February 9, 2006
Newton, MA
Ex Libris Inc.is pleased to announce that it has signed the University of the West Indies (UWI) as its first ALEPH® 500 integrated library system customer from the Caribbean. The University is an independent institution that supports some sixteen sovereign nations in the West Indies. ALEPH 500 will be implemented at the three campuses of UWI which are located at St Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago, Mona, Jamaica, and Cave Hill in Barbados. The University Library System (ULS) has over 32,000 registered patrons who interact with the national communities of which it is a part. Its print collection consists of over 830,000 titles plus over 40,000 non-print items. This collection has been growing at an impressive 50,000 print items a year.
When asked to comment on the signing of the agreement, Dr. Margaret Rouse-Jones, University Librarian, affirmed that ALEPHs sophisticated standards-based, open architecture provides a high-performance solution which embodies the versatility and adaptability sought by the UWI campus libraries. We welcome Ex Libris to the Caribbean and view them as a very valuable partner in our current IT strategy.
Susan Pastore, Vice-President of Sales, for Ex Libris Inc. stated, The University of the West Indies was a new challenge and the contract award represents a significant accomplishment for Ex Libris. In addition to being our first customer in the Caribbean, the ULS is a unique environment in that it is spread across three geographically separate islands with a single university supporting several sovereign nations. UWI was migrating from an older integrated library system and the chosen vendor would be dealing with a complex conversion and implementation across a dispersed area, complicated even for this industry. Suffice it to say that UWIs decision was of monumental importance to them and Ex Libris faced vigorous competition throughout the process. This was a ground-breaking achievement for Ex Libris and a great way to cap off an already successful year.
About The University of the West Indies:
The University of the West Indies is an autonomous regional institution supported by and serving 16 different countries in the West Indies – Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Jamaica, Montserrat, St. Kitts/Nevis, St. Lucia, St.Vincent & the Grenadines, the Republic of Trinidad & Tobago and the Turks and Caicos.
The University was founded in 1948 at the Mona campus in Jamaica, as a University College in a special relationship with the University of London. Subsequently, campuses were established at St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago (1960) and Cave Hill, Barbados (1962). Supported by sixteen countries, UWI is committed to the development of the region through the training of its human resources, conducting research, delivering advisory services to governments as well as to the private sector and forging links with other institutions in the wider region and the rest of the world.
For additional information on the University of the West Indies, please see http://www.uwi.edu/
About Ex Libris:
Ex Libris™ is a leading worldwide developer and provider of high-performance applications for libraries, information centers, and researchers. ALEPH®, the Ex Libris integrated library solution, has been installed at over 1500 sites in 62 countries. MetaLib® the information portal for library collections and SFX®, the context-sensitive linking solution for heterogeneous electronic resources in the scholarly information environment, have collectively been purchased by more than 900 institutions in 36 countries. DigiTool®, a solution for the construction of digital collections, and Verde®, the new electronic resource management (ERM) system, round out the Ex Libris product suite.
