Great IA Shares Bag & Tote Count Returns Feb. 26
The Great IA Shares Bag & Tote Count will take place next week on Wednesday, Feb. 26. On that day, librarians are asked to count and report the number of filled and empty IA Shares bags and totes in their library to an online form that will become available that morning.
The count is taking place in order to inventory the number of bags and totes currently in use and help estimate how many bags and totes have been decommissioned due to damage or normal wear and tear. Numbers will be used to determine how many new bags and totes should be ordered as replacements and to keep as backup inventory in the future.
How to Access the Form
The online form to report bag and tote numbers will be open starting Wednesday, Feb. 26 at 8:00 a.m. The link will be emailed to libraries and posted to the Library Talk forum.
If a library has a regular IA Shares delivery scheduled for Feb. 26, the count should be made before the pickup happens. The count will happen on a single day to reduce the likelihood of double counting bags and totes as they travel between libraries. If a library will not be open on count day, they can count and report bag and tote numbers on the day that they will be open closest to count day by email to Tom.Keyser@iowa.gov.
IA Shares Delivery Network Combines with Iowa Library Alliance (ILA) & Rivershare Networks
MOBIUS and StatCourier have worked out logistics to combine the networks for the IA Shares, Iowa Library Alliance, and Rivershare delivery systems. The three systems will continue to operate as usual, but now users will be able to send materials to any destination in the three systems. Behind the scenes, material will leave one system and enter another to continue on to its destination.
IA Shares is comprised of the State Library and the public libraries of Iowa. The Iowa Library Alliance is comprised of 22 academic libraries and a few larger public libraries. Rivershare includes nine public and community college libraries centered on the Mississippi river around the Davenport area.
Additional details about the merger:
- Public libraries will have more libraries to borrow from and loan to without incurring shipping costs. The MOBIUS Label Maker now includes destinations for the libraries in all three systems. A list of member libraries for each system is available on MOBIUS Iowa Courier - Delivery Schedule.
- All destination libraries will need a shipping label generated by the MOBIUS Label Maker. The labels for the other systems will look a bit different from the IA Shares labels. If a library is in more than one delivery system, it is best to select the IA Shares label.
- Libraries can now accept requests from and place requests with all of the included academic libraries through SILO ILL system. Some of the additional libraries are only available via OCLC. An Iowa academic library that is not a member of the Iowa Library Alliance or Rivershare delivery systems will still need materials to be requested through OCLC and sent via alternative means. Verify which libraries are included by searching the MOBIUS Label Maker or consulting the member list linked above.
- The shipping bags that originate from the other systems will be a different color and have system-specific branding. It is best to set the other system bags aside to be used in returning the materials. If needed, it is perfectly fine to return material to the other networks using an IA Shares shipping bag.
- Existing IA Shares guidelines still apply:
- If the destination is in the MOBIUS Label Maker, you can send it there at no cost.
- If it fits in an IA Shares bag or tote – it ships.
- Any lost or damaged items that involve an IA Shares library, including materials from an Iowa Library Alliance or Rivershare member library, will be handled under IA Sharespolicies.
- All the other IA Shares policies and procedures still apply. For more information, refer to the State Library IA Shares webpage.
About IA Shares
IA Shares has been in operation since November 2019. Since the service launched, the number of IA Shares bags in use has tripled, and more than 150 totes have been added to transport the bags between libraries. In FY24, the statewide delivery service helped support more than 380,000 items sent between Iowa libraries via interlibrary loan transactions. Libraries also use the service to share materials, weeded books, and supplies with each other, saving the cost of postage and giving greater longevity to materials that may have otherwise been disposed of.
IA Shares is made possible by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by the State Library of Iowa.
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