There seems to be paucity in the research into the collection of data for use in simulation. This is rather unfortunate since data quality and availability are two of the most challenging issues in many simulation projects. This paper discusses how simulation practitioners identify and collect data for simulation projects. The data was collected from ORH Ltd, a management consultancy company using participant observations method and an experiment using a mock case scenario. From the observation, we produce a generic data identification and collection method. The method is evaluated using a real project conducted for a UK Ambulance Service.
The experiment reveals variations in the data identification process that are influenced by the role and the level of experience of modellers.