Every day, the library sends and receives materials through Interlibrary loan. The Circulation Staff is responsible for getting ILL items in and out of shipping containers and to and from the museum’s Mail Room in the basement of Ferguson.
Unpacking incoming and delivering outgoing loans – 11am
In the morning, a circulation assistant will be scheduled to unpack whatever loans have come to the receiving room by way of the shipping department as well as deliver the outgoing loans that were packed on the previous day. This task also includes delivering and picking up other mail that is not associated with interlibrary loan. In order to accomplish all of the tasks with maximum efficiency there is a checklist-like order of tasks listed on the daily schedule next to the name of the person assigned this task.
The task will appear on the schedule like this:
“[your name] 1) deliver outgoing mail and ILLs to shipping 2) sort incoming packages 3) unpack ILLs 4) bring mail to library office/ILLs to reader services”
Here is a detailed explanation of what each of these steps entails:
1) "deliver outgoing mail and ILLs to shipping"
- You'll begin with gathering the outgoing mail (and any empty mail bins) from the library office and the incoming ILL shipments that may or may not be on the black table in Reader Services. Take the individual receiving room key (#2907) with you as you go.
- You'll take all this to the receiving room where you will pick up the outgoing ILLs that were packed the previous day along with the outgoing mail (and bins) and take them to the mail room.
- Make sure to initial the outgoing ILLs as "delivered" on the shipping log - this gives you a chance to make sure that the number of packages you are delivering is the same as the number packed the previous afternoon.
- When at the mail room, you will very likely be asked to bring a bunch of boxes or filled mail bins back to the receiving room. Take anything you can fit on the cart.
2) "sort incoming packages"
- The stuff on the cart you are bringing back from the mail room should be divisible into 3 categories:
A) ILLs (ILLs will almost always be from a college, university, museum, or library. We also receive off-site shipments from NU addressed to Circulation Dept that for our purposes should be treated the same as ILLs)
B) non ILL boxes/acquisitions (Will be from all sorts of places. Generally are bigger and are often addressed to the acquisitions librarian, serials librarian, or even the director.)
C) other mail (magazines, envelopes, anything that has been chucked in the bin).
3) "unpack ILLs"
- You will unpack things from category A) above carefully, retaining any useful packing material (bubble wrap, paper, unbranded and sturdy boxes etc) and disposing of any unusable material (Fedex/UPS boxes, styrofoam peanuts, newsprint). Please make note if any books from our library has been sent back to us in a padded envelope or "jiffy bag" with no box. Also please take care to unpack ILL items carefully. The main thing to keep in mind while unpacking books is to keep the razor blade away from the book as you use it to cut through the tape. You can use the adjustment feature on the box cutter to give the blade a shallow enough depth to avoid mishaps.
- The things from category B) you will leave in the receiving room on the workspace against the north wall. The acquisitions librarian will unpack these later. If you accidentally unpack something that is not an ILL (which will inevitably happen) please make sure that you leave the book, the box it came in, and any accompanying paperwork together in the acquisitions area of the receiving room for acquisitions to find.
- The things from category C) will just stay in their bin on the cart doing nothing while you are in receiving room
4) "bring mail to library office/ILLs to reader services"
- Now that you've jettisoned the non ILL material from category B) you'll bring what's left upstairs. The mail (category C) you will leave on the front counter of the library office in a bin or pile to sorted by the Library Administrator. The unpacked ILLs (category A) you will leave on a cart next to the circulation manager’s desk, making note in person or writing about any items that were packed by an ILL partner in a less-than-ideal way.
Packing outgoing ILLs - 2pm
The first thing the person who is scheduled for this task will do is to find the stack of outgoing ILLs that the circulation manager has left in the circulation area with the yellow “Please Pack” sign on top. Along with key #2907, these should be taken down to the receiving room to be packed.
Our lending and borrowing agreement with our partners in the SHARES interlibrary loan network dictates that all books should be packed securely in a cardboard box with extra padding between the book and the edges of the box to keep the book stationary during shipping. For this reason, we start our packaging procedure by wrapping the item or items being shipped in bubble wrap OR stuffing them inside a padded mailer.
The next step is to pick out the proper box for your shipment. It can be an already used box or one that we have purchased. The most important goal is to find a box within which you can place the bubble wrapped book comfortably with room leftover to fill with crumpled, non-newsprint paper (our preferred stabilizer). Try to avoid using a box where the surface of the book will be forced to be closer than a half inch away from the seam where the unpacker is likely to be slicing the packing tape with a razor.
Once the books are securely suspended in the box, seal all seams with packing tape. Peel the shipping label backing off and stick the shipping label on a highly visible area. Peel off or cover with permanent marker any markings leftover from previous shipments. DO NOT RE-USE BOXES OR ENVELOPES FROM COURIER SERVICES THAT ARE NOT UPS.
Record each shipment on the shipping log clipboard taking care to accurately note the last 8 digits of the tracking number of each shipment. Initial and date each entry.
Leave the boxes in a pile or on a cart for the next morning’s person to deliver.