building collections together in the east china region

Library Acguwrrons: Practice Theory, Vol. pp. 295-301, Prmted m the USA. All rights reserved

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PAPERS FROM CHINA

BUILDING COLLECTIONS TOGETHER IN THE EAST CHINA REGION

CHEN SHU

Shanghai Teacher’s University Library

10 Guilin Road

Shanghai, China 200234

Abstract - This paper concentrates on a coordinated collection development policy for libraries and other relevant organizations in the East China region. It ex- amines the need for such a policy by presenting the historical background, by providing some important data and by examining the best way to develop resource sharing throughout the whole country.

THE NEED FOR COORDINATION

Collection building now means cooperation and coordination. Why is this so? Tradition- ally, libraries built collections to meet the specific needs of their particular clientele in the East China region. That pattern has changed considerably in the last five to ten years. To respond quickly to the rapid increase in books and periodicals and to the tremendous increase in the quantity and scope of information available, many librarians in this region are now prepar- ing for technical advances in shared cataloging systems and communication networks that provide improved access to materials not held in individual libraries. They have already recognized that the concept of self-sufficiency is a myth and that the resources of any single library cannot satisfy all user needs either in the present or in the future. With growing budgetary con- straints every year, few, if any, libraries try to buy the 700,000 volumes published worldwide.

The fundamental premise is that no library can possess a substantial part of world literature or even any part exhaustively, except in the most narrowly defined subject areas. For example, it costs about $180,000 to buy foreign books and periodicals in various libraries in the East China region every year, but the result is that only 5.9% of available foreign publications are bought. Are all these collections broad enough to be regarded as at research level? The answer is “no.” The impossibility of possessing all material in one place is accentuated by the exponentially expanding mass of printed materials being produced and the increasing cost of acquiring any of this material. Of course, an adequate concept of the expenses involved

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must also include personnel, space, processing, and maintenance costs. The consequence is that even those budgets that are increased annually have significantly less buying power than their predecessors.

In addition, foreign publications have been duplicated in East China libraries. The average duplication rate is 8:1, which is now double the rate in Russia. Each foreign publication is more expensive than a Chinese librarian’s monthly salary. However, about 90% of foreign documents in East China libraries are unused. Why is it that, on the one hand, the volumes in Q category of the Chinese library classification in the East China region amount to almost ten times as many as the National Library (Beijing Library), while, on the other hand, all the titles in this category in the East China region account for only 47.8% of the Beijing Library collection? Except for academic libraries, the budget for purchasing books and periodicals in the East China region is almost twice that of the Beijing Library, but the average number of titles bought in any one subject in the East China region is only 25% of the Beijing Library figure.

To offset these weaknesses, the libraries in this region are obliged to begin cooperating in order to obtain materials that they do not see themselves capable of buying independently. Such cooperative collection building will make it possible to achieve both comprehensiveness and depth in certain areas. There are similar programs elsewhere-British cooperative programs, the American Farmington Plan, the Scandia Plan, and German cooperation-coop- eratively acquiring materials in their own designated areas of specialization.

However, there are differences in the Chinese situation. The key feature of Chinese library cooperation, to which the centralized model draws attention, is the extent of state power-a contrast with the situation in Western countries where state power is limited. In 1957 the Chi- nese State Council issued the “Nationwide Coordination Scheme for Books,” which stipulates that Beijing’s First Center Library Committee, along with nine regional centers, was established to contribute to cooperative acquisition and the compilation of union catalogs. The In- terministerial Coordination Committee for Library and Information Service has also been established. Leadership in Chinese library cooperation schemes has enhanced the ability to plan and manage in many areas, particularly in providing a bridge between national and local areas. This leadership is certain to assist in the East China region.

Cooperation, simply defined as voluntarily joining together for mutual benefit according to the Western explanation, has been a goal of East China librarians, partly guaranteed by state power. This means that two or more libraries are obliged to engage in a common pattern of information exchange through communication for some functional purpose and benefit from each other as a result of economizing in library resources and avoiding unnecessary duplication.

COOPERATIVE COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT IN THE EAST CHINA REGION

Cooperative collection building should always be within a framework of cooperative collection development. Maybe East China libraries have learned from Western experience. Just as the English proverb says, “Many a little makes a mickle,” so cooperative collection development includes cooperative acquisition and purchasing. It is a system for organizations (libraries, archives, or documentary centers) at local, regional, and even national levels to ensure that one copy of each publication is held in the geographical area concerned. It usu- ally consists of a formal arrangement whereby materials, information, and services provided by various types of library and/or other organizations are made available to all potential users.

Building Collections in East China 297

Cooperative collection development may be classified according to difference dimensions such as:

1. functions performed: a) acquisitions, b) processing, c) storage, d) reference, e) delivery;

2. type of library (e.g., public, college, special, school); 3. subject matter (e.g., medicine, chemistry, social sciences); 4. type of material (e.g., bibliographic databases, journals, books); 5. form materials (e.g., print, non-print); 6. nature of cooperative arrangement (e.g., formal or informal); 7. means of financing; 8. tax status (e.g., profit vs non-profit).

On the basis of such dimensions librarians in the East China region have been fully aware of their ability to build collections together. It is well known that this region, covering Shang- hai municipality and the provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, and Fujian, boasts of its favourable geography, abundant natural resources, prosperous economy, flourishing science, convenient transport facilities, thriving publishing industry, and efficient management. Sim- ilarly, documentary resources are the richest in China. Research level units in the East China region total 662, almost 4.5 times as many as in the West China region and 3.5 times as many as in the Central region. Total documentary resources, including books and periodicals, con- stitute as much as one-third of those for the whole country. Periodicals in this region consti- tute 40% of the total for China. Having the advantage over other cities in many ways, Shanghai is an important cultural center with many universities, research institutes, and libraries. Situated at the Yangtse estuary, Shanghai has no doubt made greater contributions to the East China region than any other city, particularly with its network of library and information services.

To do even better, some effective cooperative collection development arrangements have been worked out among those library collections that are compatible with one another, either is relation to strengths or to weaknesses in a particular area. Many librarians have also con- sulted formally or informally about purchasing expensive items. For example, East China Uni- versity, Fudan University, Jiaotong University, Tongji University, East China Chemical Industry College, Nanjing University, Eastsouth University, Zhejiang University, Shandong University, and Shandong Oceanic University have joined together and established a coordination subcommittee for foreign periodicals, saving about $300,000. Of course, cooperative periodical acquisition is simpler to organize than cooperative book acquisition. The Shang- hai Academic Library and Information Committee has also organized 61 universities for cooperative acquisition and cataloging. In addition, special libraries have jointly organized under the leadership of the Shanghai Documentation and Information Center of the Chinese Acad- emy of Sciences. Many librarians in Shanghai, Zhejiang, Shandong, and Jiangsu have tried to obtain foreign literature on the basis of coordination through a series of imported book exhibitions. Since 1987 there have been about 15 joint book fairs for buying foreign books, sponsored by one of the libraries in this region. The university librarians in Shandong prov-

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ince excelled at this, laying down cooperative acquisitions rules for foreign documents and set- ting up a bibliographic center. Following this, the library network in that area has operated efficiently.

Even so, we must also know about important aspects of cooperative collection development and learn how to carry it out.

1. Collection assessment has been very useful as a first step towards cooperative collection development. With a few exceptions, almost all libraries in the East China region have investigated their documentary resources and layout. Assessment tools included measure- ment of purchasing funds, size of the current collection, user appraisal, and collection level indicators.

2. A conspectus structure has been the result of rating collections in the East China region. Conspectus, defined as a summary or overview, provides a common framework based on the Chinese library classification system for the identification of current collection strengths, weaknesses, future collecting intensities, and languages of materials. It is also a mechanism for locating needed research materials by serving as a basis for cooperative collection on a regional basis. In accordance with conspectus, the collections of eight East China libraries in the B category of the Chinese library classification have recently been on the research level. Why do these eight libraries not formally engage in cooperative collection development to benefit from each other’s strengths and to make up for each other’s deficiencies? Of course, they can do so. The regional conspectus is vital to provide local librarians with a management tool to adapt their collections more closely to the goal of cooperative collection development while also providing a means of inter- nal analysis to assist with purchasing decisions.

3. Bibliographic access serves as an easy way to any documentary resources. It is very important that a body be designated as a legal depository, responsible for producing a regional bibliography and a regional union catalog for all libraries, including academic, public, and other libraries.

4. Physical access bridges any gaps in collections. The use of telecommunications and/or reciprocal borrowing rights in the East China region will certainly assist those who do not have the opportunity to visit the library with the materials they need.

All libraries in the East China region will sooner or later be sure to participate in this kind of cooperative program that is designed to increase services and expand collections available to users. Computer-based systems will also have a great impact on the operation and services of libraries throughout the East China region.

Of course, there may be some disadvantages of a cooperative program.

1. The influence of various cooperative agreements will reduce the autonomy of individual libraries.

2. The reluctance of large libraries to participate-because of the danger of being overutilized without compensation-will hinder cooperation.

3. Lack of finance to cover the cost of coordination will automatically stop cooperative activities.

However, the benefits of cooperative collection building, in the form of greater service to library users, will outweigh these disadvantages. We will strive for more, not less, cooperation in the East China region.

Budding Collections in East Chma 299

RESOURCE SHARING IN EAST CHINA LIBRARIES

Cooperative collection building cannot exist without resource sharing. We often find that more time is spent talking about the benefits of cooperation than is spent building a network of resource sharing. Without an effective interlibrary loan network, unified acquisitions cannot even be achieved; and without efficient telecommunication and delivery systems the imple- mentation of lending schemes is inconceivable. This is why we draw attention to resource sharing. There is no doubt that cooperative collection development is guaranteed by resource sharing in East China libraries, and resource sharing furthers the network is this region.

There are about 171 university libraries, 231 research institute libraries, and 433 public libraries in the East China region. Besides the advantage of science and technology in those libraries, only four library collections in Shanghai account for as much as 20% of the 30 larg- est collections in China. These four libraries plan to provide 70%-80% of all foreign literature in Shanghai. Given such a favorable context, the resource sharing network in East China occupies a decisive position in the country as a whole.

What is resource sharing? On the basis of cooperative collection development it denotes an apportioning mode of operation whereby library functions are shared among a number of libraries for the purpose of improving services and cutting costs. It entails reciprocity in its most positive aspects, implying a partnership in which each member has something useful to contribute to others, such as collections, bibliographic data, and personnel planning activities. Each is willing and able to make available the particular resource when needed.

The desiderata for resource-sharing partners in the East China region can be identified and will ensure progress within the cooperative scheme:

1. a collection useful to several institutions; 2. bibliographic apparatus (already available, or a willingness to develop this) which will be:

a) accessible and usable by several clienteles, b) able to instigate delivery efficiently;

3. “equal” distribution of unique resources; 4. willingness to engage in an enforceable agreement.

With regard to such desiderata, librarians in Shanghai or other provinces already have their own interlibrary loan and reproduction copies, bibliographical resources, exchange services, and cooperative activities. Several large libraries have embraced computer technology, and these are occupied in the automation of library processes and operations. Computerization has gradually taken on in many medium and small libraries also. They are seeking the best way to share resources. Now that resource sharing with computers and telecommunications has become an irresistible trend in the East China region, librarians accept it.

Up to now there have been three grades of documentary resource arrangements. The first relates to each library’s collection, the second to regional centers, the third to national centers. Combining different library systems with different subjects, we recognize that all collections in various kinds of library and/or other organizations must totally satisfy 85% of users’ needs in the East China region. For instance, some document centers, each covering one subject, bear the responsibility of meeting the requirements of 80% of users in this region, while other special libraries cater to the remaining 5% of users. These document centers are either large academic libraries or public libraries on the provincial level, and those special libraries are only research institute libraries. The Beijing Library and/or some other special libraries beyond the East China region must satisfy the other 15% of user needs not catered to by collections in the East China region.

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From the librarian’s point of view everything seems ready except that which is crucial- sufficient funds. Without sponsorship, interlibrary loans, bibliographic access, and cooperative acquisitions will suffer. Resource sharing needs sufficient funds to operate and be maintained. It is suggested that librarians and the China International Book Trade Company (CBC) make joint efforts to set up a Library Cooperation Foundation. Judging by the social- ist economy and political culture in the East China region, book buyers and vendors depend on each other for their existence and even have better relationships that those in Western countries. So long as they are under the leadership of the unified coordination committee for library and information science, all the libraries in the East China region are willing to favor CBC with strong buying power on a mutually beneficial basis. CBC will not refuse to help them to acquire more books of good quality with less money and build the resource sharing network. Any financial difficulties will surely be solved through close cooperation, among not only libraries but also buyers and vendors.

In short, everything will be easy if we think and act to take account of distinctive regional features. Depending on the resource sharing network, there are at least five requirements for cooperative collection building:

1. precise understanding of collection use-no desire for local self-sufficiency and no fear of becoming overutilized without compensation;

2. provide a clearinghouse for collection development information; 3. bibliographic apparatus (including union list reference services) capable of permitting

adequate access; 4. as rapid a delivery system as users are willing to pay for with interlibrary loan postal and

telephone services and facsimile transmission; 5. delegation of network authority to:

a) purchase in a coordinated fashion; b) provide administrative functions to assure consistent service with adequate funding.

There must be no legal, physical, or geographical barriers; no inertia, indifference, unwilling- ness to change; and no loss of autonomy.

CONCLUSION

Based on the need to cooperate with each other, cooperative collection development in East China should result in a resource sharing network. This will provide such an impetus since librarians in this region are acquiring materials to satisfy not only the needs of their clientele but also those of other cooperating institutions. This process, from beginning to end, is cooperative collection development.

The goal of building collections together in the East China region is to maximize the avail- ability of materials and services at minimal expense. The emphasis is on access through the network of libraries rather than on possession alone. As a result of this, cooperative programs succeed only as long as each participant perceives them as beneficial to the institution.

Learning from what has been done and will be done in East China, we can expect that all libraries in China will also take part in the process of building collections at the national level sooner or later.

Building Collections in East China 301

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Luqure, W. Coordinating Cooperative Collection Development. New York: Haworth, 1986. Mosher, P.H. et al., A National Scheme for Collaboration in Collection Development, New York: Haworth, 1986. Prytherch, Ray, Harrod’s Librarians' Glossary, 6th ed. London: Gower Publishing, 1987. Sinclair, M. “A Typology of Library Cooperatives,” Special Libraries, 1973, 181-186. Xiao Zili and Li Xiuyu, “The Investigation and Rational Layout of Documentary Information Resources in China,”

Bulletin of the China Socrety of Library Science, 4, (1990). Young, Heartsill, The ALA Glossary of Library and Information Science. Chicago, Ill.: American Library Associ-

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building collections together in the east china region

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