NISO Recommended Practice on Physical Delivery of Library Resources

“NISO Recommended Practice on Physical Delivery of Library Resources Available for Public Comment Identifies Methods for Reducing Resource Sharing Delivery Time and Costs 

The National Information Standards Organization (NISO) announces the availability of Physical Delivery of Library Resources (NISO RP-12-201x) for a public comment period ending on August 21, 2011. The physical delivery of library materials is an integral component of the library resource sharing process. Despite the ever-increasing availability of electronic journals, e-books, and other digital resources, the movement of physical items remains a major concern and a major cost for many libraries. In one state, borrowing of returnable items increased by 107.4% in six years. A recent study showed that the average academic library spends more than $6,800/year for delivery services, with some libraries paying as high as $60,000. 

NISO to Develop Recommended Practice for Physical Delivery of Library Materials Document

NISO to Develop Recommended Practice for Physical Delivery of Library Materials Document: aims to facilitate library resource sharing

 The National Information Standards Organization (NISO) Voting Members have approved a new work item to develop a Recommended Practice related to the physical delivery of library materials. NISO is pleased to announce that the Working Group roster for this project is now finalized, and work will be commencing with a kick-off call of the group on November 18, 2009. Building on the efforts of three recent projects-Moving Mountains, Rethinking Resource Sharing’s Physical Delivery Committee, and the American Library Association’s ASCLA ICANS’ Physical Delivery Discussion Group-the recommended practice document is proposed to include recommendations for:

packaging, shipping codes, labeling, acceptable turn-around time, lost or damaged materials handling, package tracking, ergonomic considerations, statistics, sorting, a set of elements to be used for comparison purposes to determine costs, linking of regional and local library carriers, and international delivery.