LONDON-November 10, 2005-SirsiDynix announced today that the South East London SHA (Strategic Health Authority) has chosen the Unicorn library management system to replace its existing systems.
The Unicorn system will be hosted by SirsiDynix on behalf of the South East London library network. Unicorn will provide access via the SirsiDynix WorkFlows graphical user interface to Cataloging, Authority Control, Circulation, Serials Control, and Interlibrary Loans. SirsiDynix SmartPort cataloging utility will be used to capture data from Z39.50 sources worldwide. Access to the online public access catalog will also be available through the World Wide Web via the iLink electronic library. The South East London SHA will also be subscribing to SirsiDynix's DataStream service, which provides enriched catalog records so that users may view, along with the records, tables of contents, book jacket images, and summaries.
The system is being bought by SELSHA on behalf of 9 libraries - 8 in the NHS and 1 in the voluntary sector - in order to provide a more easily accessible service for health care staff.
Ruth Fosker, learning infrastructure manager for SELSHA, explained that: "Unicorn was chosen because we liked Unicorn's functionality across all the modules we wanted to buy. The system has the flexibility to be developed further as and when required. It will allow us to further develop the strong collaborative library network in South East London and make access to library resources much easier for our users."
The South East London SHA took the lead in establishing an NHS framework agreement for library management systems. The framework agreement selected five library management systems as "Best of Breed" and enables NHS libraries to fast track procurement of these pre-selected systems. SirsiDynix is particularly proud to have been chosen by the architects of the framework agreement.
About SirsiDynix
Created in June 2005 through the merger of Dynix Corporation with Sirsi Corporation, SirsiDynix provides the broadest array of information management products and services for libraries and consortia worldwide. Both Sirsi and Dynix have had excellent track records as leading information technology providers for libraries and their users, and the new company will build on its constituents' strengths while providing more opportunities for technological innovation and growth. SirsiDynix has approximately 4,000 library and consortia clients around the world, serving more than 200 million people through more than 20,000 library outlets in the Americas, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific. For more information, please see www.sirsidynix.com.