A New Way to Manage Uncataloged Materials: A Case Study from Moving the University of Nevada, Reno’s Federal Depository Collection

Abstract

In 2008, the University of Nevada, Reno Library moved into a new building, the Mathewson-IGT Knowledge Center. As part of this move, approximately half of the library’s print collections were moved into the building’s automated storage and retrieval system; a substantial portion of these materials were federal depository materials. This case study describes how cataloging and government documents staff at the University of Nevada, Reno collaborated to achieve intellectual and physical control over a huge, largely uncataloged government documents collection destined for automatic storage. More than 9,000 linear feet of uncataloged government documents had to be placed into an automated storage system that requires catalog records for all stored items. To accommodate uncataloged documents, staff devised a way to create bulk catalog records, store these materials efficiently, and provide user access. The authors will explain how this project was planned for and executed as part of the library move, and then assess the success of the project and its impact on public and technical services operations after a year of working with the new system. The impact of moving this collection on public access is particularly significant in light of the library’s service mandate as a regional federal depository.