A
1
FAQ
2
The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County recently began a multi-year reorganization of its research library, with the goal of focusing our resources on the needs of our own staff and researchers.  In more than a century of existence, the library collection has grown to include many items that are now outside our evolving collecting scope or that have been rendered unnecessary to our institution by new technologies, new knowledge, or new editions.  

However, we recognize that items that no longer belong in our collection could become a valued part of yours.  As we withdraw these items from the collection, we therefore hope to find institutions for whose scope they are more suitable.  Items we are withdrawing include serials, books, maps, and other resources, from humanities and social sciences disciplines as well as natural and physical sciences.  We will ask receiving institutions to pay the cost of shipping materials, but are otherwise prepared to make withdrawn items freely available to your institutions.

This is a running list of items scheduled for disposition; it is not complete and will be updated throughout the project. If you would like to be notified when we update the list, please fill out the form here: http://bit.ly/NHMLAlib_updates.
Please email librarian@nhm.org with any questions or requests. 

We look forward to working with many of you to ensure the best possible access to these materials for the scholars, patrons, and visitors we all support. Please feel free to share with any appropriate lists and colleagues.
3
4
Q. What does it mean when a line is highlighted in grey?
5
A. A line that has been highlighted in grey means that another organization has already requested the item. We are awarding these materials first come, first served so please be dilligent in checked the lists, signing up fpr updates, or letting us know if there is anything specific you are looking for.
If you see an item you wanted in grey, please let us know anyways so we can alert you of any changes to the item's status.
6
7
Q. I emailed with a list of materials I want. How will I know what I am eligible to recieve?
8
A. When we receive your request, will grey out the line on the spreadsheet. At the begining of each line for a claimed item, there is a number which corresponds to an insitution. You will be informed of your institutional codeso that you can make any necessary revisions to your request and plan for shipping.
9
10
Q. I only see journals and maps on the spreadsheet. Where are the monographs?
11
A. We have not yet added monographs and other materials to the list but it is forthcoming. This is a very careful weeding process where we must look at the provenance of each item and assess its usefulness to current and future research with our curatorial staff.
If you would like to be alerted when we add new items to the list, please email librarian@nhm.org or sign up for updates at http://bit.ly/NHMLAlib_updates
12
13
Q. My organization has an account with FedEx, can we have materials shipped using that service?
14
A. Absolutely! We can accomodate FedEx, UPS, or USPS in-house and we are amenable to working with you and your institution in whatever way we can to see these materials safely and affordably rehomed. If you have a solution, we are listening and willing to help faciliate any reasonable request.
15
16
Q. What's the timeline to get these moved out of your collection? / When can I expect these to arrive? / Can you hold on to these for a month or two?
17
A. We do not have a hard and fast deadline for this process. There are two staff working on this and while we would like to work to get this completed as quickly and efficiently as possible and each fulfillment is bespoke for each individual insitution, it may take a few weeks for us to pack and ship these materials to you.
We will complete requests in the order they are resolved and let you know what that time line looks like as we make arrangements.
We are happy to work with you if you need to make special arrangements or have us hold materials on site for a short time while we coordinate transit and other details.
18
19
Q. I would like to backfill a run of a journal in our collection with specific issues/ volumes, is that possible?
20
A. Yes! Journals and serials are available for piecemeal selection in the order requests were received. Please let us know what titles you are interested in pulling from as soon as possible and we will contact you to arrange shipment.
21
22
Q. How much will shipping materials cost?
23
A. The bulk of materials can be packed into 15 X 12 X 10" coprrugated cardboard boxes and either pallatized or shipped individually. We estimate that the cost for each box of this size is approximately $2 per box. We will provide you with a box estimate when coordinating shipping and we can handle eveything on our end and bill you for the materials or provide you with whatever information you need to get materials shipped directly to us. If you are a local insitution, it is likely we can box and transport materials to you free of charge, all we ask is that you return the empty boxes as soon as possible so that we might reuse them. Oversized materials and specialty boxes will have to be purchased piecemeal at your institution's expense. We will happily work with you to help keep costs down.
24