The national library platform Swisscovery gives users access to the full range of scientific resources from 470 libraries in Switzerland. (Graphics: SLSP)The national library platform Swisscovery gives users access to the full range of scientific resources from 470 libraries in Switzerland. Swisscovery is run by Swiss Library Service Platform (SLSP). The project was initiated by the ETH Library.
As of today, users of academic libraries will have access to more than 40 million books, periodicals, journals and non-book materials and over 3 million digital articles via a single platform. This has been made possible by a collaboration between 470 libraries in Switzerland to create the shared digital library platform Swisscovery.
One search result per title
The new platform is designed to make research and loans easier and more efficient. Every book, every journal and every article has one single entry in the Swisscovery database. This allows users to see at a glance which libraries have the book they are looking for and they can then use the new shared courier service to get the book delivered affordably to the library of their choice, where they can later return it. The majority of the 470 affiliated libraries offer this service to users - some of them even provide it for free.
Thomas Marty is the Managing Director of Swiss Library Service Platform (SLSP), which runs Swisscovery. He says: "This close network of libraries puts Switzerland in a globally leading position. In no other country do libraries work together so closely."
