An autumnal day in Aberystwyth
In my last post, I talked about the role of the Collections Care section in ensuring the sustainability of our holdings. In this post, I want to talk about some of the other key players in collections care.
Within the Library, we collaborate with colleagues in the Department of Collections Services to identify items which require conservation care. These are then listed in the section’s yearly operational plan.We work with the Acquisitions Section to evaluate the condition of new arrivals to the Library. An assessment is made of their conservation needs, with items which may pose a threat to humans or collections being moved to the quarantine areas.
We collaborate with the Building Facilities section to ensure a coordinated response to threats to the building and the collections. The Aberystwyth weather, together with determined seagulls, make this a challenge!
We are currently working with this section to audit our storage usage and capacity. The database which is being created will assist us to optimize our current storage capacity and plan for the future.
A view of the Small World exhibition
The Digital Development Section undertakes an extensive programme of digitisation to reflect our collections online. These digital copies safeguard the originals and we assist this section to ensure the preservation of the originals during the digitisation process.
The Systems and ICT sections are responsible for ensuring the integrity of digital data through the implementation of procedures and processes.The Digital Preservation Policy provides the strategic framework and specific preservation plans provide the operational guidance. Colleagues in the National Screen and Sound Archive for Wales ensure the preservation of the audio-visual material.
The Readers’ Services section is responsible for issuing items to our users.It ensures that surrogates are provided wherever possible. The policy on access requires that readers take due care of all items.
We also work with the Exhibitions section to enable our holdings to be mounted appropriately, such as is evident in the wonderful Small World exhibition.
We also collaborate with colleagues outside the NLW. Sharing knowledge and resources is essential in these tough times.
Sally McInnes, Collections Care Section