The National Digital Library Program contracted with the Image Permanence Institute (IPI) in Rochester New York, to produce a report providing recommendations for methods to evaluate the performance and products of scanning service providers. These methods include the use of standard "targets" and a description of the tools and devices needed to measure image quality. The principal investigators were James Reilly and Dr. Franziska Frey.
IPI is jointly sponsored by the Rochester Institute of Technology and the Society for Imaging Science and Technology and it is a non-profit, neutral, and independent scientific laboratory devoted to the advancement of knowledge of photographic preservation. It was established in 1985 and functions as an academic department within Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT).