provide a platform for developing consensus on RDM best practices for engineering and to find convincing arguments for engineers in academia and industry to introduce or to improve RDM practices in their workflows.

The IG is working with use cases to provide best practice and examples from different subcommunities. We are always looking for use cases and best practices. If you are interested to work with us, please contact one of the co-chairs.

Activities 2022:

• E-Seminar Series – Electronic Laboratory Notebooks (ELNs) and Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS)

Activities 2021:

• IG Research Data Management in Engineering – Engineering RDM Initiatives 

Activities 2020:

• IG RDMinEng – Data Provenance and Research Software in Engineering at VP16
• From July to beginning of October the IG is running an online seminar series “Exploring annotation and metadata initiatives for engineering data”. Some seminars are together with other IG or WG like PTTP IG, sUAS data IG and the Metadata IG.
• Integrated the focus group on “engineering-specific DMP” into a upcoming WG “Discipline-specific Guidance for DMP” (in preparation) -> submitted a proposal for a BoF session at P16
• Submitted a proposal for a session IG RDMinEng with the focus of engineering data provenance and research software in engineering for P16
• Joint session IG RDMinEng and sUAS data IG at VP15 with the focus of annotation and metadata in engineering

Activities 2019:

• Session IG RDMinEng at P14 Helsinki.
  • Forming of four focus groups:
    • Engineering-specific DMP
    • Data annotation in engineering
    • Metadata in engineering
    • Engineering and Open Science
• IG was established in September
• Session IG RDMinEng at P13 Philadelphia with the focus of “Wind energy goes FAIR” and  CESAER – the strong and united voice of universities of science and technology in Europe.

Activities 2018:

• BoF Session RDMinEng at P12 Botswana with the focus “Why is RDM important for engineers? What is different in engineering science?”