Managing Borrowing Requests

Filtering Using Facets

• Labels – Labels that are attached to requests 
• Active Partner –The active partner in a request rota
• Activity Status – Active or Completed
• Status – Status of the borrowing request
  The following statuses indicate that the final step in the request is completed. Requests in these statuses may be removed.
  • Canceled by partner
  • Canceled by patron
  • Canceled by staff
  • Digitally received by library
  • Expired
  • Request completed - This is the final status before removal, and may be manually set. If the request is for an ISO partner, there must be a reply from the partner before the status will switch to Request completed.
  The following are non-final (in-process) statuses of the request process:
  • Conditional – Appears only when Conditional is enabled in the borrowing workflow profile. See Adding Workflow Profiles.
  • Created borrowing request
  • Damaged communicated – Appears only when Damaged communicated is enabled in the borrowing workflow profile. See Adding Workflow Profiles.
  • Declared lost by partner
  • Exported to third party
  • Externally obtained
  • Lender check in
  • Loaned item to patron
  • Locate failed
  • Locate in process
  • Lost communicated – Appears only when Lost communicated is enabled in the borrowing workflow profile. See Adding Workflow Profiles.
  • Mediated patron renewal
  • Overdue request
  • Pending approval
  • Physically received by library
  • Ready to be sent
  • Recalled by partner
  • Received – not for loan
  • Rejected by partner
  • Renew request not accepted
  • Renew requested
  • Renewed by partner
  • Report damaged item to partner – Same meaning as Damaged communicated.
  • Report lost item to partner – Same meaning as Lost communicated.
  • Request accepted
  • Request sent to partner
  • Returned by patron
  • Returned item to partner
  • Shipped digitally
  • Shipped physically
  • Waiting for cancel response
  • Will supply
• Creation Date – Date on which the request was created. Possible values are:
  • Today – Requests created on the current date
  • 2-3 days ago – Requests created two or three days before the current date (excluding today and yesterday)
  • 4-7 days ago – Requests created 4-7 days before the current date (in other words, excluding the above three options)
  • 8-30 days ago – Requests created between 8 days and a month before the current date (in other words, excluding the above four options)
  • Older – Requests created more than one month before the current date
• Update Date – Date on which the request was updated. Possible values are the same as those for the Creation Date facet.
• Requested Format – The format of the requested item. Options are: Digital, Physical, and Physical non-returnable
• Supplied Format – The format in which the requested item was supplied. Options are: Digital, Physical, Physical non-returnable and Undefined
• Due Date – The date by which the item must be delivered. Possible values are the same as those for the Creation Date facet.
• Last Interest Date – The date after which the requester has indicated that they are no longer interested in the item
• Need Patron Information – Requests for which mandatory information has not been supplied by the patron
• General Messages – Requests which contain general messages of Type = Received. You can dismiss and activate general messages from the request's General Messages tab (see Sending a General Message With a Resource Sharing Request).
• Owning Library – The library which owns the requested resource
• Notes from Partner – The requests with notes from the lending institution
• Pickup Location – Libraries, reading rooms, and personal delivery are all included in the facet
• Level of Service – The level of service assigned to the request
• User Group – The user group of the requester
• Assignee – The staff person to whom the request is assigned (including "Unassigned")
• Event Name – Status that is attached to the request by broker systems (such as BLDSS) that support request updates with Alma

Secondary Search

The secondary-search feature allows you to search the current request list for requests that meet certain criteria. For example, you could search for a particular author's name in order to find all the requests in the list related to books by that author, and hide all the other requests in the list.

Unlike the primary search feature, which is always available in the persistent search box (see Searching in Alma), the secondary search does not cancel previously selected facets.

1. At the top of the request list, in the secondary-search controls, in the dropdown list, select the field to search by.
2. In the text box, enter the text for which you want to search.
3. Press Enter or select . The search is performed; the request list is updated as required so that only those requests that meet the search requirements appear in it.

• In the secondary-search controls, select the x.

Predefined Task-List Filters

You can select any of the following tasks in the Tasks List () in the persistent menu (see Tasks in the Task List) to open the Borrowing Requests page with a preset filter:

• Borrowing requests - New - with no partner
• Borrowing requests - Overdue
• Borrowing requests canceled by partner
• Borrowing requests recalled
• Borrowing requests returned by patron
• Borrowing requests with active general messages
• Borrowing requests with active notes

Performing an Action

You can perform actions on individual borrowing requests from the More actions menu of the request. The available options depend on the type of request and its status.

1. Optionally configure the parameter check_patron_duplicate_borrowing_requests; see Configuring Other Settings.
2. Select the action you want to perform on the selected requests, as described in the following table:

   Resource Sharing Borrowing Request Page Links

   Link	Description
   Assign to	Assign a task to a user (see Managing Task Assignments below).
   Cancel	Cancel the request. Appears only when: The request is still active The request does not have a status of Loan The request has not been shipped No partner exists or the configured active partner supports the Cancel feature When canceling a request, the request’s status becomes Canceled by staff. You can also delete requests in Primo, on the My Account tab. When doing so, the borrowing request’s status becomes Canceled. If an item is on the hold shelf when canceled in Primo: The hold request is canceled The item moves to the expired hold shelf The request is marked as Completed For details on the Primo My Account tab, see My Account. When a request is canceled, a message is sent to the patron. The letter is Ful Cancel Request Letter (email) or Cancel Request Letter (SMS). To configure the message, see Configuring Alma Letters.
   Check Out to Patron	Marks that the patron received a physical non-returnable item and completes the request.
   Conditional Reply	When an ISO message is sent from the lender, the borrowing request changes to Conditional status, and the Date for Reply field is displayed. When selecting this action, a window is displayed to select Yes or No in response to the condition specified by the lender. If the response is Yes, the request status changes to Sent and Date for Reply field is cleared. If the response is No, the status changes to Rejected by Partner and continues to the next partner in the rota.
   Damaged	Send an email to the lender and set the status to Damaged communicated. Appears only: For email or ISO partners When the request is received by the library (and not as 'Physical non-returnable') and has not yet been returned to the partner When Damaged communicated is enabled in the borrowing workflow profile. See Adding Workflow Profiles.
   Duplicate	Create a new request based on the existing one. You can then modify the request as required on the Resource Sharing Borrowing Request page. For details on the displayed fields on this page, see the Resource Information Fields table in Adding a New Book or Journal Article and Request Attribute Field table in Creating a Borrowing Request. When duplicating a Resource Sharing Borrowing request, the values in the following fields are copied to the new request: Title ISSN, ISBN (Metadata fields) Author Requester Owner Request Status Requested Format Delivery Location Request Note
   Edit Shipping Cost	This allows the user to update the shipping cost without opening the Details pane or the full edit form for the borrowing request. The option is also available for completed requests.
   Externally Obtained	Sends a request using the GetItNow service. See Sending a Request for a CCC GetItNow Resource.
   General Message	Send a general message with a borrowing request to a lender (see Sending a General Message With a Resource Sharing Request).
   Locate Resource	Manually activates the Borrowing Locate process. This action only appears if the request has an assigned partner or rota. See Borrowing Locate Process.
   Lost	Send an email to the lender and set the status to Lost communicated. Appears only: For email or ISO partners When the request is received by the library (and not as 'Physical non-returnable') and has not yet been returned to the partner When Lost communicated is enabled in the borrowing workflow profile. See Adding Workflow Profiles.
   Purchase Request	You can create a purchase request with the information in the borrowing request. If the borrowing request is inactive, you are taken directly to a purchase request form. If the borrowing request is active, a window is displayed to select whether to cancel the borrowing request or keep the borrowing request active alongside the purchase request. The purchase request's requester field is populated as follows: If the resource sharing request is canceled, the field is populated with the requester from the original borrowing resource sharing request. If the resource sharing request is inactive or kept active, the requester field is populated with the logged in user's ID.
   Reactivate Request	Reactivate borrowing request will appear when: The Operator has the Reactivate privilege in the scope of the owner of the request. If an active partner exists, it should have the Reactivated step in the Borrowing workflow. Status is one of: CANCELLED, REQUEST_COMPLETED, CANCELLED_BY_PATRON ,CANCEL_REQUESTED, REJECTED, EXPORT_TO_THIRD_PARTY. Select this option to reactivate a completed peer to peer resource sharing request. A temporary item is recreated using the previous barcode with the process status set to In resource sharing. The library and location of the item are set to the same values as when the item was initially created. If the item is not yet on loan, a hold request is reinitiated. When reactivating, two options appear on the confirmation window: Reactivate loan and Send general message. If no loan is initiated, the request status is Request Reactivated. The request's original external ID is maintained.
   Recalculate Rota Assignment	To attach a rota to a request based on configured rota assignment rules, select the Recalculate Rota Assignment link to attach the rota to the request according to the configured rules (see Configuring Rota Assignment Rules). This process also performs a locate process automatically if the Automatically activate locate profile option is selected for this resource sharing library (see Configuring Parameters of a Resource Sharing Library).
   Release assign	Remove the assignment of the task and leave it unassigned (see Managing Task Assignments) below.
   Remove and Recalculate Rota Assignment	Remove all partners, recalculate, and create a new rota in one action. If request was already sent to a partner and you select this option, the partner is not removed from the rota and it remains the active partner. Only the rest of the rota is removed.
   Recall	Recall shipped items when a local hold request is placed for that resource. The recall function is applicable to both ISO and email partners. You can configure which loans are recalled first if the requested resource has both copies that were shipped to a remote borrower and copies loaned to local patrons. The parameter that controls this choice, rs_prefer_recall_method, defaults to False (see Configuring Other Settings). Changing it to True recalls the shipped item first, rather than the locally loaned copy. Recalls are supported if the borrowing workflow profile includes the Recall item action (see Configuring Workflow Profiles). In that case, borrowing requests display a new action, Recall. For more information about the recalling resource sharing requests, see the Resource Sharing Request Recalls video (7:33 mins).
   Receive	Select a receiving format and enter a temporary barcode to enable receiving the resource (see Resource Sharing Partners). If the generate_resource_sharing_temp_barcode configuration setting is set to true, the temporary barcode is displayed automatically (see Configuring Other Settings). See Receiving Items.
   Reject	Mark a request rejected by the lending institution as Rejected (see Rejecting a Borrowing Request). Reject is only visible if the workflow option Reject is enabled. When rejecting a lending request you must enter a reason. The reasons are transferred to the borrowing library so a common set of reasons is used. The list can be found here.
   Remove	Remove the request. Appears only when the request’s status is one of the following: Returned item to partner Request completed - The request was either delivered or canceled before it reached the hold shelf. Shipped digitally Canceled by partner Cancel requested
   Renew	Renew a resource sharing borrowing request. A dialog box appears, where you enter a due date for the request and an optional note in the Internal note and/or Note to partner fields. For details on these fields, see step 3 in Rejecting a Borrowing Request. The request status is changed to Renewed by Partner. For more information, see Managing Borrowing Renewals. This option appears when Staff renewal is selected for lending requests in the Resource Sharing Lending Workflow Profile (see Configuring Workflow Profiles). If the request is renewed, a message is sent to the patron and a renewal fee may be charged. The letter is Ful Borrowing Info Letter. To configure the message, see Configuring Alma Letters. A resource sharing renew fee is set as part of a fulfillment policy; see Adding Fulfillment Policies For more information about requesting renewal of a borrowing request, see the ISO ILL: Request Renewal video (10:06 mins).
   Request Renew	Renew a resource sharing borrowing request under the following conditions: A Resource Sharing Lending Workflow Profile exists with Staff Renewal enabled. The partner is not part of a fulfillment network. The item has arrived. The item has not been returned. A dialog box appears, where you enter a due date for the request and an optional note which displays in the Notes tab page of the request. If the Resource Sharing Lending Workflow Profile has the Renewal Response and Staff Renewal options selected, the request status is changed to Renew Requested. For details on workflow profiles, see Configuring Workflow Profiles. If the request is renewed, a message is sent to the patron and a renewal fee may be charged. The letter is Ful Borrowing Info Letter. To configure the message, see Configuring Alma Letters. A resource sharing renew fee is set as part of a fulfillment policy; see Adding Fulfillment Policies. If Renewal Response was not selected for the workflow profile, the request is automatically renewed after selecting the Request renew link; the request's status is Renewed by partner, and the Renew link does not appear. This option appears for requests with a Received status.
   Resend Patron Email	For digital requests with document delivery, the email may be resent may be resent to the patron.
   Return	Appears when the request is received by the library (and not as 'Physical non-returnable') and has not yet been returned to the partner. If the borrowing Workflow Profile for the partner includes the Lender check in option, the request status is changed to Returned item to partner (see Configuring Workflow Profiles). The Resource Sharing Return Slip Letter is printed when returning a borrowing item to the lender. For more information, see Configuring Alma Letters. For more information about the returning items to the lender, see the ISO ILL: Lender Checked-in Message video (8:35 mins).
   Send	Appears only when an ARTEmail or ISO partner is configured. Opens the Resource Sharing Borrowing Parameters page, where you configure details to be sent to the partner (see Sending a Borrowing Request). The parameters displayed are those selected for the partner during the partner configuration process (see Resource Sharing Requests).
   Send Query to Patron	Display the query types configured on the Patron Query Types Code Table page (see Configuring Patron Query Types). The Email Message dialog box appears, enabling you to select the email template you want to use for the query. The dialog box also contains a Note to Patron field for a free text note to be included on the Query to Patron letter (QueryToPatronLetter). If there is only one template type of Query to Patron, the dialog box will appear with just the Note to Patron field available for input. For additional information on this option, see Sending a Query to the Patron, below. For details on system behavior when selecting this option, see Configuring Patron Queries.
   Status Query	Request a status update from the lending institution. This is only applicable to ISO partners. The returned borrower ISO status is recorded in a note. Each ISO status corresponds to the following Alma request statuses: Not supplied - Rejected by partner, Locate failed, Canceled By Patron, Expired Pending - Created borrowing request, Request sent to partner, Ready to be sent, Locate in process, Will Supply, Pending Approval In Process - Loaned item to patron, Returned by patron, Renew request not accepted, Renewed by partner, Renew requested, Renew Accepted, Mediated Patron Renewal, Exported to third party, Manual renew, Automatic renew, Waiting for receive digitally Cancel Pending - Cancel request not accepted, Waiting for cancel response Canceled - Canceled by partner, Canceled by staff Shipped - Shipped Digitally, Shipped Physically Received - Physically received by library, Digitally received by library, Received - not for loan Overdue - Overdue request Returned - Returned item to partner Checked In - Request Completed, Lender check in, Externally Obtained Recall - Recalled by partner Lost - Report lost item to partner, Declared lost by partner Unknown - Report damaged item to partner
   View Local Resources	Opens a local search for resources matching the requested item. If the resource is found locally, you can add a local hold-request on the matching local resource. To do so: In the search results, in the item's listing, select More actions () > Request. The Create Request page opens in the sliding panel.  Select Submit. The local hold-request is created.
   View Network Resources	Opens a Network Zone search for resources matching the requested item. If a query cannot automatically be created (for example, the locate by field OCLC does not exist in the request), a query will run with a single condition of Tag Suppressed equals false. See Adding Network Partners to Resource Sharing Rota.

Changing the Statuses of Requests

As a borrowing request is processed, its status automatically changes accordingly. You can also change its status manually, as required. Furthermore, you can change the status of multiple requests in a single action.

Removing Requests

Completed borrowing requests can be removed from the task list. When they are, they can only be viewed in analytics.

Managing Labels

Labels can be attached to, or removed from, individual requests or multiple selected requests; see New Layout 2022.

When the Query Template Is Preselected

• If you are using patron-query templates, and Edit if Single is set to true, when you select Send query to patron, the Email Message dialog box below opens. The Subject field contains the External Identifier of the request (if one exists). The Body field contains text relating to the requested resource.
  
  Email Message dialog box when using patron-query templates
  Select any field to modify it, as needed. The Body field expands when you select it, as necessary. Note that the Body field may contain text that should be modified before the message is sent, for example Query to patron: [ please enter your query here ].

  

  Body field selected (and scrolled down) in the Email Message dialog box

  When you have finished editing the message, select Send Email to send the message to the patron.
• If you are using patron-query templates, and Edit if Single is set to false, when you select Send query to patron, the query is sent immediately.
• If you are using patron-query types, when you select Send query to patron, the query is sent immediately.

When the Query Template Must Be Selected

If there are multiple patron-query templates or types for the current context, you must choose the template/type to use. Depending on your system settings, you may or may not be able to edit the body of the message.