Yarra Plenty Regional Library Case Study

Yarra Plenty Regional Library chooses Spydus to build a library service - like no other

Yarra Plenty Regional Library (YPRL) is a large regional library corporation that’s been servicing the residents of north-eastern Melbourne since the 1960s. Its vision is to provide local residents with opportunities for community connection through embracing the idea that a library can become a community learning loungeroom. A part of its vision is to offer smaller library services outside the corporation to provide unique opportunities to take onboard the unique requirements of almost any library service.

YPRL was looking to change their Library Management System (LMS) which they were using for the last 20 years. YPRL was keen to upgrade their system and were exploring options to see if there were better solutions available in the market to get them prepared for the future. After brief contemplation and going through several vendors, YPRL chose Spydus to help meet their LMS needs and requirements.

The YPRL management team were immediately drawn to Spydus and its innovative browser environment and user-friendly interface. Getting Spydus on board enabled them to achieve their two key ambitions - innovation and personalisation.

Easy data-mapping to maintain collection archives

Spydus enabled easy to create data maps that included old and new collections. It was an unintended benefit discovered during the time of implementation that has greatly improved the discoverability of YPRL 20-year-old catalogue for both borrowers and staff alike. It also gave YPRL an opportunity to clean up the system, creating cut off dates for lost items, relieving the borrowers of the that annoying scenario - trying to reserve an item that was lost 10 years ago.

Website transformation and smart features added

Spydus APIs overhauled the functionality of the YPRL website by adding many features such as customised event bookings, making sure users find the events that are specific for their taste. While rolling carousals automatically pick up dust jackets of new books and displays them, freeing up librarians from having to manually load up new titles as part of their daily routine.

The Library App – Solus

The Solus library app that YPRL uses is fully integrated with the Spydus LMS, allowing patrons to check out books via their phone. This was beneficial for the library during COVID, as hygiene was a concern for everyone. The app also integrates with the Spydus events module, allowing event streams to be searched and view upcoming events.

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