Institutional repository as an important part of scholarly communication

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present the institutional repository (IR) named DRUGG (Digital Repository of the University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Civil and Geodetic Engineering) of the University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Civil and Geodetic Engineering (UL FGG), just from its beginnings in 2011, and using the statistics of visits to present its merits for higher visibility of scholarly publications on the web. The role of all stakeholders involved in the construction of this IR is highlighted. Design/methodology/approach – The historical overview of the awareness of researchers on the UL FGG on worldwide scientific communication through web sites is showed from beginning in the 1990s. Using Google Analytics the statistics of visits and downloads after a year of operations is showed, as well as the statistics of access from different networks from all over the world. Findings – In the DRUGG repository mainly theses are archived which are usually not published elsewhere. They are very interesting for professional engineers working in practice. The statistics showed that 89 per cent of all visits come from public domains, while only 11 per cent are from the home domain of the University of Ljubljana (UL). Research limitations/implications – This paper is a case study and limited only to IR DRUGG. It describes the steps taken in implementing the IR considering the technological infrastructure, human resources and collaboration of the library staff with other professional and administrative faculty units. Practical implications – The repository is to a large extent used by the professional public and that the use is not limited only to the home institution – UL. Originality/value – This paper helps in planning to build an IR. It also presents an overview of worldwide research and analysis about the influence of IRs on citations of scholarly publications to convince the sceptical research policy makers.