NEWS

Ex Libris Delivers the Second Partner Release of Its
Unified Resource Management Solution to Development Partners

A cloud-based platform developed using agile development methods,
URM encompasses the complete management of library resources

Jerusalem, Israel — Ex Libris® Group announce that the second installment of its next-generation framework for library services, the Unified Resource Management (URM) solution, is now available to development partners. Representing a major milestone in the development of URM, the latest partner release focuses on:

• Unified acquisition processes for electronic and physical resources
• Cross format search capabilities including faceted results
• Advanced web based metadata editing workbench for catalogers
• Streamlined workflows for fulfilling requests for physical resources
• End to end electronic resource management – from acquisition to activation

The URM development partners are Boston College; Princeton University Library; Purdue University Library; and K.U.Leuven, which includes the LIBIS library network of 30 independent member organizations (universities, colleges, parliaments, specialized libraries) and a network of public libraries. The development partners will work intensively with the URM team over the next four months and provide in-depth feedback to Ex Libris on the solution’s impact on improving and streamlining the full spectrum of their library processes.  

Robert Gerrity, associate university librarian for library systems at Boston College, commented: “We are excited to continue our involvement in URM testing and look forward to working with the second partner release. As development partners, we consider our role in helping shape the future of library services both an honor and a responsibility to the wider library community. In particular, we welcome the opportunity to explore new ways of managing our collections efficiently in a networked environment, making much greater collaboration with other libraries possible.”  

“It is a great thrill to see URM undergoing intensive testing by our development partners,” noted Bar Veinstein, vice president of resource management solutions at Ex Libris. “In keeping with our agile development strategy, the partners are receiving URM in incremental stages, facilitated by the solution’s cloud platform. As with all Ex Libris solutions, we are continuing to work closely with our customer community through focus groups, regional early adopters, and targeted working groups to ensure that URM meets the diverse needs of our international users.”  

About URM
URM is a next-generation platform that supports the unified management of library operations—selection, acquisition, cataloging, management, and fulfillment—for the full spectrum of library materials, regardless of format or location. URM enables libraries to implement more streamlined workflows, to become more fully integrated with campus systems, and to leverage Web 2.0 and community features necessary for working in more collaborative ways. A centralized system for managing metadata along with a data-services environment provides new methods of creating, managing, and sharing metadata and other types of information that are common to all libraries.

By centralizing data services in a cloud environment, URM supports flexible models for collaboration across the functional spectrum—from cooperative collection development to more seamless sharing of metadata and resources with peer libraries. In this new network environment, libraries can join forces to optimize technical support, purchasing power, collections, and even staff knowledge and resources.

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