OCRIS: Online Catalogue and Repository Interoperability Study

JISC: Online Catalog and Repository Interoperability Study (OCRIS): Final Report

This study reviewed Library Management Systems (and the associated OPAC) with the Institutional Repositories (IR) of Higher Education Institutions in the UK.

The goals: determine whether the repository content within the scope of the institutional OPAC (and extent it is recorded in the OPAC); examine interoperability of OPAC and repository software; list services offered by OPAC's and repositories; identify potential for improvement in links to other institutional services; make recommendations for development of further links between OPAC's and repositories.

The primary findings are distressing. Only 2 percent of the study respondents stated that their systems were definitely interoperable, and 14 percent stated that interoperability was pending. There was an 81 percent overlap in scope for all items in IRs and OPACs; generally, IR's contained bibliographic data and OPACs contained full text.

Clearly, differences in scope/policy are not clear and there is either uncoordinated effort, hindering interoperability, or duplication of effort and/or redundant information. In order to provide a more feasible and appropriate long-term vision for IRs and OPACs, institutions should take a structured look at the goals of each service (IR vs OAPC) and coordinate efforts to best provide interoperability and reduce duplication of effort.

This was interesting... OPACs and IRs arguably have different intents - generically speaking, circulating collections versus long-term preservation and access, but they are really not so different. While both may not store information, each provides a service in locating information. In light of the volumes of money spent on IR development/OPACs/interoperability, and the number of available/established entities available to study, it is a very good time to step back and consider how these services might be better managed and coordinated to provide the best available service to the end user and the institution. I would like to see a corresponding study of American institutions.