Q1. What is the total allocated budget for the GrainData Fusion project, and how is it being utilised to achieve its objectives?
A1. The budget for this project is not being released to the public as part of the Request for Proposal process. We are looking for market-driven responses and will assess for value for money once the approach to market closes.
Q2. How does the project intend to expand the number of datasets referenced in the GRDC Data Catalogue?
A2. The project will expand the number of datasets in the GRDC Data Catalogue by increasing deposits in Approved repositories and registering metadata.
Researchers will be asked to register RD&E data not currently in Approved repositories, enabling reuse to generate new insights for grain growers. For more details, please refer to the Outputs of the proposed investment and the Request for Proposals document available on the GRDC and AusTender websites.
Q3. Are there any specific data types or areas of focus that GRDC is prioritizing?
A3. This is an OPEN CALL, and proposals should align with GRDC’s RD&E Plan 2023-28. Examples of potential scope areas featuring valuable dataset types to inspire applicants. These categories are not restrictive, and applicants may propose their own dataset types under the open category (scope area 10), provided they align with GRDC’s RD&E Plan 2023-28. Applicants are also encouraged to use datasets from multiple categories. For more details, please refer to the Outputs of the proposed investment and the Request for Proposals document available on the GRDC and AusTender websites.
Q4. Is GRDC currently seeking partners to contribute to the catalogue or support its further development? If so, what are the criteria or mechanisms for engaging with GRDC on this initiative?
A4. GRDC encourages its partners and the public to contribute to the GRDC Data Catalogue by registering metadata with the GRDC Data Catalogue and the associated datasets deposited in Approved repositories. For more details, please refer to the Outputs of the proposed investment and the Request for Proposals document available on the GRDC and AusTender websites.
Q5. The data that you collect, is it manually collected data from Excel spreadsheet or is it sensor data or is there a whole range of data sets that are there?
A5. GRDC defines RD&E Data as “Information, including in raw or unorganised form, which may be used for analysis, that is captured, generated, produced or otherwise developed by a GRDC Partner in the course of conducting a project, during the term of an agreement with GRDC.
RD&E Data may be:
- numerical, written, descriptive, visual or audible;
- durable records derived from Primary Materials such as assays, test results, transcripts, and laboratory and field notes;
- raw or analysed, experimental or observational;
- other documents or media containing information associated with the research process.
The GRDC Data Catalogue stores metadata that describes various datasets. However, the actual RD&E data itself is stored in what we call GRDC-Approved repositories, which are managed by research partners. The list of GRDC Approved repositories can be found at GRDC RD&E Data Capture and Storage Guidelines for Research Partners.
Q6. Is it structured or unstructured data? Is every researcher e.g. Universities collecting rainfall, rain, precipitation or millimetres or how clean is the data. Is there any thought about that?
A6. RD&E Data generated through GRDC co-investments is structured data. GRDC requires research partners to deposit all valuable RD&E Data to be deposited in Approved repositories and associated metadata registered with the GRDC Data Catalogue. GRDC requires RD&E Data to be accurately collected, stored and maintained.
Q7. The GRDC data catalogue and I have seen that the data catalogue not only host data sets but also tools, like machine learning tools and things like that right. I'm wondering if that is a I'm mistake or is that like the maybe in the next phase of what this catalogue might be?
Data files, e.g. excel file, CSV but in the context of what I’ve seen on the data catalogue, also looking at examples Python scripts, R scripts that has been referenced on the data catalogue. It's more of a framework, a tool. It's not necessarily a data set that it's describing information. I'm wondering what is the intended purpose of the data catalogue, more of an asset catalogue rather than just data?
A7. GRDC’s Strategy for RD&E data management aims to enhance the visibility and accessibility of GRDC's data assets, which are stored in distributed "Approved" repositories. The GRDC Data Catalogue does not hold the actual RD&E data, it just holds the metadata which is data about data. Metadata is defined as Information defining and describing the RD&E Data, including information about the purpose, processes, and methods involved in collecting the RD&E Data. Metadata supports the understanding and context of RD&E data. Rich metadata.
Q8. Can the proposal just focus on the data analysis side of things or does it need to meet all of those 3 criteria?
A8. The proposal must meet the requirements expressed in the RFP document.
Q9. The Approved repositories. Is there an opportunity that one of us or the successful applicant will be in a Approved repository if we pass whatever GRDC is looking for as a repository so that the data can be handled straight from our platform rather than shuffling data around the which adds costs.
A9. Approved Repositories are an essential component of GRDC’s approach to RD&E Data Management and are used to publish RD&E Data and related metadata generated within GRDC investments. GRDC have developed a set of criteria by which Approved Repositories are defined (See GRDC RD&E Data Capture and Storage Guidelines for Research Partners). Based on these, we’ve compiled lists of Approved Repositories, repositories that can be used to store valuable RD&E Datasets generated in GRDC Investments. If there is a data repository that is not included in these lists and you think it will be suitable for long-term storage of data from a GRDC investment, please let us know by emailing data.catalogue@grdc.com.au.
As a group of collaborators, you may nominate one of the collaborators to provide an Approved repository.
Q10. Who’s responsible for finding the data, GRDC must have an understanding where these gaps in the market or data sets may lie and is it the sole responsibility for the applicant to go out and engage or is GRDC going to be a component and a broker within that process to facilitate and ensure that the project is on track and the data is brough on the right way.
A10. It will be the responsibility of the applicant to do the RD&E data collection and preparation.
Q11. I'm just trying to, I guess quantify the scope in particular around the stage two around extracting the insights for grain growers and these suggested scope areas are really useful but are quite broad. How does the successful applicant determine what the question is that the platform should be answering or I mean remote sensing is quite different from social behaviour. So how do we prioritise the data that is gathered and then the subsequent questions that are then asked?
A11. This RFP is an open call for proposals. However, we provide in the RFP documents a list of potential scope areas: a list of valuable dataset types that we hope will inspire applicants to apply. These categories are not intended to work as limiting factors, and applicants may choose to use their own dataset types as part of the open category (scope area 10) to propose analysis that aligns with GRDC’s RD&E Plan 2023-28. Additionally, applicants may use dataset from more than one category.
Q12. Is that collaboration inside or outside of the terms of reference or the actual RFP that we've got here? At the moment, we're going through the tender process. So do we have to fill out the whole tender documents and the collaboration form or can we fill out the collaboration form and then GRDC internally can sort of align a few of us together that may build the puzzle as much as possible and then then we can sort of come back in as a consortium and then then do the application afterwards.
A12. The collaboration form will enable you to see what others have if you opt in, so if you choose to opt out and just say we've got your own data sets, this is what you would like to do. But if you feel you want to do both and you’d like to also collaborate, you can. If you register yourself through that collaboration, you'll be able to see what datasets other researchers have identified, and then you can start communicating with them as well.
Q13. The data request process states 28 days is that is that the time frame where you would expect to be able to have data released that is co-owned? Or what does the 28 days relate to?
A13. If a researcher searches the GRDC Data Catalogue and finds a dataset of interest, the researcher must submit a data request via the GRDC Data Catalogue. We approximate that GRDC will evaluate the data request and a decision to share or not share the data will be provided within 28 days.
Q14. If we identify data assets that look as though they will be useful from the metadata catalogue register, then the only way you can assess these sorts of things (referring back to the question about how well structured they are) you know how much work is going to be involved into transition that to the next use some might be more advanced than other. Do those custodian organisations have to be a partner on the on the bid or not?
A14. They might be, and they might not be.