Purpose & Goals

The Partnership for Academic Library Collaboration & Innovation (PALCI) and Ivy Plus Library Confederation (IPLC) have moved to the ReShare platform by IndexData (in Fall 2021 and Winter 2022 respectively). Through close collaboration, IndexData has provided the University of Pennsylvania access to the data for import into our MetriDoc Data Warehouse where deeper analyses can be performed through tools such as Microsoft PowerBI. Rather than relying on simple counting statistics, we can evaluate the uniqueness of our collections and the efficacy of sharing within consortia. There are challenges with the new system to change the assumptions stakeholders have in calculating essential metrics. However, the transparent nature of the data provides more opportunities to examine data in new and unique ways.

Design & Methodology

The ReShare interlibrary loan platform relies on a centralized PostgreSQL data store hosted by IndexData. IndexData has made their underlying code base open source which increases the transparency of how resource sharing works. The Penn Libraries host a Ruby on Rails User Interface based on a PostgreSQL database called MetriDoc. IndexData provides a selection of their data tables to MetriDoc for Access Services to have direct access to it. Dashboards were created within the User Interface for quick lookups of key datapoints and further analyses can be performed by our Resource Sharing colleagues through an interactive query system. Additionally, tools such as Power BI or Tableau can connect to the PostgreSQL database directly to create fully interactive Data Visualizations and Reports.

Findings

As with any migration, there have been issues, but the collaboration between the Penn Libraries and the vendor, IndexData, has improved our and their understanding of the data. Through our close interactions, we have developed a complete data model to track loans through the system. The data model is rich in collection, operational, and management information. We can use the data to analyze which parts of our collections are in high demand at other institutions and where our patrons may need to rely on our partners’ collections. The two consortia contract with shipping vendors to ensure items have minimal transit time. The exit and entrance scan information helps us evaluate the shipping performance. ReShare data also provides detailed information on the rota, or ordered list, of institutions asked for an item. This rota is developed for each item based on the current share of an institution’s resource sharing load. This information has never been available before and has opened new venues for understanding the depth and breadth of the joint collections.

Action & Impact

We will continue to maintain and improve the MetriDoc service. Although the main part of this project is complete, we will be developing a series of workshops for our stakeholders to help them understand and leverage the data. We will also be sharing the research questions with the vendor, IndexData, to help them understand how the data is being utilized and continue our collaborative effort to provide answers to new questions.

Practical Implications & Value

Although the University of Pennsylvania hosts and maintains MetriDoc, it was initially developed as a tool for the IPLC. Completing the migration to the IndexData ReShare platform fulfills our contract with the IPLC BorrowDirect resource sharing program. However, we have gone beyond simply providing data to also providing in situ dashboards and querying capability. In addition, we have developed an excellent cooperative relationship with the vendor, IndexData.