  We have released an archive of all observational data of the VUV spectrometer
Solar Ultraviolet Measurements of Emitted Radiation (SUMER) on SOHO that has
been acquired until now. The operational phase started with 'first light'
observations on 27 January 1996 and will end in 2014. Future data will be added
to the archive when they become available. The archive consists of a set of raw
data (Level 0) and a set of data that are processed and calibrated to the best
knowledge we have today (Level 1). This communication describes step by step
the data acquisition and processing that has been applied in an automated
manner to build the archive. It summarizes the expertise and insights into the
scientific use of SUMER spectra that has accumulated over the years. It also
indicates possibilities for further enhancement of the data quality. With this
article we intend to convey our own understanding of the instrument performance
to the scientific community and to introduce the new, standard-FITS-format
database.
