The mission of the Preservation Department is to ensure that information resources collected in support of research, teaching and learning at the University of Chicago remain available for long-term use.
The Preservation Department was established in 1985, bringing together previously distributed preservation activities under one administrative unit. In 1994, the Photoduplication Laboratory closed and was gradually replaced by digitization as the Library’s preferred method for preserving and reproducing collections. The Digitization Program now includes the digitization of both paper-based and media collections. In 2005, the Conservation Unit began expanding its capabilities to provide in-house treatment for both general and special collections materials. A Library reorganization in 2008 combined Library Binding with Shelf Preparation activities into one unit under the Department. The current Preservation Department consists of three units: Binding & Shelf Preparation, Conservation, and Digitization. In March of 2011, the Preservation Department is scheduled to move to new quarters in the Joe & Rika Mansueto Library that will contain the Library’s first purpose-built Conservation Laboratory and Digitization facility.
The Preservation Department is responsible for a comprehensive program for the care of collections in all formats. Services include commercial binding, rebinding, and rehousing of materials; in-house conservation treatment; preparation of materials for circulation including labeling and attaching security strips; and in-house and vended digitization of library collections. The Preservation Department also engages in emergency planning and preparedness, provides staff and user education, and consults on a wide range of preservation, conservation and digitization issues.
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