Borrowing Mediation Rules

Borrowing mediation rules can be configured and used for managing borrowing requests to enable staff mediation, automatically apply labels, support fulfillment of filling locally owned items, or automatically cancelling requests. For more information on configuring mediation rules, see Mediation Rules.

Mediating Based on ISBN/ISSN

You can upload a spreadsheet that contains a list of ISBNs/ISSNs that the institution would like to mediate in order to determine whether to allow borrowing resource sharing for the resources included in the file. For example,  this can be used to mediate requests for textbooks. This is done from the Input Parameters (Configuration > Resource Sharing > Rapido Rules > Borrowing Mediation Rules), select Add Parameter > Excel with ISBN/ISSN. Select the folder icon  to upload an Excel file.

The Excel file can only contain one column.

Excel with ISBN/ISSN Input Parameter

When a request is received that contains an ISBN/ISSN that is listed on the Excel file, the request is stopped for mediation and the label that you define in the mediation rule is added to the request.

Request stopped for mediation

Receiving Physical Items at the Borrowing Library

When receiving items in Rapido, libraries can update requests to physically received by library from the individual request within their set or task list, or in bulk from the Received Items screen (Fulfillment > Resource Sharing > Receiving Items).

Library staff can receive items based on either identifier type Barcode or External identifier. If requests are received by barcode, the system has received barcode information from the lender and the item's barcode is already associated with the request. If requests are received by external identifier, staff can either add the barcode manually to the request or rely on an automatically generated barcode if the parameter generate_resource_sharing_temp_barcode (Configuration > Fulfillment > General > Other Settings) is set to true.

The barcode and external identifier can be included on the following letters which lenders may send with the physical item: Ful Incoming Slip Letter, Resource Sharing Shipping Slip Letter, and the Ful Resource Request Slip Letter. See Configuring Rapido Letters.

When the Rapido lender configures the parameter rapido_rs_barcode_for_same_inst_requests_prefix to true (see Resource Sharing - Other Settings), and a Rapido lender ships a request, the shipped item's barcode is included in the information sent from the lender to the borrower. This enables the borrowing partner to receive the item based on the item's barcode. When staff perform the receiving action, the barcode includes a visible  RAPIDO-prefix. The barcode with the RAPIDO- prefix  is stored on the temporary item created. The fulfillment actions related to managing the check in and check out do not rely on or provide visibility to the RAPIDO-prefix. 

If the lending partner is not a Rapido partner, requests cannot be received by barcode. 

If the borrowing partner is a Rapido partner, but the library has enabled the temporary barcode, the library cannot receive the request based on the item barcode. If the parameter generate_resource_sharing_temp_barcode (Configuration > Fulfillment > General > Other Settings) is set to true., the borrowing library must receive the request based on the resource sharing request’s external identifier (see External identifier).

Adding a Note

You can add notes to requests by selecting Add Note from the right pane.

By default, system notes are included in the Active Notes facet, but notes added from the right pane are added as dismissed, and therefore, the note is not included in the Active Notes facet.

To activate notes added from the right pane, edit the request, and select Update Notes > Activate Notes from the Notes tab.

A Notes label is then added to the request, and the note is now included in the Active Notes facet.

Managing Alerts

When configured, (see Managing Borrowing Alerts), alerts indicate that the borrower must act manually to continue the workflow.

Cancelled by Patron

If a patron cancels a request already shipped by the lender, the borrower receives an alert in the borrowing task list that the patron cancelled the request.

Alert

If the borrowing library receives the item for the cancelled request, a message appears informing the borrower that the item should be sent back to the lender.

Message to return item

Uploading a Document

Use the Upload file action to include attachments along with a request. 

Browse to or drag and drop your files to include them with your request.

Your attachments are displayed at the bottom of the window. Select Send to submit your documents with your request.

You receive a delivery confirmation message after submitting your request and your request status updates to Request Completed.

Resupplying a Request

If there is a problem with a digitally supplied request, you can use the Resupply Request action to request a new copy from the lender.

Enter a Reason for resupplying the request.

The status updates to Request sent to partner.

The lender then receives an alert and a note to resupply the request.

Filling a Request Locally

For active, digital requests, use the Fill locally action to manually fill a digital request that is readily available.

Upon selecting Upload file, the Document Delivery window opens for you to upload your digital document.

You can Preview your document prior to sending it or Delete if you need to cancel or replace the document.

After sending the document, the Borrowing Request status updates to Shipped Digitally, and a File available indicator is added to the request.

Communicating with Partners

Use this action to email a partner directly from the borrowing task request. This option eases workflows, such as when a borrowing library wants to ask a question or for any type of messages such as a thank you note. These messages are saved in the request for future reference.

1. Either select the Send email to partner action, or from the request Communications tab, select Start Communication.

Start Communication

• Edit a correspondence to view the full correspondence.
• Reply to a communication to send another correspondence. Each reply increases the counter in the Communications Answers column.
• Add a Response to paste the partner's response to your correspondence.
• Close the correspondence. Note: Closing the correspondence removes the Communications indicator from the request; but the correspondence remains accessible from the Communications tab under the All or Closed filters.

Sending a Query to a Patron

When emailing a patron using the Send query to patron action, a query was sent to patron icon indicates that the QueryToPatron letter was sent from the borrowing library to the patron. 

The Query to patron section is available from the right pane containing the query details. When checking Information received from patron and refreshing the page, the icon is removed from the request.

You can view attachments and query activity by selecting View Attachments.

Query activity is also viewable when editing a request and selecting Attachments.

You can also filter by the Need Patron Information facet for requests with active patron notes and create sets.

Finding Partners

To enable you to establish new peer-to-peer partnerships, for circumstances where none of your partners can fill your request or when the requested material is not held by your partners, the Borrowing Request Find partners action opens the Potential Lenders list of lenders who have the requested resource and can possibly fill the request. This action can be performed as needed. It is useful for requests with Created borrowing request or Rejected by partner statuses.

The Potential Lenders list is a list of partners who set their Data Sharing Profile (Configuration > General > General Configuration > Data Sharing Profile) to Yes to allow shareholding information for resource sharing purposes. This provides an opportunity for your institution to establish new resource sharing partnerships and networks with other institutions that agree to do so. Allowing your institution’s holdings information to be shared for this purpose does not mean that your institution is required to allow resource sharing with any other institutions. None of your users’ personal data is used.

From the Potential Lenders list, select potential lenders, and then select Create Rota to add the potential lenders to your rota. The lenders are added to your Rota with a Pending Status. 

Once a lender is part of your rota, you can email the lender to request a resource using the Send Rapido Request Letter (Configuration > General > Letters > Letters Configuration > RapidoRequestNewResourceSharingPartnershipLetter) on the Resource Sharing Borrowing Request page Rota tab. The letter sent to the potential lender should disclose information about the requested material, how to contact the borrowing library, and how to configure the borrowing partner. If the potential lender agrees to lend the resource, the library can contact the borrower to confirm the completion of the configuration and the ability to lend. The borrower can now send the request to them. Once configured, the lender remains in your Rota for future manual requests. Additionally, you can select Activate to permanently add the lender to your Rota.

You can add a partner by copying the partner from the Community tab (Fulfillment > Resource Sharing > Partners), or you can automatically copy the partner using the here link on the Rapido Request New Resource Sharing Partnership request letter.

Creating an ALA Form and Sending it to Partner

In cases where a resource was not found within an institution's resource sharing network, you can auto-generate the ALA form and add it as an attachment to the letter. This reduces the manual work involved in creating ALA forms as part of a last resort mechanism to find partners to fill a borrowing request.

When a borrowing request is sent to a resource sharing partner configured with an ALA Email Profile Type, the resource sharing partner receives the request letter with the ALA form attachment. For more information, see Configuring an ALA Profile Type.

The Borrowing Request updates with the ALA partner.

The ALA form is added as an attachment to the request letter.

The ALA form fields are populated according to the request metadata.

For physical requests, the Request for: Loan checkbox is checked, and the title and author are added to the text box.

For digital requests, the Request for: Copy checkbox is checked, and the title, article/chapter, author (if there is one) are added to the text box.

For resources that are more than five years old, the Other provisions of copyright law (CCL) checkbox is checked. Otherwise, the 108 (g) (2) Guidelines (CCG) checkbox is checked.

Searching and Creating Requests from the Global Title Index

You can create Rapido requests by searching the CDI on the Global Title Index.

Enriching a Global Title Index Request

Converting a Borrowing Request Type

You can convert a request type placed by a user by using the Convert Request Type action from the available actions for the request. This action is available for the following statuses:

• Request created
• Ready to send
• Locate failed
• Rejected
• Resubmit
• Expired
• Recalled
• Pending approval
• Reject
• Bad citation
• Local holding

Convert Request Type action

Once this action is selected, you can select the type of request to convert to and add the required information (such as pages or chapter numbers when converting to a book chapter).

Once converted, the Request type change is logged in the History and the lending request partner is recalculated.

Additionally, when converting a request type, the Owner and Requested Pickup Location fields are editable.

When changing the Owner, the Requested Pickup Location updates accordingly. Also see Associating Pickup Locations with Resource Sharing Members. If the value of the Requested Format is changed to Digital, the Owner automatically updates to the default digital owner.

Printing Slips in Bulk

The Print Slip bulk action enables the library staff to reprint received or returned slips in bulk. When multiple borrowing requests are selected, selecting Print Slip reprints all the slips.

Declaring an Item as Lost

When an item is overdue, and the patron has not returned the item, you can mark the item as Lost from the borrowing task list.

The borrower is prompted to enter a note in the Lost Item form.

The borrowing status request updates to Lost communicated.

After the lender sends the Lost Item message to the borrower with the relevant replacement fee, the fee is displayed in the borrowing request as a message. The lender might also send the Partners Lost/Damaged Invoice Letter. Add the fees to the Request costs. To charge the patron, from the borrowing request select Send Query To Patron. If configured, the lost item fee appears on the Query To Patron Letter.

Applying Lost Fees

In order to discourage patrons from losing items, this feature enables the borrowing library to charge patrons a fee for losing an item, even if the lending library does not charge a fee, and even if the item is ultimately found.

When configured (see Lost Items), a Lost Item Fine is automatically added to the patron's account in addition to the Lost Item Replacement Fee when an item is marked as lost or when the number of lost profile days have passed, based on the borrowing library's settings in the library loan Terms of Use (TOU).

Additionally, the Lost Item Bill letter is emailed to the patron notifying them of the fees they owe.

If the patron finds the lost item, when the borrower either selects Found Item is selected from the Patron Services or selects Checked in from the task list, the following messages appear indicating that the replacement fee will be refunded; however, the active balance for the Lost item process fee remains.

Lost Item Replacement Fee Refund

Applying Shipping Costs

The Resource Sharing Borrowing Request form includes the following Request Costs fields:

• Service Level Fee
• Page Overage Fee
• Base Fee
• Copyright Fee

These cost fields are controlled by the Base fee page limit (Configuration > Fulfillment > Resource Sharing > Shipping Cost Lender Rules) parameter. (See Configuring Shipping Cost Lender Rules.)

The Base fee page limit rule only applies if the total requested pages exceed the configured Value.

When the costs are applied, a note is added to the borrowing request right pane indicating the costs and the costs are displayed in the Request costs section of the right pane.