Workshop 5 December 2011Christine Ellwood

Assistant Director (Content)

University of York

Copac CCM tools projectSubject strengths

Identifying collection strengths

Aim Identify collections which will be of particular value and significance in the

long term (Heritage collections) Definition

National or international significance for the research community Key constituents of the “National Distributed Research Collection” advocated

in reports from the RIN and others Evidence required (either or both of)

National holdings: Collection is particularly extensive compared with the holdings of other UK libraries for the same subject area

Unique and rare titles: Collection contains high concentration of items which are rare or unique (i.e. few copies are recorded in Copac)

Method Without the CCM tool: based primarily on subjective assessments by staff

familiar with the collections in question With the CCM tool: use statistical evidence drawn from the Copac database

Case study Colour chemistry at Leeds

Existing knowledge Holdings particularly rich as there was a

Department of Dyeing in the original 19th century Yorkshire College

Comparison with Chemistry Selected items with an ISBN in Colour Chemistry

and Chemistry Search

ISBN to accommodate existence of duplicate records for the same title within the Copac database

National holdings

Test the ‘Heritage’ criterion:

The Colour Chemistry collection is particularly

extensive compared with the holdings of other UK libraries

for the same subject area

Colour chemistry - national holdingsLeeds is shown to hold significantly more items than any other library, so this collection is indeed exceptional. Only 1 other library (the BL) holds 2/3 of the titles.

Colour Chemistry

Chemistry - national holdingsThe holdings for Chemistry are also strong and no other library bar the BL can manage more than 75% of the titles held by Leeds. Only 5 other libraries hold 2/3 of the titles.

Chemistry

National holdingsComparison summary

Colour chemistry Leeds is shown to hold significantly more items than any other

library, so this collection is indeed exceptional. Only 1 other library (the BL) holds 2/3 of the titles.

Chemistry The holdings for Chemistry are also strong and no other library

bar the BL can manage more than 75% of the titles held by Leeds. 5 other libraries hold 2/3 of the titles.

Copac CCM tool added value Comparisons are quick and easy Graphs demonstrate differences in a striking visual manner Results suggest it might be possible to describe in quite

precise and mathematical terms the difference between a heritage collection and one which is merely “strong”

Unique and rare titles

Test the ‘Heritage’ criterion:

Collection contains a high concentration of items which are unique or rare (i.e. few

copies are recorded in Copac)

Colour chemistry – unique and rare titlesThe graph shows that a relatively high proportion of items are only held in Leeds. It is possible to drill down and identify these items. There is also a relatively high proportion of items held in a small number of libraries.

Colour Chemistry

Chemistry – unique and rare titlesFor Chemistry as a whole the proportion of titles held only in Leeds is much lower.

Chemistry

Unique and rare titlesComparison summary

Colour chemistry The graph shows that a relatively high proportion of items are only held in Leeds. It is possible to drill down and identify these items. There is also a relatively high proportion of items held in a small number of

libraries. Chemistry

The proportion of titles held only in Leeds is much lower. Copac CCM tool added value

Comparisons are quick and easy Graphs demonstrate differences in a striking visual manner Specific unique or rare titles can be identified and then marked for retention in the

catalogue

  Chemistry Colour Chemistry

% held in 3 libraries or less 8 25

% held in 4 libraries or less 11 32

# of libraries with 2/3 of titles 6 2

Summary of potential benefits

Answering strategic questions about the status of the collections in individual libraries

Opportunity to deepen our understanding of the parameters around collection development in terms of: Overlap between the holdings of major UK research

libraries in particular subject areas Differences in that overlap between different subject

disciplines and areas The proportion of unique titles within those collections Identifying specific unique or rare titles

Informing development, retention and withdrawal activities