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CUL’s Large-Scale Digitization Initiative (LSDI)Zoe Stewart-Marshall
In July Sarah Thomas and the Library Management Team formed the Large-Scale Digitization Team to explore the feasibility and desirability of CUL’s entering into collaborative large-scale digitization initiatives and to identify the principles of such engagements. The team is comprised of Jon Corson-Rikert, Barbara Berger Eden, Peter Hirtle, Jim LeBlanc, Oya Rieger (chair), and Deb Schmidle. Shortly thereafter Cornell was approached by Microsoft to discuss the possibility of a partnership related to its Live Book Search service, so the team had a concrete example to use in working through the objectives of its charge with some very short deadlines. In short order the team had to redirect its energies from an academic exercise to working through the specifics of the Microsoft proposal to be able to make a recommendation to LMT about the direction that Cornell wanted to take. After the decision to partner with Microsoft was reached, the implementation plan had to be developed. Such an effort required broad collaboration, and experts from across CUL were tapped to work together to identify titles, organize workflows, update records, develop software, and move physical materials. Staff were tapped in units including ITTS, Mann Library, Collection Development, and OKU Collection Maintenance. In approximately thirty days, the experts who were tapped to run reports, designate subject areas for the pilot, coordinate with Kirtas—the company that will actually do the scanning and digitization—create programs to update records, hire staff to pull and maintain inventory control over physical volumes, set digitization requirements, and develop methods to retrieve and store the digitized images worked together in impromptu teams to figure out a means to get it done. Inevitably, the implementation group has grown beyond the original Large-Scale Digitization Team, and key initiative participants now include Lee Cartmill, Lydia Pettis, John Marmora, Zoe Stewart-Marshall, Rick Silterra, John Fereira, George Kozak, Frances Webb, and Danielle Mericle. Joy Paulson assumed a part-time LSDI production coordinator role. The digitization initiative will begin with approximately 100,000 volumes in the first year and is a nonexclusive agreement. It is deliberately being called an initiative because the expectation is that this is just the beginning. More staff from across CUL will be drawn in for cross-unit teams to produce a seamless workflow to send materials out, receive them back, receive and store the images, and develop a method for making them accessible as the initiative grows and adapts. Additional information about the partnership with Microsoft and Kirtas is available in the press releases from Cornell and Kirtas. A CUL Web site will also be developed to give updates on the progress of the initiative.
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On Friday, November 3, CUL staff sent the LSDI pilot phase shipment of 3,076 volumes out the Uris Library loading dock doors and onto trucks bound for Victor, N.Y., to be digitized. Considering that CUL officially announced the partnership with Microsoft on October 17 and had organized a group to look into large-scale digitization only in July, this accomplishment would appear to represent the very definition of an agile organization. In point of fact, it represents the concentrated and effective work of a large number of staff working in close collaboration, in a very ambitious time frame, in support of the Library’s commitment to make its collections available to a wide audience through digitization.