News

Kiosk system boosts library’s circulation

February 24, 2011

Since its public debut in November, the Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) system at the Ela Area Public Library (EAPL) in Lake Zurich, Ill., has cost $520,958 to implement.

According to a story on the Lake Zurich Patch, that's $127,042 under the $673,000 budget and self-check circulation has increased by 43 percent from last year.

"The new system is catching on, " said Mary Beth Campe, EAPL's executive director.

Since July, the EAPL has been in the process of converting its old RFID system.

"The old system was obsolete, we couldn't update it because the maker, Checkpoint, had pulled out of the market," Campe said.

The new system by 3M features the ability for patrons to pay fines with a credit card at each self-check kiosk, check-out interlibrary loan materials, and print out, e-mail or decline receipts for returned and checked-out items.

"It's a lot better than it was before and much faster," said Katherine Stebbins, EAPL patron.

It also features a sorting system that scans each item and deploys it into a pre-determined bin. Librarians can then distribute the materials to their designated place.

"We don't have items unaccounted for anymore," said Patti Paige, circulation department manager. "We have less overdue notices going out because the system is doing its job."

The construction part of the project included removing all the old self-check kiosks, decreasing the size of the circulation desk, creating a room for the sorter, and reconfiguring the drive-up allowing cars to bypass each other.

Construction took about four months and costs came in at $130,133, under the projected $150,000.

"Our patrons tell us how easy it is to use and it's been problem-free so far," Campe said.