Developing resource sharing in the UAE:

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Developing resource sharing in the UAE

• The first union catalogue in the Gulf
  region
• Sybil Harrison
• Higher Colleges of Technology
• Abu Dhabi, U.A.E.

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Trends in inter-lending

• Rising user expectations
• User-initiated services
• Portal approach discover print and electronic
  resources in one search
• Enhancements to online catalogues
• Blurring of collections and access activities
• Increased globalization holdings of the unified
  catalogue in OCLCs WorldCat
• Source Future of inter-lending by Mary E.
  Jackson (http//www.nla.gov.au/ilds/abstracts/Jack
  sonM.pdf)

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Consortium activity started with a vision

• The vision for the national higher education
  libraries is that all students, faculty and staff
  will have timely and efficient access to the
  collections and resources of all the libraries
• Library cooperation vision document (Sept. 2001)

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Shared venturesthe key to achieving the vision

• Acquire and implement a common state-of-the art
  integrated library system
• Formalize interlibrary loan agreements
• Develop and implement reciprocal borrowing
  agreements among our libraries

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Expected benefits of resources sharing in the
UAE

• Same front-end interface to all resources
• Improved access to a wider-range of resources
• Opportunity to focus on purchasing materials that
  meet specific curricular needs and on sharing
  peripheral and specific research resources

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Shared ventures, but respect local needs

• Three installations of same software not one
  installation to serve three institutions
• Local circulation policies, some local
  differences in cataloguing, local item
  description
• Flexibility to meet local needs, but at same time
  establish a collective resource that is accessed
  in a seamless fashion

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Process to achieve the vision

• Step One Define the vision
• Step Two Review systems
• Step Three IIIs Millennium and
  Inn-Reach products chosen
• Step Four Implement Millennium locally
• Step Five Implement Inn-Reach

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Benefits of Inn-Reach

• User-initiated requests
• Circulation transactions on local system
• Ease of passing-along search
• De-duped bibliographic records
• Multi-library holdings on single record
• Real-time circulation status on unified system
• High level of local control

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Inn-Reach has a proven track-record

• Seventy-two libraries, including eleven using
  Innovative's INN-Reach, were surveyed in
  Assessing ILL/DD Services New Cost-Effective
  Alternatives. The study compared four
  user-initiated options (INN-Reach, ILLNET, RAPID,
  and URSA), mediated interlibrary loan, and
  commercial document delivery. By a number of
  measures, libraries using INN-Reach had the most
  cost effective and fastest solution. INN-Reach
  had lower mean staff costs for lending (2.14)
  and borrowing (2.56) than any other solution.
  Turnaround time for lending (2.4 hours) and
  borrowing (2.5 days) was faster than any
  client-initiated method or mediated ILL. The
  study, "recommends moving as much mediated ILL
  traffic as soon as possible to a user-initiated
  service as soon as possible."
• Source Innovative Interfaces January 2005 email
  update

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Record contribution and borrowing with Inn-Reach
Patron Request
Patron Request
Item Circulated
INN-Reach Catalog Server
Patron Verified
Item Request
Local System
Local System
Request Filled
Item Sent
Record Contribution
Local System
Local System
Source Tim Auger, InnReach Product Manager
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How does it work for the user?

• User searches local catalogue
• If no results are found, click on button and
  search is passed on to the union catalogue
• User is presented with holdings of other
  member-libraries
• If user wants an item, simply click on request
• Request is processed automatically

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How does it work for staff?

• Requests placed on central server are sent to
  local system
• Staff retrieve requested items. Items are
  checked-out and sent to the requesting
  institution
• Staff at local library check-in requested items
  a virtual item is created and checked-out to
  the patron
• Accurate tracking at both local systems, updated
  status on the unified catalogue

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Where we are at

• Weve faced the hard questions Who can borrow
  what? Which institution will provide the
  master bibliographic record?
• Policy questions the consortium is addressing
  complaint process across three institutions,
  replacement costs, delivery of materials, access
  to electronic resources, document delivery of
  non-lendable materials, how do we pay for shared
  servers and services
• The bi-lingual, bi-script environmentaddressing
  Arabic name and subject authority

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Can we join the party?

• Other institutions are interested in joining the
  consortium, private and public
• Observer status of American University of Sharjah
  
• Consortium considering criteria for accepting new
  partners

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Coming soon!

• Launch September 2005
• For more information
• Sybil Harrison
• Technical Services Supervisor
• Higher Colleges of Technology, Abu Dhabi
• sybil.harrison_at_hct.ac.ae