Page, Scan, Send, Reshelve: A Mobile Scanning Station (Cart) for Interlibrary Loan Electronic Document Delivery Service
Xuan Pang, Lara Jamison Beserock, Ashley Monahan · Journal of Library Resource Sharing · 2021
The Access and Resource Sharing Department (ARS) project team, in a library at a large research–intensive university, was awarded a libraries’ strategic opportunities grant in August 2019 to create and test the efficiency of a mobile scanning cart, and expedite a new scanning workflow and procedure for electronic document delivery and lending. The mobile station includes an overhead portable book scanner, a height adjustable cart, a rechargeable battery pack, a laptop computer and other accessories. This scan-beside-the-stacks initiative eliminates duplicate workflow and procedures, reduces human error of re-shelving, improves operational efficiency, improves electronic document delivery and electronic lending turnaround time, and saves staff time and library money. This initiative minimizes the duration that print collections are taken off the shelf, thus assuring patron access to library collections. This mobile station may be the only such scan-beside-the-stacks methodology in use in U.S. academic libraries. This technology also allows a single employee to handle all items to complete the digital conversion of print materials and reduces the risk of coronavirus transfer between library staff members during the COVID-19 pandemic.Supplemental data for this article is available online at https://doi.org/10.1080/1072303X.2022.2030842 .