Update on recent additions to Library resources 2010/11!

        

UMF (university Modernisation Fund) provided additional library funding for: 

• Replacement Library Management System.  The system we have had for more than 10 years is being replaced by ‘Heritage’, supplied by IS Oxford http://www.isoxford.com/heritage/core      

Heritage is due to go live mid-July.  The new system is considerably cheaper than the previous one, and should integrate better with registry software, Gateway and ClickView.  It also handles e-resource cataloguing better, and customer support is also significantly improved.

• New ‘Epod’ 6-seater hexagonal study ‘island’ installed in the main books area, and is proving popular.

•   New 3-seater study carrel installed at the front of the library.

 

•  Approximately 16 new computers purchased for the two new study areas mentioned above, and to meet student demand for additional computers in the Reading Room.

• A portfolio of 150 Case Studies from Datamonitor  for use in teaching andlearning (predominantly food and drinks industries related).

• More than 700 e-book titles added to the Dawsonera  e-book platform www.dawsonera.com – this includes a significant number of key texts.

The library was also recently awarded another£5000 to spendon e-resources and we have used this primarily to increase our e-books provision, again on the Dawsonera platform.  Some of this has been‘patron-driven acquisition’ in that a number of titles that we purchased have been recommended by students (who can preview all the titles available on Dawsonera, but not necessarily access as full-text until we buy them).

Some Quick facts and figures

• The Library is open for 73 hours per week during term-time.
• Our e-books provision now totals over 70,000 titles (across 2 different platforms)
• The number of open-access workstations in the library is now 32 (plus 3 library catalogue opacs).
• The total number of electronic databases is around 30 (a mixture of A & I, full-text, market research etc).
• In 09/10 we loaned 42,595 books to students (approx. 40 books per student) – in line with the national HE average.  This was the highest figure for at least 7 years, and represents something like a 40% increase in ‘business’ at the issue desk.  

• In total we receive over 4,000 journal titles per year (made up of print only, electronic only, print and e- combined, paid for and freely available, single title purchases and large ‘bundles’ of titles such as ScienceDirect).
• The exact number of visits made by students to the Library is difficult to calculate precisely but the percentage increase from 05/06 to 09/10 is around 36%.

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