Essential components of circulating items

Scope

This Collection Services Division policy identifies which components of newly acquired resources are considered to be essential to retain, describe, and preserve. This policy also applies to the preservation of circulating collections, as well as any changes that may be made to a catalog record.

This policy sets consistent practices, and helps streamline and clarify workflows in cataloging, marking, and preservation. This policy aligns local practice and specifications made for shelf-ready vendors and outsourced cataloging.

Essential components itemized

The following is a list of essential components.

Asterisked items should be described in the metadata.

* The textblock (i.e., the pages of the book or pamphlet)
* Title page and bibliographic information
* Accompanying media (e.g., CDs, DVDs, thumbdrives)
* Accompanying material that is integral to the resource (e.g., foldout maps; see also SAA definition)
* Errata slips
Information on the inside covers that is integral to the resource and/or referred to within the textblock (e.g., lists of mathematic equations in textbooks)
Cover art for which attribution is provided in the colophon

Any items with essential components NOT permanently attached to the item should be routed to PRES for appropriate attachment.

Parts not retained for description or preservation

Parts not retained for description or preservation include:

Dust jackets for hardcovers and paperbacks
- Dust jackets for paperbacks or hardbacks where the cover provides no supplemental information
- Dust jackets with information cited in bibliographic or authority records
- EXCEPTION: Dust jackets that are integral to the resource and can be considered “accompanying material” (e.g., foldout map)
- EXCEPTION: If a dust jacket proves to provide additional support for a paperback, it may be decided to leave the dust jacket on and then secure it with a CoLibri cover (determined on a case-by-case basis by PRES)
Inside flaps of paperbacks (including author biographies, book summaries, advertisements)
Plastic wrappers with printed information
Paper bands that wrap around the covers
Loose leaves with promotional material
Cover art that is not referred to on the back of the title page
Information on inside covers that is not integral to the resource or referred to in the colophon
Slipcases

Disposition of non-essential parts

Per Access Services’ request, newly acquired items with dust jackets (including both hardcovers and paperbacks) will have the dust jackets removed and tucked into the inside cover. If a dust jacket proves to provide additional support for a paperback, it may be decided to leave the dust jacket on and then secure it with a CoLibri cover (determined on a case-by-case basis by PRES).
Other non-essential parts will be discarded by the Collection Services Division unless it is thought that Access Services would want them (e.g., slipcase covers that are akin to dust jackets).

Preservation of essential components

Where possible/feasible, all essential components will be attached to the item.
Essential components that cannot be attached to the item will be secured by way of a pocket or an enclosure that houses the item and its essential components.
Essential components that are damaged or lost will be repaired or replaced, where appropriate/possible. This also applies to essential components that may be lost during the rebinding process.

When to Flag for Preservation

Accompanying material needs a pocket or to otherwise be secured
Errata page needs to be secured
There are missing pages
The spine/cover is loose, damaged, etc.
The textblock is bound upside down
Pages need to be cut

When not to Flag for Preservation

All newly acquired paperbacks are sent to PRES in the CoLibri workflow and are evaluated for the issues listed here, as well as for their essential components. They do not need to be flagged for Preservation since they are already being sent to PRES.

By abaron on 07-17-2024