More Than a DAM: Kontainer as Your Registration and Archiving System

 

Most people know Kontainer as a DAM and PIM system. But the same flexible data model makes Kontainer a strong registration, journaling and archiving system for any organisation that needs to document what it owns, what has happened to it, and who may use it.

 

Records and Documentation Belong Together

In many organisations, the record lives in one system and the documentation lives somewhere else. Registration data sits in a database or a spreadsheet. Photos, reports, drawings and videos sit on network drives, in email threads or in an image bank.

That split costs time and creates risk. Files lose their context, information is registered twice, and nobody is quite sure which version is the right one.

Kontainer closes the gap. Each record holds both its structured data and every file that documents it, in one central and secure place.

 

Structured Records, Built Around Your Practice

There is no fixed template to squeeze your work into. You define the fields, lists and relations that match how your organisation already registers things, and Kontainer adapts.

Every item gets its own record with a unique registration number. Around it, you can register title, description, dates, materials, dimensions, origin, creator or producer, and any other attribute you need. Items can be grouped in cases or files, so a case and everything that belongs to it stay together.

Records also carry their history. You can document how and when something was acquired, where it came from, and who has owned or handled it. Relations link items to people, places, events and other records, so context is never more than a click away.

 

Documentation in Every Format

This is where Kontainer’s roots as a DAM make the difference. Documentation is not a loose attachment in the corner of a record. Photos, scanned documents, reports, drawings, video and audio are first-class files with their own metadata, previews and versions, all linked directly to the record they document.

Because everything is stored centrally, the same file can document several records without being copied. Read more about file management in Kontainer.

 

Location, Condition and Rights

A good register also follows the physical and legal life of each item.

• Location: Record where an item is kept, down to building, room and shelf, and keep it up to date when it moves.
• Use and loans: Link items to the exhibitions, projects or loans they are part of.
• Condition and treatment: Document condition assessments with dates, and record treatments, repairs and the reports that go with them.
• Rights and access: Register copyright, licences and consent, and use permissions to decide exactly who can see, edit or download each record. Read more about Kontainer and GDPR compliance.

 

Who Uses Kontainer This Way

Museums and collections are the clearest example. Here, Kontainer can hold the full object register: museum numbers, accession records, provenance, storage locations, conservation reports and condition assessments, with photos, documents, video and audio linked to each object.

But the need is far wider than museums:

• Public administrations journaling cases and archiving the documentation that belongs to them.
• Educational institutions archiving historical material, research documentation and their own institutional history.
• NGOs documenting projects, field material and consent across countries and teams.
• Architects, engineers and contractors keeping project archives with drawings, photos and reports per building or site.
• Manufacturers registering product history, technical documentation and certificates over many years.

See how other organisations use Kontainer in our client cases.

 

Find It, Share It, Publish It

A register only creates value when people can use it. Kontainer’s search covers records, metadata, people, places and every other registered field, so staff find what they need in seconds, with AI features that help describe and tag files along the way.

When information needs to leave the building, you stay in control:

• Share selected records and files with partners through secure file sharing.
• Give the public or the press a curated view through a brand portal.
• Deliver data to websites, national portals and other systems through Kontainer’s API and integrations.

Register once, and use the information everywhere: in the archive, in the workshop, in exhibitions and online.

Want to see how Kontainer can work as a registration and archiving system for your organisation? Book a demo, and we will show you a setup based on your own practice.