March/April 2011

One thing I am proud of about our library system is how hard our staff work to be as efficient as possible. Library and other Corvallis city staff, particularly our building maintenance staff, are on a regular quest to find more efficient ways of delivering library services and operating a large public building. Over the past few years, improvements in our heating/ventilating/air conditioning system (HVAC), in our boilers, and in our lighting have resulted in tens of thousands of dollars in energy savings.

On the library operations side, we are always looking for ways to reduce handling of materials and get them in the hands of our users faster. A couple of years ago, we redesigned our circulation workroom to improve materials flow, began self-pickup of holds, and increased the numbers and capabilities of our self-check machines to make it easier for you to get in and get your materials quickly. Self-check now accounts for over 75 percent of our  checkouts. We are now replacing our aging Bookmobile with a smaller, more-efficient Sprinter van Bookmobile with nearly the same capacity but much-better fuel mileage and lower overall operating costs. I encourage you to give us ideas about how we can be even more efficient—and effective—in providing the library service you deserve. Suggestion boxes are available, and staff carefully consider each one.