From the Library of Congress:
The Library of Congress has awarded a major contract to further develop and implement a new open source IT platform that will revolutionize the management of the library’s extensive physical and digital collections and make them accessible to the public, Congress, library employees and other institutions.
The new Library Collections Access Platform software application will serve as the heart of the library’s collections management, connecting multiple standalone IT systems into a single point of contact for acquiring, describing, inventorying and discovering library collections.
The library awarded an IDIQ contract to EBSCO Information Services of Ipswich, Massachusetts, with an initial outlay of $7.77 million. The first phase of platform development will cost $10.4 million over three years to accommodate the scale and complexity of library operations, with the option to invest in additional components that could be developed by other vendors and could extend beyond the three-year timeframe. EBSCO will adapt FOLIO, a community-developed open-source library services solution, to provide a library services platform that meets the library’s IT needs and the needs of the library’s users.
“This is a milestone in our journey to implement a user-centric approach to bring more people into contact with the library’s collections,” said Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden. “We are grateful for Congress’ generous investment in this next-generation system, which is essential to the library’s digital-forward strategy, which uses technology to bridge geographic differences, expand our reach, and enhance our services. “
The platform will replace several outdated IT systems and provide library staff with new, more efficient tools and workflows to manage continuously growing physical and digital collections at scale. It will provide researchers with a streamlined discovery experience and new ways to access high-quality metadata. It will also enable the use of BIBFRAME, a new bibliographic description standard being developed by the library and partner organizations that uses a linked data model to make bibliographic information more useful both within and outside the library community.
When the platform is fully operational, it will allow users to search extensively in the vast collections of the largest library in the world. The system will have more advanced IT security controls and adapt to evolving technology and growing digital content.”
“The Library of Congress has long played a central role in developing open formats and standards for the library community. An open-source solution that supports Linked Open Data will not only benefit library staff and users, but also benefit other institutions across the country,” said Kate Zwaard, associate librarian for Discovery and Preservation Services.
“Implementing the library collections access platform is one of the library’s highest technological priorities,” said Robin Dale, associate librarian for library collections and services. “This new system will allow the library to keep pace with technological change and give it the flexibility to accommodate the range of digital content that the library manages and makes available to its users.”
Additional Details: Library of Congress Application Document (via SAM)
source document
Award Details
- Date of order placement: September 16, 2022
- Order number: LCLGD22D0055
- Task/delivery order number: LGD22T0023
- Unique entity ID assigned by the contractor: JFYKDEKM4K73
- Contractor name: EBSCO INDUSTRIES, INC.
- Address of the commissioned contractor: Ipswich, MA 01938-2106 United States of America
- Base value and value of all options (total contract value): $25000000.00
General information
- Type of contract possibility: Award notification (original)
- All dates/times are: (UTC-04:00) EASTERN STANDARD TIME, NEW YORK, USA
- Original release date: Sept. 20, 2022 5:34 p.m. EDT
- Inactive policy: 15 days after placing the order
- Original inactivity date: 10/01/2022
- Initiative:
classification
- Originally set aside:
- Product Service Code: DA10 – IT AND TELECOM – BUSINESS APPLICATION/APPLICATION DEVELOPMENT SOFTWARE AS A SERVICE
- NAICS code:
- 519120 – Libraries and Archives
- Place of fulfillment:
Washington , direct current 20540
United States of America
description
The library awarded an unlimited supply, unlimited quantity (IDIQ) contract with a potential value of US$25 million over the next seven (7) years. The IDIQ contract also includes an optional order period for up to an additional 13 years of order placement (total 20 years). A core implementation services contract was tendered and awarded along with the IDIQ for $9,066,667.00.
Filed under: Archives and Special Collections, Associations and Organizations, Awards, Companies (Publisher/Vendors), Data Files, Digital Collections, EBSCO, Interactive Tools, Libraries, Management and Leadership, News, Patrons and Users, Preservation
