Jenny Raubenheimer and John van Niekerk
Considers the changes that have taken place, particularly during the past two years, and the impact that these changes have had on the interlending and document supply field in…
Abstract
Considers the changes that have taken place, particularly during the past two years, and the impact that these changes have had on the interlending and document supply field in terms of the use of the service by libraries, the quality of the service, bridging the information and digital divide, players in the field, access to information and overlapping services. The focus is on South Africa, but information and experiences from other countries have been used to illustrate the South African situation.
Details
Keywords
South Africa, as a new democracy, is currently driven by a vision of reconstruction and development. In the South African library environment, the focus is on rectifying serious…
Abstract
South Africa, as a new democracy, is currently driven by a vision of reconstruction and development. In the South African library environment, the focus is on rectifying serious inequalities in access to libraries and information and to address the demand for a more equitable distribution of library resources. These aspects, as well as economic factors, compel South African librarians to rethink the traditional ways of resource sharing and the development of library collections. The shift is towards an innovative resource‐sharing policy and subsequent formation of strategic alliances and the delivery of articles on demand as an alternative to the purchasing of journals. This involves the establishment of a library catalogue accessible to all and effective request and delivery mechanisms to meet the requirements posed by conditions in South Africa. The capabilities of advanced technology offer powerful means to meet these new challenges faced by libraries in South Africa.
Details
Keywords
Jenny Raubenheimer and John Stephen van Niekerk
– The purpose of this paper is to review interlending development in South Africa and current trends in interlending.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to review interlending development in South Africa and current trends in interlending.
Design/methodology/approach
Literature study and survey.
Findings
Interlending is still an essential service in South Africa. Interlending systems must be used effectively to ensure rapid delivery of requested interlibrary loans. There is a significant use of WorldShare ILL, but there is a scope for substantial development.
Research limitations/implications
This is not a comprehensive study but focusses on current interlending activities at some of the larger South African academic and special libraries and the use of Online Computer Library Centre systems.
Practical implications
The paper provides some historical information and the extent of current interlending and systems used.
Social implications
The paper gives an indication of the value of interlending in South Africa and its contribution to information provision.
Originality/value
The paper provides a snapshot of interlending in South Africa and areas for development.
Details
Keywords
The purpose of the paper is to investigate the enhancement of resource sharing with a state-of-the-art transportation system in a large open distance learning (ODL) institution in…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the paper is to investigate the enhancement of resource sharing with a state-of-the-art transportation system in a large open distance learning (ODL) institution in South Africa. The University of South Africa (UNISA) is an ODL institution, and it has the largest academic library of its kind in Africa. The University is acknowledged as one of the mega-universities of the world with a student body approaching 400 000. In addition to providing an inter-lending service to this large student body and to 3,000 staff, the UNISA Library is a net-lender within South Africa’s inter-lending and resource sharing network. The Library’s inter-lending service forms part of the request services available to all its clients and to the wider community of participating libraries. Daily, an average of 2000 requests is received for processing, retrieval and delivery. This paper provides a brief overview of how the Library’s request service is managed and will discuss the technologies used to speed up the request process. It focuses on an automated radio frequency identification (RFID) transportation system to be implemented as part of the 21st century, newly redesigned UNISA Library. To ensure the speedy availability of material on the shelves after return, this system automatically transports materials via a Paternoster book lift to the respective levels within the Library.
Design/methodology/approach
The methodology used in this investigation encompassed a literature study and a study visit to a library where this automated delivery system had been implemented and information was gained from relevant service suppliers.
Findings
The UNISA Library found that it is feasible to use the system in terms of the large number of books to be transported from drop-off points to the respective levels. In accordance with the investigation of the number of trolleys to be pushed daily by staff from one point to another, the installation of an automated system will allow more time for shelf maintenance staff to attend to the processing of requests for material and other important but less urgent duties. This will impact positively on the speed of delivery of requests submitted by ODL clients who cannot visit the libraries together with those submitted by local and international inter-library loan partners who depend on the UNISA Library as a net-lender for material not available in their own collections. This will impact positively on availability of material on the shelves and the speed of delivery of requests for information resources submitted by ODL clients who cannot visit the ODL libraries and inter-library loan partners, nationally and internationally, who depend on the UNISA Library as a net-lender for material not available in their own collections.
Originality/value
Because rapid delivery of requested information resources has become very important to ensure just in time information, it is important to implement an internal delivery system to support the inter-lending process. This study is useful for libraries that need to deliver many physical items to a large client body.