13 Condition and presentation

13.1 Condition
13.2 Responsibility for damage
13.3 Presentation - shelf ready processing
13.4 Presentation - arrangement and layout
13.5 Presentation - internal signage

These guidelines are described in greater detail in the Condition and Presentation Manual.

13.1 Condition

The condition guidelines and individual collection management policies offer guidance on what level of condition is acceptable for items to remain in working collections and back-catalogue collections.   Different criteria apply to Heritage collections.  The format and quality of items should be appropriate for the purpose and anticipated use of the material, and be able to withstand the anticipated usage.

The policy also covers when the content justifies the acceptance of lower standards, and links in to the lifecycle management policy.

Condition means the physical state of the book, whether it is clean, dirty or stained; whether it had its covers off, its binding split or the hinges weak, its dust jacket torn or off; whether its illustrations were torn out or cut out, and/or pages were missing.  It includes aesthetic appeal.

ACL/TPK takes reasonable steps to ensure items that are taken out are in good order.

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13.2 Responsibility for damage

ACL/TPK takes no responsibility for damage to personal computer equipment or software caused by use of library material.

When customers report a library audio-visual item has damaged their player they are asked for a written report from a qualified repair company that states the machine was damaged by library material.  ACL/TPK reserves the right to challenge this and seek a second opinion. ACL/TPK will contribute to the repair or replacement costs if it is proven the library item damaged the machine and if customers have maintained their machines in excellent working order, e.g. regular cleaning of the playing heads etc.

When items are returned damaged ACL/TPK may ask the borrower to pay for damage or replacement of the item or parts of the item.

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13.3 Presentation - shelf ready processing

Presentation policy includes what ACL/TPK does to the book to "present" it to customers, that is to make it “shelf-ready”.   This includes:

• how its dust jacket is protected (without obscuring vital information)
• how it is labeled (similarly not obscuring vital information) for shelving
• access and ownership markings
• how it is made more durable
• how it is made aesthetically pleasing

There must be a balance between presentation of resources for current use, and long-term preservation of resources that may in the future become heritage items.  This may include looking at "reversible" processing, so that some labels could be more easily removed if that item were to be transferred to the Heritage collections at some later stage.  If a work is earmarked for long-term preservation ACL/TPK must take account of the specific minimal changes to the book required.

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13.4 Presentation - arrangement and layout

Presentation also covers how books are arranged on the shelf and layout.

A key principle in achieving our vision of ‘opportunities for a lifetime’ is enabling efficient and effective use of our collections. We do this by embracing the service characteristics, particularly ‘accessible’ and  ‘delivering excellent customer service’. The outcome we wish to achieve is increased use of our collections through easier access and promotion of library resources to customers.  To achieve this the library must ensure that customers can easily locate all our collections and within them find the material they are searching for.

To assist with this ACL/TPK has developed a set of standards for staff. The main focus is accessibility to all collections through attractive presentation and rapid turn around of resources.

Standards set by ACL/TPK are described in greater detail in the Condition and Presentation Manual.  They include standards for turn around of collection items from return by customers to return to shelf location, which may vary for different categories of resources and standards for how quickly new books are available to customers.  Shelving presentation standards include age of materials chosen for display, percentage of shelving using face out display and fullness of shelves.  Standards for the percentage split of items on shelves versus items on loan will be developed.

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13.5 Presentation - internal signage

Internal signage including suspended signs, shelf end signs and counter signs will be consistent with the ACL/TPK internal signage manual.  The manual outlines: the structure of the design system, physical components of the signage system and guidelines for the in house production of signage.

Any physical signage is reflected in the branding that is applied to the ACL/TPK website and also to location information displayed in the catalogue.

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