R.R. Bowker Launches New System That Helps Librarians Manage Serials Collections

New Providence, N.J. – January 24, 2003 – R.R. Bowker, a leading publisher of bibliographic information, today announced the introduction of the Ulrich's Serials Analysis System, a new management tool for library professionals who need to identify, analyze, evaluate and report on their libraries' print and electronic serials holdings.

The Ulrich's Serials Analysis System brings together the library's serials holdings and the multiple layers of subject coverage and content from the Ulrich's Periodicals Directory database and Bowker's ulrichsweb.com. Using a universe of serials published worldwide as well as a core collection of must-have journals, the Ulrich's Serials Analysis System gives collection managers, serials and acquisitions librarians, subject specialists, and others an in-depth look at their own holdings, the serials resources the library does not hold, and the offerings of top serials publishers.

The new system provides librarians with an integrated, comparative analysis of the library's print and electronic serials across more than 900 subject classifications and against key industry benchmarks. These same criteria are applied to publishers' collections, allowing librarians to evaluate those offerings. Users of the new system have the ability to generate a series of library- and publisher-specific reports and view bibliographic details for individual titles -- including prices, electronic availability, and reviews -- in ulrichsweb.com. Customized reports may be printed or downloaded for distribution to anyone needing information on the scope and depth of the library's collection.

"The Ulrich's Serials Analysis System gives librarians the ability to gain a critical understanding of how their collections stack up in terms of content and quality, which is essential to supporting their research and user communities," said Michael Cairns, president of New Providence, N.J.-based R.R. Bowker. "Working with the library's own serials collections, the system provides the crucial external information that librarians need in order to make informed collection decisions and report on their collections to administrators, faculty, accreditation committees, and others."

In addition to customized reports and links to content and electronic resources in ulrichsweb.com, the Ulrich's Serials Analysis System generates individualized audit reports of the invalid or other problem ISSNs in the library's collection. Users may download those audit reports for further analysis and catalog maintenance.
The Ulrich's Serials Analysis System will make its debut at the 2003 American Library Association (ALA) Midwinter Meeting in Philadelphia. Visitors to the meeting can receive a personal demonstration of the system at the R.R. Bowker booth (Booth #608) on the exhibition floor.

About R.R. Bowker

Founded in 1872, R.R. Bowker is North America's leading provider of bibliographic information, and is also the official agency for assigning ISBNs in the United States. Ulrich's Periodicals Directory(TM) is available in CD-ROM and in hardbound print format and is accessible on the Internet at www.ulrichsweb.com. For more information, please visit www.bowker.com or call 1-888-BOWKER2 (1-888-269-5372).