Services & Roadmap
What the PID Coordination Hub Can Do for You – Now and in the Future
The questions and answers below reflect the types of support, services, and guidance the PID Coordination Hub currently offers or aims to offer during the integration phase (2025–2026)
While some services are already in place, many are still in development and depend on community feedback, resource availability, and evolving priorities. We share this roadmap transparently to invite collaboration and manage expectations.
These plans are not fixed commitments, but part of a living framework that evolves with your input. They represent our aspirational vision for building a robust, interoperable, and inclusive PID ecosystem in support of NFDI consortia and the broader research community.
👉 Send us your most urgent questions, unmet needs, or use cases, they help us prioritize and refine the services we build next. We actively invite your engagement.
Status badge:
🟢 Available now 🟢 Mostly available 🟡 In development 🔵 Planned / exploratory (based on community need)
Frequently Asked Questions
🚀 Getting Started with PIDs
What types of Persistent Identifiers (PIDs) should our repository support, and what are they used for?🟢 Mostly available
The PID Coordination Hub helps you identify and prioritize key PIDs relevant to repository management, including DOIs (e.g. datasets/publications), ePIC handles, (e.g. datasets, instruments), ORCID iDs (researchers), RORs (institutions), and IGSNs (samples). We offer tailored guidance to ensure your system supports the most impactful identifiers for your community.
How do PIDs improve the FAIRness of our repository metadata?🟢 Mostly available
We provide training and reference materials that directly link PID use to FAIR principles. By embedding PIDs at the point of deposit and aligning metadata with standards like DataCite, FDO kernel profile, bioschemas & schema.org, we help make your repository content more Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable.
We’re a small team with limited resources. Can we still adopt PIDs?🟢 Mostly available
Absolutely. One of the core missions of the PID Coordination Hub is to reduce barriers to entry. We provide use-case examples, support the adoption of low-barrier services like B2INST for instrument PIDs, prefix registration support, and reusable templates for teams with limited capacity.
Will PID4NFDI become a PID registration service? 🟢 Available now
No. PID4NFDI will not act as a PID provider or registration agency. Instead, our role is to simplify and scale access to existing PID service providers, such as those offered by DataCite, ePIC, ORCID, and others, and to help the community get more value from the infrastructure already in place.
The PID Coordination Hub focuses on:
- Connecting you to the right PID services for your use case
- Supporting test prefix access and early-stage integration
- Coordinating best practices, metadata alignment, and policy development
- Helping institutions and consortia benefit from existing PID ecosystems without duplicating them
Can we get PIDs for free through PID4NFDI?🟢 Available now
Not exactly. While PID4NFDI is working to lower barriers to PID adoption, for example through free test prefixes during integration phases or by offering low-barrier services like B2INST, the registration and long-term maintenance of production-grade PIDs incur real costs.
PID infrastructure requires sustainable funding for system development, service availability, metadata preservation, and governance. Providers like DataCite, ePIC, and others operate on cost-recovery models. However, multiple cost-benefit analyses have shown that using PIDs reduces long-term administrative and technical costs by improving metadata quality, interoperability, and reuse.
The PID Coordination Hub supports institutions by:
- Helping identify the most cost-effective PID service options
- Providing planning templates for sustainable PID service integration
- Facilitating free test environments and pilot-level ePIC handle registration to support technical integration and evaluation
- Facilitating negotiations with PID providers (e.g. ePIC contracts) to ensure sustainability beyond the project phase
💬 If we had a PID for every time we got this question, we’d already have a fully linked graph.
⚙️ PID Integration and Technical Challenges
How can we integrate DOIs, ORCID iDs, and RORs into our metadata schema?🟡 In development (crosswalks, vocab mappings)
The Coordination Hub will provide crosswalks to align your schema with DataCite Metadata Schema 4.6, schema.org, and Bioschemas. We also offer access to controlled vocabularies and mappings to ensure clean, consistent PID usage across your records.
How can we ensure metadata completeness and quality in our repository?🟡 In development (dashboards, consultation framework)
We provide assessment checklists and reporting dashboards to evaluate metadata completeness and FAIR compliance. Additionally, the Metadata Consultation Framework and training modules offer support for improving metadata quality at the field level.
Can you help us define metadata granularity for complex objects?🟡 In development (best practices under discussion in focus groups)
Yes. We provide discipline-agnostic best practices for defining metadata at appropriate granularity (e.g., dataset subsets, instrument-level descriptions). This helps you represent research more accurately while staying interoperable.
Can we connect our repository with tools like ELNs or DMPs?🟡 In development (examples under discussions ongoing in focus groups)
Yes. We promote early PID integration in research workflows and collaborate with providers of Electronic Lab Notebooks (ELNs) and Data Management Plans (DMPs) to enable PID propagation from planning through publication.
What about versioning of datasets and tracking changes over time?🟡 In development (guidance in progress)
The Hub provides guidance on PID versioning strategies, including metadata versioning, and maintaining links between versions. This ensures persistent access and accurate citation.
How do we embed PIDs across the entire research lifecycle?🟡 In development (via Metadata consultation Framework)
We advise on early PID integration, starting with tools like DMPs and ELNs, so identifiers are captured at the planning stage and persist through publication, preservation, and reuse. This ensures consistency and reduces metadata fragmentation.
🔁 Lifecycle Integration and Interoperability
Can we connect our repository with tools like ELNs or DMPs?🟡 In development (examples under discussions ongoing in focus groups)
Yes. We promote early PID integration in research workflows and collaborate with providers of Electronic Lab Notebooks (ELNs) and Data Management Plans (DMPs) to enable PID propagation from planning through publication.
What about versioning of datasets and tracking changes over time?🟡 In development (guidance in progress)
The Hub provides guidance on PID versioning strategies, including metadata versioning, and maintaining links between versions. This ensures persistent access and accurate citation.
How do we embed PIDs across the entire research lifecycle?🟡 In development (via Metadata consultation Framework)
We advise on early PID integration, starting with tools like DMPs and ELNs, so identifiers are captured at the planning stage and persist through publication, preservation, and reuse. This ensures consistency and reduces metadata fragmentation.
🏛️ Policy, Licensing, and Governance
What license should we use for our metadata?🟢 Available now
We recommend applying CC0 for metadata to maximize reuse and support harvesting by PID Graphs and aggregators. We provide guidance on how to include this in your repository terms of use and metadata records.
📊 Monitoring, Reporting, and Impact
How do we evaluate the impact of PID integration on research discoverability?🟡 In development (via Metadata consultation Framework)
We help you analyze reuse patterns, citation links, and external referencing of your PIDs. This can be included in internal reports, funder assessments, or repository performance evaluations.
How can we use PIDs to improve institutional research reporting?🟡 In development
Persistent Identifiers can help make it easier to connect research outputs, contributors, and affiliations across systems. When used consistently, they may support more streamlined and reliable reporting processes. The PID Coordination Hub can advise on how to incorporate PIDs into your existing infrastructure in ways that could enhance transparency and interoperability, depending on your specific context and needs.
What impact can PIDs have on our institution’s visibility and reputation?🟢 Available now
By ensuring that your research outputs are discoverable and linked across systems via PIDs, you enhance citation potential, track reuse, and demonstrate value to funders, collaborators, and the public. The PID Coordination Hub provides templates and analytics to support institutional visibility reporting.
📚 Training, Community Support, and Knowledge Sharing
Where can I find clear, beginner-friendly materials to learn and teach the basics of PIDs?🟡 In development (expansion of content)
The PID Coordination Hub aims to offer curated, reusable materials including slide decks, speaker notes, factsheets, and recorded videos for introducing ORCID, DOI, ePIC, and ROR in the context of FAIR and Open Science. These are regularly updated to reflect current standards.
You can also explore resources available through the PID Network Germanys , which brings together national PID initiatives and offers complementary materials and insights.
Can you help me show PID integration with research tools like ELNs or DMPs?🟡 In development (examples under discussions ongoing in focus groups)
Yes. We offer examples that demonstrate how PIDs appear in lab notebooks, DMP tools, and repositories, and how metadata flows between them. These are excellent for showcasing lifecycle integration. We also run focus groups to learn from ongoing implementations, exchange lessons learned, and surface real-world challenges. You’re welcome to join these conversations via our events page , a dedicated focus group subpage will be available soon.
What if trainees ask implementation questions I can’t answer?🟢 Available now
We act as second-line support for trainers. You can contact us with questions, request written follow-ups, or invite a Hub expert to co-present a technical segment (e.g., API integration or metadata schema alignment) via the contact form on our website.
Can we share our experiences or learn from other repositories?🟢 Available now
Absolutely. The Coordination Hub runs a knowledge-sharing platform where you can contribute use cases, read about peer implementations, and join focus groups.
How do I stay up to date with PID-related developments?🟢 Available now
Visit our website, join our community calls and open hours, or reach out to us. We summarize key PID ecosystem changes, new tools, and policy updates, so your content is always current.
🧠 Leadership and Strategic Engagement
How do PIDs support our FAIR and Open Science goals?🟡 In development (expansion of content)
PIDs make research Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable. The Hub supports the integration of PIDs into your workflows and systems, enabling your institution to demonstrate leadership in FAIR data and align with open science mandates from funders and national strategies. PID adoption also improves reporting and visibility, while helping to save resources by reducing duplication, streamlining workflows, and lowering long-term data management costs.
How can I communicate the value of PIDs to institutional leadership or funders?🟡 In development (expansion of content)
We provide slide decks, speaking points, and policy briefs that explain how PID adoption supports:
- Research integrity and attribution
- Efficiency in reporting and metadata management
- Resource savings through automation, reduced duplication, and improved data quality
- Open Science leadership
- Reporting efficiency and compliance
- More accurate tracking of institutional research impact, including reuse and collaboration networks
- Global visibility and benchmarking
How do we align with national strategies or contribute to shaping them?🟢 Available now
The PID Coordination Hub actively engages with national and international standard-setting bodies. We help your institution stay aligned and can support you in contributing feedback or participating in pilots.
How do we ensure the sustainability of our PID infrastructure after the project phase?🟢 Available now
We help you develop sustainability plans, negotiate contracts with providers like ePIC or DataCite, and design governance models for long-term service operation. This includes cost estimates, integration support, and shared infrastructure strategies.