Product Overview: Symplectic Elements
Symplectic Elements is a highly-configurable research information management system (RIMS) designed to capture, analyze, and showcase scholarly activities across the entire research lifecycle. Developed by Symplectic, this platform is tailored to meet the needs of research organizations, universities, and funding institutions.
Core Functionality
Symplectic Elements serves as a central hub for aggregating and managing research data from multiple external and internal sources. It automatically harvests data from various databases such as Dimensions, PubMed, CrossRef, and other relevant external sources. Additionally, it integrates with internal systems like HR databases, grants management systems, and institutional websites to provide a comprehensive view of an organization’s research activities.
Key Features
- Data Aggregation and Integration: Elements combines data from diverse sources, including publications, grants, professional activities, projects, and equipment, into a single, centralized platform. This integration helps reduce administrative burdens and makes data more accessible for reporting and analysis.
- Automated Data Capture: The system continuously and automatically captures research data, allowing researchers to auto-claim records associated with their research identifiers. This feature streamlines the data input process and ensures that records are up-to-date.
- Customizable and Configurable: Symplectic Elements is highly configurable to align with the specific data structures and terminologies of each institution. This flexibility enhances user engagement and adoption across different organizations.
- User-Friendly Interface: The platform is designed with a focus on user experience, making it intuitive and easy to use for both researchers and administrators. It includes features like a persistent header, easy navigation via tabs, and customizable widgets.
- Relationships and Linking: Elements allows users to create relationships between different aspects of their research, such as linking publications to grants, projects, or professional activities. This feature helps in building a holistic view of research outputs and collaborations.
- Metrics and Impact: The system can capture and display article metrics from sources like Altmetric, Dimensions, EPMC, Scopus, and Web of Science. It also includes journal metrics such as SNIP, SJR, and the journal impact factor, providing insights into the impact of research.
- Privacy and Security: Symplectic Elements offers robust security and data management policies, with ISO 27001 certification. It includes configurable object and user privacy settings to ensure that users remain in control of their data at all times.
- Reporting and Analytics: The platform provides tools for generating reports and deriving insights from the aggregated data. This includes features like saved searches, recent publications tracking, and visual representations of co-authorships and other research activities.
- Custom Integrations and API: Elements supports custom integrations via specialized integration interfaces and a REST-based XML web service API, allowing for the import and export of data to and from other systems.
Benefits
- Comprehensive Research Profile: Symplectic Elements helps institutions build a comprehensive picture of their research activities, showcasing the real-world impact of their research.
- Reduced Administrative Burden: By automating data capture and integration, the platform reduces the administrative workload associated with managing research data.
- Enhanced Insights: It provides powerful new insights through its analytical tools, helping institutions derive meaningful metrics and understand the impact of their research.
- Improved Collaboration: The system facilitates collaboration by linking different aspects of research and providing a clear view of co-authorships and other professional activities.
In summary, Symplectic Elements is a powerful research management system that streamlines the capture, analysis, and showcasing of scholarly activities, making it an essential tool for research organizations seeking to optimize their research management processes.