A Network of Four Academic Libraries in Berlin Selects Ex Libris Alma

Hamburg, Germany—May 6, 2015. Ex Libris^® Group, a global leader in library automation services, is pleased to announce that a network of four university libraries in Berlin, Germany, has chosen Ex Libris Alma^® to provide unified resource management. The network is comprised of the Freie Universität Berlin, the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, the Technische Universität Berlin, and the Universität der Künste Berlin. A fully cloud-based library management solution, Alma enables all collections and resource types – whether electronic, print or digital – to be managed within a single system.

Jürgen Christof, Prof Dr Andreas Degkwitz, Jirka Kende and Andrea Zeyns, the directors of the Berlin University libraries, commented on the decision to adopt Alma: “The university libraries of the Freie Universität Berlin, the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, the Technische Universität Berlin and the Universität der Künste Berlin have chosen Alma as their new library management system. The reasons for this are the excellent collaboration with Ex Libris, whose operating systems Aleph, MetaLib, Primo and SFX have been in use for many years; the influence on the advancement of Alma which has been ensured by the company as part of the early adopter programme; and the integrated  handling of  e-resources in Alma, whose importance for our range of services is permanently increasing. In addition, as a cloud-based solution, Alma allows the rapid implementation of new functions and reduces the cost of hardware as well as software support. The capacities which are thus released can be used for the development of new services. The decision for Alma is also related to the internationalisation of the German practice of cataloguing and the realignment of the German consortium landscape, as recommended by the Science Council and the German research foundation.”

Jiri Kende, Chairman of the International Group of Ex Libris Users (IGeLU) and Executive Director of the Freie Universität Berlin Library, added: ”As Chairman of IGeLU, I am glad that the Berlin universities have opted for Alma. The close cooperation between Ex Libris and its users is unique to my knowledge and it has certainly helped ensure Aleph is among the best library systems on the market. We certainly hope that this will also be the case for Alma.”

”We are pleased to see our long-term partners in Berlin giving their vote of confidence to Alma and the Ex Libris strategy for unifying library management,” commented Koby Rosenthal, corporate VP and general manager of Ex Libris Europe. ”The Alma community in the German-speaking region is growing rapidly and the addition of the Berlin university libraries will no doubt inspire fellow Alma users as well as other institutions in the region.”

Freie Universität Berlin is a leading research institution. It is one of the German universities successful in all three funding lines in the federal and state Excellence Initiative, and can thus take its place as an international network university in the global competition among universities. The university’s performance in the Excellence Initiative provided funding for several new graduate schools and trans-disciplinary research clusters. In particular, the graduate schools play a key role in the development of internationally competitive research centres of excellence. Development and assessment of research projects takes place within various focus areas, research networks, and platforms for interdisciplinary collaborative research. The Freie Universität Berlin is a full university with 15 departments and central institutes offering over 150 degree programmes across a wide range of subjects.

2010 marked the 200th anniversary of the Humboldt-Universität. During its history, the University has undergone many profound changes. The most recent reformation followed the Peaceful Revolution in East Germany in 1989. Many new outstanding professors were appointed from East and West, from Germany and from abroad. As one of eleven German universities, the Humboldt-Universität was chosen ”University of Excellence” in June 2012. In an international comparison, Humboldt-Universität ranks among the top ten German universities. Its scientists research socially relevant topics and the challenges of the future, and communicate these with the public. Humboldt-Universität invests all its energy in being a place of excellent research and teaching. Its aim is to promote young talents and to positively influence society and economy outside the university framework.

With almost 33,000 students, circa 100 course offerings and 40 Institutes, the historic Technische Universität Berlin is one of Germany’s largest and most internationally renowned technical universities. Located in Germany’s capital city, outstanding achievements in research and teaching, imparting skills to excellent graduates, and a modern service-oriented administration characterise the TU Berlin. The range of services offered by the seven Faculties serves to forge a unique link between the natural and technical sciences on the one hand, and the planning, economics and social sciences and humanities on the other.

Universität der Künste Berlin is world-wide one of the biggest, most diversified and traditional universities of the arts. The teaching offered at the four colleges of Fine Art, Architecture, Media and Design, Music and Performing Arts as well as at the Central Institute of Further Education and the Inter-University Centre for Dance Berlin encompasses the full spectrum of the arts and related academic studies in more than 70 courses. Having the right to confer doctorates and post-doctoral qualifications, Universität der Künste Berlin is also one of Germany’s few art colleges with full university status.

Ex Libris is a leading provider of automation solutions for academic, national, and research libraries. Offering the only comprehensive product suite for electronic, digital, and print materials, Ex Libris provides efficient, user-friendly products that serve the needs of libraries today and will facilitate their transition into the future. Ex Libris maintains an impressive customer base consisting of thousands of sites in more than 90 countries on six continents.

Dedicated to developing creative solutions in close collaboration with customers, Ex Libris enables libraries to maximize productivity and efficiency and, at the same time, greatly enhance the user experience. By empowering users to discover and obtain the information they need, libraries ensure their position as the bridge to knowledge.

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