Introduction
The "Ata de Registro de Preços" (Price Registration Record) is a strategic administrative tool used by Brazilian public entities to streamline procurement for ICT services. It enables multiple government organizations to benefit from pre-negotiated, cost-effective contracts.
Recently, Proderj, the Information and Communication Technology Center of Rio de Janeiro, partnered with Safe Conversão Digital (SAFE), a trusted Piql partner, to digitize and archive 40 million pages of vital public documents.
About the Project
This ambitious project aimed to convert a vast quantity of public documents into digital formats, providing long-term preservation, accessibility, and security.
This initiative aims to modernize, preserve, and secure critical government records through digital transformation. The contract covers, digitization of public records, Implementation of RDC-ARQ (Electronic Document Management), and piqlFilm archival storage.
The project, initially set for 12 months, is extendable up to 36 months. SAFE operates across two sites with a dedicated team of 50 experts.
The Challenge
The sheer scale of the project posed several challenges:
- High Volume of Documents: The digitisation of 40 million pages requires extensive resources and meticulous attention to detail.
- Document Security: Public sector documents contain sensitive information, requiring secure conversion and storage processes to prevent data breaches.
- Long-term Preservation: Ensuring the integrity and accessibility of these documents for future generations required a reliable and sustainable archival solution.
- Operational Efficiency: With multiple government entities involved, coordinating and managing the digitisation efforts required careful planning and streamlined processes.
Project Scope and Details
The project involves a substantial volume of document digitisation and archival work.
Terms of the contract
The contract is for 40 million pages and includes digitisation, RDC-ARQ implementation and piqlFilm archiving. The contract is for an initial period of 12 months with an option to extend for up to 36 months. SAFE will provide services across two operational sites, employing 50 dedicated staff to manage the document conversion.
Services Delivered by SAFE
SAFE has been awarded the contract to provide end-to-end digital document management services. The scope of services includes:
- Digital conversion services: High resolution scanning (minimum 300 DPI), Optical Character Recognition (OCR) for text searchability and implementation of digital signatures for document authenticity.
- Digital Microfilm Services: SAFE also offers 35mm microfilming of digital and born-digital files, providing long-term archival storage, duplication and enhanced security through physical backups.
Institutional Roles and Collaboration
The successful execution of the project involved clear collaboration between Proderj, the participating state agencies, and SAFE.
- Proderj (Central Coordination):
Proderj defined the project’s technical requirements, coordinated the procurement process, supervised service execution, ensured compliance with archival standards, and managed the technological infrastructure for the RDC-ARQ. - State Public Agencies:
Participating agencies adhered to the Price Record, requested digitisation services, provided documents for conversion, and validated the delivered services. These agencies included key organizations such as the Secretaria de Estado de Trabalho e Renda, CEDAE, and Rioprevidência, among others. - SAFE (Service Provider):
SAFE delivered end-to-end digitisation services, implemented secure digital signatures, created and managed the archival repository, and facilitated user training and system integration.
Technological Highlights
Piql’s advanced digitisation and preservation capabilities are central to the project’s success. By using 35mm microfilm technology, the project safeguards approximately 40 million images, creating physical backups to mitigate risks of cyber threats. This dual approach—digital transformation combined with analog preservation—ensures data accessibility, integrity, and longevity.
Strategic Impact
The Proderj project represents a forward-thinking approach to digital transformation in public administration, delivering strategic benefits in several key areas.
Administrative Efficiency: The project simplifies procurement by streamlining methodology, reducing bureaucratic complexity and standardising pricing across multiple institutions. These efficiencies increase transparency, accountability and reduce administrative burdens, ensuring faster and more efficient service delivery across government agencies.
Technological Modernisation: A key component of this initiative is the modernisation of document management technologies. The project includes advanced digital conversion capabilities to ensure the secure storage and accessibility of important documents. The system will also provide comprehensive records management to ensure long-term preservation and retrieval of data.
Cost Optimisation: By taking advantage of bulk purchasing, the project reduces individual procurement costs. In addition, the consistent and standardised pricing strategy for digitisation services offers significant savings while ensuring high quality results across government.
Conclusion
The Proderj-SAFE-Piql collaboration showcases a replicable model for government digital transformation. By integrating secure digitization, advanced archiving, and strategic procurement, this initiative modernizes public administration and ensures long-term preservation of critical records.
Through innovative technology and streamlined operations, Proderj is setting a new benchmark for digital governance in Brazil.
