LM_NET: Library Media Networking
Sorry for the delay in compiling and posting this HIT! My thanks to the 22
wonderful persons who replied and helped me so much.
I am wishing everyone a WONDERFUL Holiday Season!
Here is what I received.
We do not have a security system. The last two years are the first time we
have had a true inventory. We have tried in the past several times but one
thing or another didn't work. Anyway, our feel is that we loose between
200-300 materials a year. I know this is a wide range but it is about a
close as we can get.
We have had a security system since mid the 1980s. Although I was not the
librarian at that time, the clerk who does purchase orders was also here
then. She says that prior to the purchase of the security system, losses
were very high (no exact number, but in the hundreds), and 85% of the book
budget was spent on replacing lost copies of existing material. The year
after the security system was installed, losses were down to below 20. Our
losses now run around 20-25 per year, but most of those are checked out and
then lost, rather than just lifted. We are a suburban high school in a
fairly affluent area, so material lifted from the library is more a matter
of "can I get away with it?" than "I really need this and can't afford to
photocopy it."
Our first system was 3M, and lasted until 1999 when we moved into renovated
space. At that time, I investigated electromagnetic and radio frequency
replacement systems from 3M and Checkpoint. We found we had to go with a
radio frequency system, even though it meant putting new security targets in
all our materials, because our security gate was going to be less than 3
feet from a computer, and computers and electromagnetic systems are
incompatible. I have heard others quote a greater number of feet. In any
case, if I could redesign our library to accommodate either, I would prefer
the electromagnetic system because the targets are less conspicuous and less
prone to student vandalism. The Checkpoint salesman said the hit rate was
significantly higher with a radio frequency system, which may be true (hard
for us to tell on that), but the number of vandalized targets we are finding
is far greater, which certainly counteracts the higher hit rate. There are
other considerations in choosing a system, however, such as all the
different kinds of material that need protecting, and how they are handled
in each system.
My advice: our system has been very cost effective, with the initial cost
recovered in only a year or possibly two. Go through the details of each
system you are considering in a painstaking way. For each kind of material
that you need to protect, ask all the following questions: what would the
target be? Where would it be located? How would it be negated for
borrowing? How many different kinds of targets do you need for the
materials you want to protect in your collection? How many different kinds
of shields or "un-targetters" would you need for the different kinds of
materials? What would the number of steps be to circulate each kind of
material in each system? When you have a CLEAR picture of all of that
detail, find out whether other libraries or video stores that your students
frequent use the same system and whether it would set your system's alarm
off. That happens a lot here, both with other libraries (public and
university) and with our local video store, and it is a pain in the neck.
Just one more note about learning all the garbagey detail I recommend above:
the devil is in the details. It is a real pain to take the time to
understand all of it and imagine how you would actually accomplish a
transaction, but that is what will determine whether you are happy with your
system.
We installed a security system 9 years ago (not 3M) and it cut down
tremendously on losses - like from 180 to 35 or something like that. So I
think it really is useful to have. Sometimes it's a real attempt at theft,
but often it's just someone in a hurry rushing out with a book. The
security system catches that.
Yes, security systems do work, but only if they are properly set up,
monitored, and maintained. Of course, they always bring out the "wise guy"
in at least a few students, usually males...but its just part of the
territory.
Currently, my school system is contracted for the electromagnetic version of
the 3M (I-mation) product. In my present school we replaced our unit in
June. It is not substantially different from the one I field tested in
another school over twenty years ago when NYC was trying to decide to buy
them. However, the guts are more sensitive in some ways and it needs a
little fine-tuning with your service representative. It is a tried and true
product.
Two years ago I opened a small library in a new school. Due to space,
lighting, technology conflicts in a tiny area we could not use an
electromagnetic system. (Checkpoint was the contract vendor in my district
then.) We managed to get an exemption to use the radio wave system
Checkpoint markets. It has a very small "footprint" and it matched the
decor, making it unobtrusive. I set up the collection to use the system with
a dated card (block) in the pocket. It was different. It worked. And my
local rep wrote out and filed all the paperwork for the contract exception
with my construction authority and school district.
Think about what you need and what your physical plant will permit. Also,
look around to see who offers the best service in your area, 'though these
systems are virtually trouble free. Good luck!
I was at a school last year where we did not have a security system, and we
lost over 100 books -- these were just the ones that weren't checked out to
anyone (we also lost books when students withdrew, etc.) This was a
semi-rural school of 850, grades 9-12.
In my other schools, I've never lost more than 10-15 this way. And of
course, with a very small budget, it's almost impossible to build a decent
collection with books disappearing -- the ones that disappear invariably
seem to be those purchased within the last 2-3 years!!
We HAD a security system that didn't work. Things were walking out of here
all the time. It drove me crazy. It seemed like every time I went to look
for a book on the shelf, it was missing. We purchased a new 3M security
computer this summer. It is wonderful. Just having it go off a few times
has really made a difference. It cost about $8000 for one door.
Jim Neal
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