Patrons, Vendors, and Delivery: Print Demand Driven Acquisitions at the University of Kansas

Abstract

ABSTRACT In 2010 the University of Kansas Libraries (KUL) began a print purchase on demand acquisition (PDDA) program. This new method’s adoption was to both help improve patron discovery and compensate for an approval plan reduction necessitated by a tight budget. Today, purchase on demand programs are not uncommon. However, there is little research or scholarship concerning PDDA programs because most focus on unmediated electronic programs. This article highlights the authors’ quest to better understand the actual materials purchased through KUL’s PPDA program and how they were obtained. By analyzing three years of PDDA acquired titles the authors determined basic bibliographic characteristics of selected titles, including, which vendors supplied materials, the speed with which the titles became available to patrons, why items were delayed, and other factors that affect getting books to patrons.