The University of Chicago
A Shared Media Database for a Global Research Team
Daminion made cataloging and search practical for everyday work—without requiring staff to enter overly detailed descriptions.
Higher Education / Research / Cultural Heritage
About The University of Chicago
Founded in 1890, The University of Chicago is one of the world’s leading academic and research institutions, known for shaping new ways of thinking across disciplines. The university is widely recognized as a global intellectual destination, with scholars and campuses spanning multiple regions.
Within UChicago, the Oriental Institute supports research and preservation efforts and works with a large volume of visual materials generated through fieldwork, scholarship, and documentation.
Within UChicago, the Oriental Institute supports research and preservation efforts and works with a large volume of visual materials generated through fieldwork, scholarship, and documentation.
Initial Setup
Before Daminion: An In-House System That Didn’t Scale
Before Daminion, the Oriental Institute attempted to build a media database using an in-house solution. In practice, the system depended heavily on network speed between continents, which made it slow and difficult to use. It also proved too technical for non-specialists, limiting adoption across the team.
Cataloging in the old system required detailed manual descriptions for each file, and the team couldn’t easily set up roles or manage collaborative work on shared assets.
Cataloging in the old system required detailed manual descriptions for each file, and the team couldn’t easily set up roles or manage collaborative work on shared assets.
We tried building a database using our in-house solution. Unfortunately, we never got very far because the network speed was too slow between continents.
Our in-house solution was also too complicated for non-technical team members, so we had to look for a better alternative.
Our in-house solution was also too complicated for non-technical team members, so we had to look for a better alternative.
Matt Perley
Program Administrator
Implementation and Workflow
How Daminion Helped
The Oriental Institute needed a unified database that could be accessed by team members working in different locations around the world. Daminion gave them a practical way to catalog and search images in an online, collaborative environment — without requiring staff to become “librarians” to use the system effectively.
Today, the team uses Daminion regularly to upload, categorize, and retrieve media from research projects quickly and reliably.
Today, the team uses Daminion regularly to upload, categorize, and retrieve media from research projects quickly and reliably.
Daminion allows us to easily catalog images and to search for assets using multiple criteria in an online, collaborative environment.
It saves us tons of time and effort uploading because we have a lot of images from our research projects, and the software is fast and reliable.
It saves us tons of time and effort uploading because we have a lot of images from our research projects, and the software is fast and reliable.
Matt Perley
Program Administrator