Cambridge University Engineering Department Library Collection Development Policy October 2000, 2012 update Contents: 1. Introduction 2. Aim 3. Scope 4. Readership and administration 5. Subject coverage 6. Priorities 7. Media 8. Language 9. Recommendations 10. Stock selection 10.1 Book selection 10.1.1 recommended reading lists 10.1.2 research, taught course project, etc. requirements 10.1.3 engineering interest 10.1.4 general interest 10.1.5 CUED material 10.1.6 donations of book material 10.2 Periodical selection 10.2.4 donations of periodicals 11. Interaction with other CU libraries 12. Retention and disposal policy
1. Introduction 1.1 The Engineering Library provides collections of material and access to resources, including electronic resources, relevant to the changing research and teaching needs of the Engineering Department (CUED). The stock and the collection development policy are continuously assessed to maintain the best coverage of material within cost and storage limits. The Engineering Library retains material for as long as it is useful. It does not as a rule act as an archival library, which is a function of the University Library (UL). 1.2 The purpose of the Collection Development Policy is to provide a statement of practice for the maintenance and development of the Library's collections. The policy identifies the readership served and indicates procedures, priorities and decision criteria over the range of the collections in all media in order to provide useful and relevant collections within the restraints of space and funding, and the context of other library resources available in Cambridge and beyond. 1.3 The policy is intended to guide Library staff and others involved in material selection and retention. 1.4 The Library exists to serve the needs of its users and welcomes their contributions to collection development. The policy informs Library users of the criteria used in selection and retention and how they may make their voice heard. 1.5 The Collection Development Policy is reviewed regularly by the Library Committee. 2. Aim To provide a statement of practice for the maintenance and development of the Library's collections. 3. Scope 3.1 The collections are for CUED's research, taught graduate and undergraduate courses, specialist and general interest and reference, and material of particular significance to CUED. The collections consist of periodicals, abstracts journals, books, reference works, reports, standards, and CUED theses, reports, examination questions and worked solutions, and webbased resources. Paper, electronic and other non-paper media are involved. 3.2 The Collection Development Policy deals with these collections of material, how they are chosen, and how the collections are maintained within space and financial limitations. The last includes interaction with other Cambridge libraries to both help provide CUED members with resources and to maintain, where feasible, CUED Library resources of use to other Cambridge University members. 3.3 The policy does not cover all the working practices or services of the Library. 3.4 This Collection Development Policy outlines the principles; the reality is qualified by space, funding, University policy, College policy. 4. Readership and administration 4.1 The Engineering Library is a valuable Departmental resource as an information service and study centre; electronic resources are essential, on-site print copies of book material important.
4.2 The Engineering Library serves all members of CUED: research staff, graduate students (including taught masters courses), undergraduates, and some work-related needs of Department assistant staff. 4.3 Other members of Cambridge University are allowed reference use of the Library. Occasionally borrowing is permitted on application to the Librarian. 4.4 Bona fide researchers from outside the University may apply to the Librarian for reference use access. Permission is usually granted. 4.5 The Library is run by the Department Librarian with a Department Library Committee chaired by the Head of Department and comprising representatives of the research areas, the Department Teaching Office and graduate and undergraduate students. The Librarian is responsible for the budget set by the Department's Council from central University funding. On occasion, some extra funds are made available from CUED's divisional funds. CUED joined the University s Journals Co-ordination Scheme (JCS) in 2008/2009. The Librarian is CUED s representative on the School of Technology s JCS Consultative Committee and the Department Library Committee provides input to that committee. A contribution based on funds previously spent on journal resources by CUED now goes to the JCS at School level; the Librarian is responsible for checking CUED renewal invoices for the JCS. 5. Subject coverage 5.1 The subject coverage of the collections supports CUED's research and teaching. This covers a wide area in engineering and engineering related topics, currently the CUED's six divisions are: Energy, Fluid Mechanics and Turbomachinery; Electrical; Design, Materials and Mechanics; Civil; Manufacturing and Management; Information Engineering. 5.2 Material included consists of: periodicals for research and teaching needs; books, conferences, standards, reports, and other material relevant to CUED's research interests; books for undergraduate and taught masters courses; books for undergraduate projects; material of special and general interest to engineering; general reference material and data books; CUED PhD, MSc, MPhil* theses; CUED technical reports; CUED UG examination questions; CUED UG examination worked solutions (cribs) on microfiche for 1975-2007; CUED UGexamination cribs on paper; selected examples of CUED fourth year undergraduate work. *Where these are research MPhils. Taught masters theses are not collected, though some historic collections of MPhil theses are retained. 5.3 Donations are also accepted in some circumstances.
6. Priorities The majority of acquisitions are bought and so dependant on funding being available. The priorities are to: maintain existing standing order purchases; buy UG reading list books; buy requested research related and taught course project related books; renew existing non JCS periodical subscriptions; buy taught masters reading list books (within funding limitations); buy other items of interest to CUED. 7. Media 7.1 The Engineering Library's catalogue of books and periodicals is available via the Library's and University Library s web pages. 7.2 The Engineering Library is both print and electronic based. The Library Committee regularly review the balance of paper and electronic media. Electronic access to journals is considered essential; electronic books (ebooks) are used to support print copies of reading list items and where of particular interest. 7.3 Electronic access to periodicals and ebooks is provided, mainly via the catalogues and links on the Library's and University Library's web pages; Library staff advise on other means of access. 7.4 Electronic resources are made available to enhance the facilities for teaching and research. Web based resources are preferred over CD based. Electronic resources are regularly reviewed and updated. The Library's web page contains useful links and Library staff provide extra help and information. 7.5 CUED provides electronic media resources in support of its taught courses. 8. Language 8.1 The majority of material relevant to engineering is published in English; foreign language publications are bought where the required publication is not available in English. 8.2 CUED has a Language Unit which collects material to aid the teaching of foreign languages. 9. Recommendations 9.1 All purchases are made at Librarian's discretion. 9.2 Any member of CUED may request an acquisition to Library stock, book requests must be countersigned by a member of Teaching staff. See 10. Stock selection for the recommendation procedures. 9.3 Where purchase considered not sufficiently appropriate, or funds do not permit, items requested are instead borrowed from other sources. 9.4 The selection process is covered under Stock selection. 10. Stock selection 10.1 Book selection (including conferences, standards, reports and other nonperiodical material)
10.1.1 Recommended reading lists 10.1.1.1 Teaching staff compile reading lists to support the taught courses, and indicate those items they wish there to be a copy in the relevant reference collection in the Library. These recommendations come to the Library via the UG Teaching Office, the Department Committees responsible for the taught graduate courses, or the individual teaching staff member. The reading lists are reviewed each year by the compilers. The Librarian advises the compilers of new editions, out of print requests and whether alternatives can be found for extremely expensive items. 10.1.1.2 Undergraduate reading lists a) Part 1 (first and second years) The Library acquires all items on the reading list (where possible). All Part 1 titles are considered selected for reference. The Library has two copies of each title in the Part 1 Reference Collection, plus at least two borrowing copies in the ordinary book collection. (See also 10.1.1.4 common procedures, below). b) Part 2A (third year) and Part 2B (fourth year) The Library acquires all items on the reading list (where possible). Only some of the titles are selected (by the compiler) for the Part 2A Reference Collection and the Part 2B Reference Collection. The Library has one reference copy of each of the selected items and at least one borrowing copy of all items on the list. (See also 10.1.1.4 common procedures, below). c) All the selected items from undergraduate recommended reading lists are brought to the attention of the College libraries and the University Library, with a request to consider adding them to that Library's stock, for the benefit of their students, as the Engineering Library is not necessarily able to provide sufficient copies due to funding and space constraints. 10.1.1.3 Taught masters courses reading lists *: The Library aims to acquire essential items on the reading list (where possible and funds allow). Only some of the titles are selected (by the compiler) for any relevant reference collection. The Library has one reference copy of each of the selected items and at least one borrowing copy of the items on the list. (See also 10.1.1.4 common procedures, below). *Some taught masters courses are run jointly with other Departments; those mainly administered by the other Department do not necessarily require the Engineering Library to acquire reading list items. 10.1.1.4 Common procedures for all these reference collections: a) Electronic versions of reading list items are acquired. Extra print borrowing copies are bought where demand indicates a need and funds allow; missing reference copies are replaced where possible when the reading list is reviewed or earlier if necessary; new editions of items are acquired when the reading list is reviewed or earlier on the recommendation of the teaching staff member concerned. Titles removed from the reading list at review are usually retained, the reference copies are added to the ordinary book collection. Some titles no longer on the reading lists and earlier editions of reading list books are considered for disposal, see under Retention and Disposal Policy.
b) The full reading lists, and the taught masters reading lists (where made available by the course leaders), are available on CUED's web pages. 10.1.2 Research, taught course project requirements, and other non-reading list requirements Any member of the CUED may recommend an item be added to Library stock. Recommendation forms are available on the Library web pages and in the Library; requests are accepted in any written format. The requests must be supported by a member of CUED teaching staff and are subject to the Librarian's approval, though this is rarely withheld for other than financial constraints. Generally, one borrowing copy of each requested item is acquired. 10.1.3 Items of special and general interest to engineering which will enhance holdings in the subject areas of interest to CUED are selected by the Librarian; these may also be recommended by any Library user in the same way as 2 above. 10.1.4 General reference material, such as dictionaries, directories, encyclopaedia, road maps, are selected by the Librarian and may be recommended by any Library user in the same way as 2 above. 10.1.5 CUED theses, reports, examination questions and cribs, UG work examples, are supplied by CUED. 10.1.6 Donations are accepted at the Librarian's discretion and only where the Librarian has the right to incorporate them into the main Library stock and dispose of them without donorimposed conditions. New, relevant, material is generally accepted; older material only where useful. 10.2 Periodical selection 10.2.1 CUED joined the University s Journals Co-ordination Scheme (JCS) in 2008/2009. The Librarian is CUED s representative on the School of Technology s JCS Consultative Committee and the Department Library Committee provides input to that committee. A contribution based on funds previously spent on journal resources by CUED now goes to the JCS at School level; the Librarian is responsible for checking CUED renewal invoices for the JCS. Some professional magazine and general interest titles are acquired outside the JCS at the decision of the Librarian and Library Committee. 10.2.2 Requests for new subscriptions may be made to the Librarian; they should be supported by the research group concerned. The requests must be approved by the Library Committee and then go forward to the JCS via the Consultative Committee and JCS Steering Group. The holdings of other Cambridge libraries are taken into account in the JCS process. New subscriptions are only taken where funds are available. A review procedure for periodical subscriptions exists, see under Retention and Disposal Policy. 10.2.3 Periodicals are given a value classification, based on library expertise and subject specialist advice. Category A titles are kept and bound, category B titles are kept unbound, category C titles are kept unbound for an agreed, stated period, for example three years, where three years worth of the title are kept while the current year is collected, once this is complete the oldest year is discarded. The Librarian regularly reviews the binding policy with regard to print retention and cost.
10.2.4 Donations are accepted at the discretion of the Librarian and the Library Committee. 11. Interaction with other Cambridge University libraries 11.1 The Engineering Library provides as much material as possible for its users, including access to web based resources and electronic books and journals; most electronic access to journals is University-wide and centrally administered by the JCS team. 11.2 CUED members, particularly research students, make use of the print periodical collections of the University Library, Science libraries (Central Science Library, Betty and Gordon Moore Library) and other department libraries such as Physics and Computer Laboratory, where these are not available electronically. British and other print book holdings held only in the University Library and Science libraries are used by research staff and students. Students on joint masters courses use the co-department library as well; historical links with management research and teaching mean there is interaction with the Judge Business School. 11.3 College libraries are encouraged to buy undergraduate reading list selected titles for their own students' benefit. 11.4 Informal arrangements, according to the individual library's own criteria, exist with other departments of overlapping research interests, where their members make use of the Engineering Library and CUED members make use of theirs. Such departments are: Earth Sciences, Geography, Medicine, Physics, Computer Laboratory, Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, Architecture, Scott Polar. 11.5 Occasionally arrangements are made between the libraries on behalf of the user, again on an informal basis; there is no interlibrary loan service between Cambridge libraries. 12. Retention and disposal policy 12.1 The Engineering Library retains material as long as it is useful but does not act as an archival library, which is a function of the University Library. The stock is regularly assessed to maintain the most relevant coverage of material within cost and storage limits. Material of special significance to CUED is retained. 12.2 The Engineering Library's holdings must be limited by available space; in general the policy is to retain unique holdings, holdings of historical/cued interest, and CUED theses, reports, etc. (listed below). Any disposals are done via consultation with subject specialists, library expertise, and loan records where available. 12.3 Damaged items are repaired where still useful. 12.4 All discards have to be offered to the University Library first (Ordinances, 2012 ed p.660). The University's General Board must be consulted before any periodical subscription is cancelled (Ordinances, 2012 ed p.660).
12.5 CUED related material for permanent retention: CUED PhD, MSc, MPhil* theses; CUED technical reports; CUED undergraduate examination questions; CUED undergraduate examination worked solutions (cribs) on microfiche for 1975-2007; CUED first and second year undergraduate cribs on paper; selected (by Department Teaching Committees) examples of fourth year undergraduate work. *Where these are research MPhils. Taught masters theses are not collected, though some historic collections of MPhil theses are retained. 12.6 CUED related material retained for five years: CUED third and fourth year undergraduate cribs on paper. 12.7 Periodicals 12.7.1 Periodical subscriptions are surveyed at five yearly intervals, more frequently if necessary, in order to maintain the relevance of the collection to current research needs, to control costs and to provide, if possible, funds for new subscriptions. Consultations are done as required by the JCS, discussed by the Library Committee, the Committee members consult the groups they represent, and the whole Department is invited to comment, usually on a shorter list of possible cancellations as chosen by the Library Committee. The integrity of the Engineering Library's collection and University policy is born in mind throughout. All candidates for cancellation are circulated via JCS processes for comment by other Schools JCS consultative committees. JCS Steering Group make the final decision. 12.7.2 In order to control space requirements, holdings of all periodical titles (including those still currently subscribed to) are regularly (at least at ten yearly intervals) considered for disposal. The consultation process is as for subscription cancellations. 12.8 Books The print book collection is monitored at intervals, items considered by Library staff to be candidates for disposal are removed from the open Library shelves, though left on the catalogues, and any request for them is noted. The books still not used after one year are listed and the list discussed by the Library Committee, who consult their groups. The Library also consult particular subject specialists direct, especially in the case of the value of earlier editions and the need for multiple copies. In some cases the title is completely removed from stock, in others, one or two copies retained from multiple copy holdings. Titles are always offered to the UL and then offered to other libraries in the University, before final disposal, via a give-away shelf in the Library.