Managing the Print Archiving Process: Answering a Call for Holdings

In November, we looked at how WEST Archive Builders manage and build print archives for silver and gold archive types (click here for a refresher). As part of this archive building process, Builders send a call for holdings to WEST member libraries during each archiving cycle. With more than 100 WEST members and six (6) Archive Builders, it is important to have general guidelines for the call for holdings and moving materials between members and Builders.

The goal for Archive Builders is to complete journals runs within the cycle so that only minimal gaps remain afterwards. A backfile consists of the current and previous titles of a journal from volume 1 to the year 2005. Although Archive Builders are assigned journal families for which they possess the deepest backfile amongst WEST members, it is rare for an institution to hold a complete backfile; and so collaboration amongst the WEST partnership is essential.

But what is the call for holdings? Simply put, a builder will request that a member help fill gaps in one or more backfiles by supplying the needed volumes. A Builder may request holdings from a number of institutions. The number of requests will depend on what the Builder requires to make a full and complete backfile. Requests for holdings contain a list of the specific titles and volumes needed.

The decision to contribute to the WEST archive is made locally by the member. The member is asked to communicate their decision as soon as possible.

To find out more about what a request will look like, the possible responses from a member, and the timeframe for how the call for holdings works, please take a look at the Answering a Call for Holdings video.

To learn more about the roles and responsibilities of an Archive Builder and how WEST defines reasonable effort for completing a backfile, please take a look at the roles and responsibilities of Archive Holders and Builders and the validation standards for WEST backfiles.