Library technical services

Library technical services are the processing and maintenance activities of a library's collection. These include:

• Identification: locating potentially worthwhile items to add to the collection
• Selection: deciding which of the identified items to add to the collection
• Acquisitions: securing the items for the collection. This includes purchasing books, electronic resources, and multimedia materials for a library's collection.
• Organization and Classification: indexing and cataloging the items acquired in a manner that will aid the end-user in locating materials in the collection. Materials are organized by classification systems such as the Dewey Decimal System or Library of Congress classification system.
• Preparation: labeling, binding, repairing, conservation, and otherwise making items ready for (and maintained during) storage in a manner that allows for easy retrieval and maintenance of what is in a collection

Technical services may also include: maintenance of online catalogs, creation and maintenance of MARC records in the catalog, labeling, covering, security processing, and/or distribution of materials, maintaining a library's technology resources, such as servers, OPACs, circulation, scanners, and other devices.

See also

• ALA - Association for Library Collections & Technical Services (ALCTS)
• OCLC - Webjunction
• Library of Congress - Resource Description and Access (RDA): Information and Resources in Preparation for RDA (Acquisitions and Bibliographic Control, Library of Congress)