[Original posting on this topic appeared in COLLDV-L no. 1676 and was
reproduced with Response #1 in COLLDV-L no. 1701.]
(2)----------------------------------------------------------
From: Tafila Gordon-Smith <gordont_at_mcmail.CIS.McMaster.CA>
In 1992, Mills Memorial Library at McMaster University moved one third of
the periodicals collection (social sciences and humanities) to compact
shelving. the collection is organized by LC call number. We decided to
move the older part of the collection up to 1965, rather than specific
call number sequences. 48,000 volumes were moved to compact shelving.
We left 2 empty shelves for every 5 filled (i.e. 2 empty shelves per
single-faced shelving section). This allowed for large backfile runs and
transfers from other campus libraries to be incorporated easily. when we
respace active titles in the rest of the periodicals collection, we try to
allow at least 5 years of expansion space, plus empty shelves are spaced
evenly through the collection, with some extras in areas where we are
expecting growth to be greater than normal.
Our compact shelving has one aisle for every 4-5 shelving units. This
works well for a pre-1966 collection. You might want to consider one
aisle for every 3-4 shelving units when dealing with current titles. Our
users tend to be polite and ask other people if they would mind moving
out of the aisle for a few minutes to permit access to another shelving
unit. A bigger problem is the occasional failure of units to operate
properly. Patrons can get really upset at this! Our staff are really
good at troubleshooting the small and medium problems. Special battery
packs are available for staff to use when all else fails. Service calls
are usually prompt and effective, and routine maintenance is done
regularly.
Some of our faculty members were concerned about the introduction of
compact shelving, especially those who felt that areas such as History and
English were unfairly affected because they use a great deal of pre-1966
periodical material. I was Periodicals Librarian at the time, and made a
point of speaking to the concerned faculty members after a few months, to
see if they were still unhappy. Fortunately, everyone felt that the new
arrangement was working well, and they were pleased to have access to
older periodicals which had previously been in closed storage.
Regarding high-use items, you might want to consider using the outside
units of the compact shelving for some of these, if it is possible in your
configuration. If material can be shelved on the outside, it is always
accessible.
Good luck with your project!
Tafila Gordon-Smith E-mail: gordont_at_mcmaster.ca
Interlending & Document Supply Librarian Phone: (905) 525-9140 ext.22904
Mills Memorial Library, L118/A Fax: (905) 546-0625
McMaster University
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada L8S 4L6
Received on Wed Feb 18 1998 - 19:11:39 EST