A Data Management Plan is a document that describes the data management life cycle (from collection/generation over curation to exploitation) of your project
Published on | 3 years ago
Last updated on | 2 months ago
pascal.verheye@vlaio.be
A Data Management Plan (DMP) describes the data management life cycle for the data to be collected, processed and generated by a Horizon project.
It is a document that describes
1/ what data will be generated by the project,
2/ whether and how it will be exploited or made accessible for verification and re-use, and
3/ how it will be curated and preserved.
The DMP should therefore include information a) on the handling of research data during & after the end of the project, b) on what data will be collected, processed and/or generated, and c) on which methodology & standards will be applied. It goes without saying that the plan needs to be specific and adapted to the nature of the data.
A DMP is a living document. Typically you would indicate the outline (core vision/choices you'll follow) in the proposal. Next, a first version needs to be developed during the initial project months (e.g. as a project deliverable in the dissemination WP). This document will need regular updates, especially when significant changes occur (e.g. new datasets, changes in policy). It can be also a best practice to provide an update along with the periodic reporting. A final version needs to be on the list of end-of-project deliverables.
A DMP fits in the movement of making research data FAIR: Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Re-usable. This can be seen as an improvement (because: more nuanced) of open data.
Since EU grants are financed by public funds, beneficiaries are expected to disseminate their project results. In this way, the projects can benefit a larger group of persons and reach wider target groups.
In most cases, you create a DMP by filling out a template or by answering questions from a checklist.
There exists an official generic template from the European Commission(version of 2021-05-05 also attached to this info sheet) that describes in 10 (sub)sections the topics that need to be covered.
For more background and additional help, we refer to the OpenAIRE project. Though this is written within the context of the Horizon 2020 Open Research Data Pilot, the main content remains valid and relevant. You'll also find there 8 other guides, dealing with specific issues (e.g. raw data, non-digital data, sensitive data, ...) and the broader context (e.g. assess RDM costs, repositories, ...)
There exist software tools (e.g. DMP online, DMPTool, ...) that help you create a DMP. Typically you'll have to select the appropriate template, after which guidance is provided in the form of a limited set of relevant questions.
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The Miricle project, ‘Mine Risk Clearance for Europe’, obtained funding under the European Defence Industrial Development programme call ‘Underwater control contributing to resilience at sea’. The main objective of the project was to achieve a European and sovereign capacity in future mine warfare and create a path for the next generation ‘made in Europe’ countermeasure solutions. In order to realise this objective, Miricle addressed various stages: studies, design, prototyping and testing. These stages inter alia included the successful testing of an XL Unmanned Underwater Vehicle, a protototyped mine disposal system and multiple innovative systems to detect buried mines. Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ), was one of the five Belgian partners in the consortium. Within the project, VLIZ was able to forward its research on the acoustic imaging of the seabed to spatially map and visualize buried structures and objects - in this case buried mines - in the highest possible detail. VLIZ also led the work on ‘Port and Offshore Testing’, building on the expertise of the institute in the field of marine operations and technology.