The Information and Research Services Unit uses these procedures whenever a patron asks for a standard, technical paper, report, etc. The borrower and Resource Sharing Librarian are responsible for procuring the appropriate documents and keeping track of the items we already have purchased.
- Check that we do not have access to the document though library holdings. This could be the print technical reports on the 6th floor or through one of our digital libraries (SAE, ASTM, etc.).
- Check the spreadsheets (located in the standards & technical reports libguides) to be sure the item has not already been purchased. If it has not been purchased, proceed. If it has been purchased, retrieve the item from the location indicated in the spreadsheet. PDF files are kept on the external hard drive on Maggie’s desk, which can be borrowed if Maggie is out.
- Bring the request to the Interlibrary Loan Librarian or the borrower for ordering. If they are unavailable, proceed with the remaining steps. (When acting as borrower, proceed with the remaining steps.)
- Find where you will order the item (the standards LibGuide can help with this).
- If the item is a standard or report, under $500, and in English proceed with the order.
- If the item is an article, use your discretion and professional judgement to determine if the cost of the item is reasonable or contact the Resource Sharing Librarian for advice.
- Obtain the credit card and information from the Resource Sharing Librarian or borrower. Check to see if we already have an account for the site where you are going to order the item.
- Place your order. Be sure to print your receipt.
- Sign your receipt and turn it in to the Resource Sharing Librarian or the borrower when returning the card and information.
- These receipts will be kept for recordkeeping purposes, and copies will go to Tammy Crane.
If the same patron is requesting more than a few standards, reports, or documents that must be ordered, ask them if they truly need all these items and explain the cost to the library for procuring these items. If they cannot scale back their needs, proceed with the order, but encourage them to find alternative sources where they can.
If at any time you’re unsure if we own an item, feel free to bring it up with the Resource Sharing Librarian or borrower. They can check previous purchases for you to be sure we don’t already have what the patron needs.