Republican Laboratory for Digital Copying of Documents of the National Archival Fund of the Republic of Belarus

Historical background

The Republic-level Technical Laboratory for Security Microfilming of Permanent Records (RTLM SFD) dates its origin from August 1981, when the Special Laboratory for Microfilming of Scientific Documentation was established at the Gomel “Luch” Design Bureau. Methodical guidance was provided by the Research Institute of Economics and Radioelectronics Information at the Ministry of Radioindustry of the USSR. The laboratory conducted microfilming of technical documents attached to special engineering products produced by the “Vympel” Central Scientific-Production Incorporation  and the Ministry of Radioindustry with their further transfer to the repository of security copies (in the town of Protva, Kaluga Region, Russia).

In March 1992, the laboratory came under the jurisdiction of the Gomel Division of Belarusian Railway. 

On August 20, 1993 the laboratory was included into the State Archival Service of the Republic of Belarus in subordination to the Committee for Archives and Records Management under the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus, and received its present name. The main activity of the laboratory was the creation of security copies for the most valuable records held in the state archives by means of microphotocopying.

In 2001, with the advance of new computer technologies the laboratory began to transfer the most valuable records onto electronic media with the purpose of creating their reference or convenience copies.