Symplectic Elements Product Update: Release v6.13

We have continued the redesign and expansion of our Groups functionality, started in our last release. For v6.13, we have made further expansions to the Groups data model, adding support for configurable descriptive group types and introducing Group privacy settings. We have also begun to make this data available for re-use by adding it to the Reporting Database and the API. These enhancements are part of a bigger initiative which aims to to help organisations capture a wider range of metadata about their internal groupings and to significantly streamline the management of groups. 

Symplectic Elements Product Update: Release v6.13

This release also includes the last major batch of enhancements to the Assessment Module coming out of our Assessment UX review last year. In this release we’ve introduced a number of new configuration options for the Module including a new ‘Viewer role’, and options to restrict the download of attachments. We’ve also made a number of smaller improvements to further streamline the user experience within the Module based on feedback from early adopters of the new Assessment functionality.  We recently held a webinar about some of the new use cases you can now use the Assessment Module to support; if you missed it you can catch up with it on demand via our website

For clients using the Research Funding Solution (RFS), this is a very exciting release which includes enhancements to the RFS finance system integration particularly to support ingesting project income and expenditure data. We’ve also introduced new project relationships, made enhancements to the review and approval functionality and introduced new quick actions for administrators. 

Alongside this release, we are launching a new version of the Elements API. This new endpoint supports the introduction of the new group-related data, as well as making a number of breaking changes which move the API in step with changes made in the product since the last API version was released. We have also made a number of other improvements, many of which were based on feedback and requests from our community. Thank you for your continued contributions through the support site and your conversations with our team.  

We would also like to make you aware that registration for this year’s European user day, planned for early July, will open shortly. If you would be interested in presenting a client spotlight or sharing your experience with a particular element of research information management during the event, please reach out to us – we’d love to hear from you.

With this partnership, we have the opportunity to position ourselves as
a world leader in the development of the scholarly ecosystem.

Keith Webster, Dean of University Libraries, Carnegie Mellon

I cannot overstate how pleased we have been.
We have to have confidence to work with a partner
for at least 5 years on a project of this size.

Caleb Smith, Senior Strategy Manager for Research Intelligence & Analytics, University of Michigan

“Faculty need only spend perhaps less than an hour a year to prepare and submit their annual reports.”

Associate Dean, Carnegie Mellon University at Qatar

"Leveraging the interoperability between Symplectic Elements and DSpace has increased policy-driven institutional repository deposits by over 350%."

Ellen Phillips, Open Access Specialist, Boston University

Elements elegantly connected our multi-university system providing a
single source of truth throughout OIEx.

Tim Cain, The Ohio Innovation Exchange (OIEx)

The University measures the individual research activity of academic staff. This Measure of Research Activity (MoRA) requires the collection of publication data from faculty. Symplectic Elements supports this beautifully.

Floris van der Leest, Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia

[Elements] will help to bring transparency to the richness of thought showcased within non-traditional publications, providing a more holistic representation of faculties’ scholarly work.

Caleb Smith, University of Michigan

Feedback to date has been extremely positive from all levels across the University, with individual academics and colleagues actively promoting the ease of use of the system.

Rachel Baird, Research Policy Analyst, University of Liverpool