St. Louis — June 16, 2003 — Sirsi Corporation, the leader in new-name sales of technology for libraries around the world*, announced today that the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Manitoba, will invest in Sirsi's Unicorn® Library Management System and iLink Online Scholar's Portal. "We wanted a system to help us realize our mission of serving our university and community as an access point to knowledge and information," said Carolynne Presser, director of libraries. "Sirsi provides the technology that allows us to meet the needs of faculty, researchers, and students as well as to meet our vision for academic research library excellence."
The University of Manitoba, which features nine libraries and nine satellite information centers, is the largest academic institution in the province; as such, the university libraries share resources and information with many other public, academic, medical, and special libraries. "By opening up our vast resources through iLink, we will be able to provide improved service to our end-users," said Presser. "Our university and public communities will benefit from this convenience, plus iLink can provide the flexibility to deliver content in French or English." This interface functionality prompted Collège Universitaire de Saint-Boniface in Winnipeg to join the University of Manitoba in selecting the Sirsi systems. The library of Collège Universitaire de Saint-Boniface will also electronically share its 80,000-volume catalog with the University of Manitoba.
"Sirsi is the vendor of choice. The products work to improve and enhance the end-user experience and help librarians to continue their role as arbiters of information and knowledge," said Pat Nicholls, coordinator of Bison, the University of Manitoba library interface. "We are looking forward to Sirsi's streamlined back-end technology which will enable our staff to fulfill their responsibilities easily and efficiently."
About University of Manitoba
The mission of the University of Manitoba is to create, preserve, and communicate knowledge and, thereby, contribute to the cultural, social, and economic well being of the people of Manitoba, Canada, and the world. The collection consists of nearly 1.3 million titles, over 2 million volumes, and more than 38,000 users. In 2002, the university circulated more than 600,000 items.
Established in 1877 as the first university in western Canada, the University of Manitoba began to confer degrees on students graduating from its three founding colleges - St. Boniface College, St. John's College, and Manitoba College. The University celebrated its 125th anniversary in 2002.
About Sirsi
Sirsi (www.sirsi.com) recognizes that today's librarians are on a mission to break down walls-barriers that limit the knowledge and resources accessible to library users. A partner with leading libraries around the globe since 1979, Sirsi provides software and services that assist libraries in breaking down walls, thereby promoting learning, empowerment, and opportunity for diverse user communities. Sirsi's portfolio of products and services includes the iBistro and iLink e-Library solutions, the Unicorn Library Management System, the Hyperion Digital Media Archive, Sirsi Rooms™ Context Management Solutions, and a full slate of services.