Description

ShelfScan, a web-based application developed in house at Sterling Memorial Library, has streamlined the shelving process at SML and Bass and expanded quality control at multiple libraries by verifying materials scanned with a Bluetooth scanner against the library database.

Prior to ShelfScan, when a book was shelved in the library stacks, it was first opened in order to insert a paper “recently shelved” flag; later it was revisited and reopened to check call number order. This manual accuracy checking did not reveal other anomalies such as incorrect collection, incorrect availability status, or catalog discrepancies. With ShelfScan, books are shelved in a more efficient fashion, and accuracy checking is provided by scanning sections of stacks. Scanning is scheduled at more convenient times because it is now dissociated from the shelving process.

Scanned barcodes are transmitted to a text file, which is uploaded to ShelfScan along with user-input parameters, including the location/collection of the material scanned. ShelfScan builds two virtual files of barcodes: a File Order Table, which holds the records in the order they were scanned, and a Sorted Records Table, which sorts by call number. By comparing these tables and mining data from the library catalog database, the application produces an exception report that identifies incorrectly shelved items and many other types of errors. All history is maintained in an SQL Server database, which allows for the creation of dynamic statistical reports with SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS). These reports in turn inform decisions about which areas need ongoing scanning.

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ShelfScan: Streamlining library shelving, expanding quality control

ShelfScan, a web-based application developed in house at Sterling Memorial Library, has streamlined the shelving process at SML and Bass and expanded quality control at multiple libraries by verifying materials scanned with a Bluetooth scanner against the library database.

Prior to ShelfScan, when a book was shelved in the library stacks, it was first opened in order to insert a paper “recently shelved” flag; later it was revisited and reopened to check call number order. This manual accuracy checking did not reveal other anomalies such as incorrect collection, incorrect availability status, or catalog discrepancies. With ShelfScan, books are shelved in a more efficient fashion, and accuracy checking is provided by scanning sections of stacks. Scanning is scheduled at more convenient times because it is now dissociated from the shelving process.

Scanned barcodes are transmitted to a text file, which is uploaded to ShelfScan along with user-input parameters, including the location/collection of the material scanned. ShelfScan builds two virtual files of barcodes: a File Order Table, which holds the records in the order they were scanned, and a Sorted Records Table, which sorts by call number. By comparing these tables and mining data from the library catalog database, the application produces an exception report that identifies incorrectly shelved items and many other types of errors. All history is maintained in an SQL Server database, which allows for the creation of dynamic statistical reports with SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS). These reports in turn inform decisions about which areas need ongoing scanning.