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New Web Form for Interlibrary Loan Requests

In the April 2006 issue of Gateways, we described a project to implement the Relais automated interlibrary loan and document delivery system in Document Supply Service at the National Library. We are happy to report that on 25 May a new web form (www.nla.gov.au/illweb) was launched for libraries not in the Libraries Australia Document Delivery (LADD) system to request materials from the Library’s collections.

Non-LADD libraries have been sending their requests to the Document Supply Service by email, fax or mail. As they fall outside the national document delivery system, they need to be processed, followed up and invoiced manually, creating inefficiencies which in turn impact on the overall service delivery performance of the section.

Since its partial implementation in late 2005, requests from non-LADD libraries have been input into Relais for better tracking and quicker processing. Although the bulk of interlibrary loan requests come via LADD, around 300 other requests are received each month, and it can take a large part of the day to input them manually.

To improve this situation the new web form was launched so that non-LADD libraries can enter their own requests for loans or copies, and for all service levels, namely ‘core’, ‘express’ and ‘rush’. Each library is assigned a unique login ID and password. They are able to update their library profile through the form and, most importantly, can track the progress of their own requests through the ‘List all requests’ and ‘List open requests’ functions on the web form.

So far more than 30 Australian libraries have used the web form and found it convenient and easy to use. Overseas libraries in Spain, the United States of America, Canada and Iceland have also expressed an interest in using the form.

Since introducing the web form, the number of email and fax requests received by the Document Supply Service have been gradually decreasing. The time we needed to manually input requests can now be channelled back into mainstream work. This means we have more resources to ensure a good document delivery service for all our customers.

If your library does not belong to LADD, please register to use our web form. Details about registration can be found on www.nla.gov.au/dss/nonregistered.html

Wan Wong
Document Supply Service