Award Report – Polisher Research Institute Improvement of Knowledge-Based Information Access Services
The gerontological research library of Polisher Research Institute, at the Madlyn and Leonard Abramson Center for Jewish Life, applied for this award. This was a quality improvement project enabled by a Technology Improvement Award from the NN/LM MAR. The funds facilitated the purchase of resources to improve quality and delivery of documents, and facilitated the purchase of resources for a presentation to local patrons about the improved services. The most impressive piece of equipment purchased was a scanner whose flatbed glass extends just 1/8” from the edge of the machine, making it ideal for scanning bound materials without damaging the spines. Before obtaining this scanner, articles were copied on a copier that was not well-suited for tightly bound materials, then the pages were run through the document feeder of a (different) scanner before emailing the resulting PDF files. This resulted in reams of paper left over. So the new scanner certainly has made the library greener. The scanner’s software can sense the orientation of the print and flip the pages as needed so that all pages are oriented correctly. PDF files (even those in color) are small, facilitating transmission via email. Color and grayscale scans are created with the press of a button, and adjustments to scan different page sizes can be made without fuss. The funds also enabled the purchase of a new color fax and color print machine, to replace older models that kept having problems. How nice it is to be able to print photos of people that don’t look like little green men from Mars!
Receipt of the Technology Improvement Award has greatly improved document digitization and color quality for the benefit of the library’s external and internal customers.
Rachel R. Resnick- Madlyn and Leonard Abramson Center for Jewish Life, Edward and Esther Polisher Research Institute Library- North Wales, PA.
