J u n e , 1919
T H E JOURNAL OF I N D U S T R I A L A N D ENGINEERING CHEMISTRY
index to be presupposed. Rather it should represent the byproducts of each day’s work. One thing, which no efficient special librarian can escape doing personally, is the constant reviewing of the periodicals received by the library day by day as they come in. If their number is too great for this, the library is too large to be called a special library and should be so subdivided according to subject as to bring its departments back into the category where special library methods may apply. From such daily service all points of possible interest to the clientele of the library should be noted and not only referred to the persons concerned but also recorded in the library’s subject index. In the special library convenience of arrangement is not an insignificant matter and yet how commonly it is found sacrificed t o some arbitrary system, product of undue subserviency t o library school ideals or to symmetry of appearance. The consultant enters a special library with a certain subject in his mind. He wants to get a t that subject directly and likes t o find it concentrated within a reasonable amount of space. He does not want to have to hunt through a hundred journals on difierent subjects arranged alphabetically to find the latest issues of three on chemistry. He will see no reason why chemical journals cannot be kept together, and rightly. Nor does he see spontaneously why the Journal of the American Chemical Society falls under A when the .Tournal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry is in J. Of course, there is a reason perfectly satisfactory to a librarian but it is not one that appeals to the logic %ofthe average searcher for scientific facts. Neither will he see a t once why the decennial index of Chemical Abstracts should occupy a shelf far away from Chemical Abstracts but in close propinquity to the Engineering Index. H e may perceive the manner of operation of the librarian’s mind but it will not evoke great sympathy. These are only a few of the many lapses of reason one meets in the average special library. The special library is, above all, not a suitable refuge for the victim of the routine habit. For efficiency its methods must be flexible and capable of adjustment to circumstance and of expansion to meet new needs. I t s director must not only be ready to supply facts but also to receive ideas from the day’s experience and to apply them to the advancement of the service, for the service may frequently, through such means, rise far superior in value t o the material equipment.
THE KODAK PARK LIBRARY B y GRRTRUDI: REISSXAXResearch Lahoratory, Eastman Kodak Company,
Rochester, N. Y
Our company being a photographic concern, the main feature ,of the Kodak Park Library is the completeness of the works on photography. Not that the books on photography outclass the others in number; on the contrary, photography is a young science, and all the literature written on the subject can be housed on comparatively few shelves. Whereas the books on physics and chemistry are mostly of a modern character, in photographic literature we endeavor to obtain everything ever published, be it of actual value for our work or merely of historical interest. Om books on physics comprise various subheadings, the most important of which is optics-lens design and geometrical optics-to which science we devote almost as much attention as t o photography. On subjects such as colorimetry, photometry, illuminating engineering, microscopy, crystallography, spectroscopy, general theory of heat and heat measurements, electrical measurements and X-rays, we possess a good assortment of the most up-to-date books, in addition to the usual handbooks, general textbooks, and physical and mathematical tables. I n chemistry we do not specialize in any particular field, but Lry to have a well-balanced library on organic, physical, and in-
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organic chemistry. I n technology we have, besides the general handbooks and texthooks, an exhaustive collection of works on subjects of special interest to us. In addition to these three main groups, we have a few small collections on engineering, efficiency and business management, and a good assortment of dictionaries of foreign languages. One of the most useful and generally read portions of our library is the journal section. We subscribe for over 2 0 0 journals on the above-mentioned topics in almost every living language, and much care is taken in their digestion, in which task we are greatly supported by the staff of the research laboratory. Each member of the scientific staff is requested to read carefully and regularly the journals in his particular line of work and make an abstract of every article pertaining to information of interest to our industry. Patents and newly purchased books are also briefly abstracted by the various experts and the abstracts are then collected and published in the Abstract Bulletin, copies of which are sent to interested parties. The abstracts are provided with a classification number and are so arranged that they can be cut apart, pasted on a card and filed according to a numerical classification, especially worked out for the purpose. By simply quoting the reference given with each abstract the original article can be obtained from the library, subject, of course, to the library rules. If the article is needed for an extended period, or for permanent use, we have a photostat copy made, or, if it is written in a language which the employee does not understand, we furnish a translation. If an employee asks for information which we cannot supply from our shelves, we try t o obtain it elsewhere. Either we buy a book on the subject, or we borrow it from another library; or, if the book is owned by an institution which does not loan books, we try to obtain a photostat copy. The Chemists’ Club in New York has rendered us much valuable assistance in this direction. The search for information is often very lengthy and disappointing, but we either get it, or make quite sure that it cannot be obtained. While the librarian is responsible for keeping the library up to date and in accordance with the needs of the various departments, the employees are urged to recommend anything which they think would be of use. The books and pamphlets are arranged on the shelves according to their subject matter, and bound periodicals are kept as near as possible t o the books dealing with the same general branch of science. The classification is based on that generally used in the universities, modified to suit our trade. Our loaning rules are very simple. Reference books, as, for instance, Allen’s “Organic Chemistry,” Beilstein, Berichte, handbooks, hack numbers of periodicals, cyclopedias, dictionaries, must not be taken out of the room a t all, and for this reason investigators are allowed to spend as much of their working time as necessary in the library. Current numbers of periodicals must not be taken out during working hours, but they can be taken home over night. Books on special topics can be borrowed for a reasonable length of time, and if the book is needed for permanent work, or for a prolonged investigation, we buy a second copy, or, if the required information is contained in a certain chapter, we have it photostated. Translations are made as necessary. The library is open during the working hours and a t the noon hour. Everybody can go to the shelves and take out what he wants, but he is requested to fill out a card when taking the book out of the room-a request which the busy man sometimes forgets. The system is very lenient indeed, but it works well, and we are proud to say that in spite of these liberal rules, our loss in books averages only three a year. (The figure for lost current numbers of periodicals is not quite as phenomenal, but still, it is very good.) While the library, as a whole, is intended for scientific men
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and manufacturing experts, one corner of it is set apart for the working men without any scientific training. This little department contains a few elementary books on the science of photography and color photography, many on photographic manipulations and motion picture work, a few elementary works on general science, some on physics and chemistry, a large number for the electrician, the mechanic, the draftsman, the carpenter, etc., as well as some popular books on personal and business efficiency and geometry. The books can be changed twice weekly during the noon hour and we take great care in directing the people to the reading matter they need most. I n this department the books are charged to the borrower in the usual way. The little educational library has proved quite a success.
THE FUNCTIONS OF THE INDUSTRIAL LIBRARY By
.
E. D GREENMAN, Arthur D. Little, Inc., Cambridge. Mass.
Research investigations are now carried on jointly in the library and in the laboratory, and the amount of time, labor, and money saved by first making a state-of-the-art search will usually well repay the investigator for his efforts. As the ultimate function of any library should be service, we find this function responsible for the existence of the industrial library and here it should be developed to the highest possible degree. A properly functioning industrial library should include the dispensing of information, both solicited and unsolicited. It should serve as a reference department where definite questions are answered and where definite lines of thought may be investigated. In addition to this i t should distribute unsolicited information, a function in which many of our libraries are woefully lacking. By the distribution of unsolicited information I mean that the library should constantly bring to the attention of every patron, any book, article, reference, or note of interest or value to him. In order t o do this the librarian must be kept informed as to the lines of interest each man has. The working functions of an industrial library are well illustrated by the library of Arthur D. Little, Inc. The library occupies three rooms and stacks adjoining the research laboratories. The main room consists of two alcoves used for reading and study, and a reference section containing the card catalogue and t h e librarian's desk. The other rooms are used for pamphlets, special data file, and for workrooms. All material is divided into five classes: ( I ) Books, ( 2 ) Pamphlets, (3) Trade Catalogues, (4) Clippings, (5) Blueprints. There are 4000 selected volumes, 6000 pamphlets, 20,ooo clippings, 10,000 patents, and 800 blueprints, all classified accbrding t o the Dewey system. The books are arranged in the main reference room and stacks by classification number, pamphlets are filed in pamphlet boxes; clippings, memoranda, and special data are mounted on manila sheets, placed in classified folders, and arranged in letter-file cabinets by class number. Trade catalogues are placed in folders and arranged alphabetically. Owing t o the wide range of subjects included in industrial chemistry, the collection of this material necessitates careful selection. Only the best books are purchased and only the articles of unusual value are clipped or carded. All this material is carefully indexed by a dictionary catalogue which now contains over IOO,OOO cards. For each book, pamphlet or clipping, cards are made giving author, title, source, date, and classification number, with a special designation for each class of material. Pamphlets are designated by P, clippings by S, blueprints by Bp, etc. Letters, memoranda, and notes containing any information of unusual value are also carded in this catalogue. Authoritative works and standard reference books not in the library, but which may be consulted at nearby libraries, are indexed, the cards indicating where such books may be borrowed or consulted. All books on chemistry published
Vol.
11,
No. 6
in this country since 1917have been listed, whether the books are available in this locality or not. The librarian serves as the eyes of the organization, searching for literature of interest and value to twenty specialists engaged in' relatively different fields of chemical research, There are chemical engineers, analysts, paper chemists, metallurgists, textile experts, microscopists, fermentologists, and research chemists in organic, inorganic, and physical chemistry, and each one must be supplied with the latest literature on his special line of investigation. As a means of keeping in touch with this literature, the library currently receives sixty technical periodicals and society publjcqtions. Each is carefully examined by the librarian who indicates on attached slips the page number of the article, note, or reference of interest to each individual. These magazines are then routed to the men whose names appear on the slips and for whom references have been indicated. As soon as the man has examined the reference he initials it and the magazine is sent t o the next name on the list. Clippings, memoranda, and special data material are treated likewise. The library also issues a biweekly bulletin listing new books, pamphlets, and trade catalogues. This is sent to each member of the company who indicates the titles he wishes to examine. The largest and most important part of the work of the library, however, consists in serving as a bureau of information for the purpose of answering staff inquiries. At any time we may be concerned with a new tropical fruit, a new paper-making material, a problem effecting economy of production, or the utilization of waste products, and information on these subjects must be quickly available. Illustrative of the variety of questions which have come to the library recently have been requests for literature on bullet piercing steel, metal soaps, vegetable ivory, resiliency tests, synthetic ammonia, raffinose, artificial catgut, filtermasse, chlorination of wool, sericite, money value of the nitrogen unit in fertilizers, factors in the luminosity of flame, etc. The compilation of bibliographies forms a very important and essential part of our work. When a new subject comes up for investigation the library is requested to compile a list of references t o the important literature on that subject. This list is submitted to the investigator who calls for such references as he wishes t o examine. Experience indicates that the chemist prefers to personally examine and digest the literature on a subject under investigation rather than to have someone do this for him. As the state-of-an-art is frequently several years in advance of its published literature, treasures of inside information have been collected and carefully preserved by industrial companies as a result of their researches and investigations. Our own library contains 150 volumes representing the results of 30 years of research work. They comprise over jo,ooo certificates of analysis and 40,000 typewritten pages of technical reports dealing with problems of industrial chemistry. This material is carefully indexed and comprises a vast encyclopedia of confidential information. The library seeks t o serve all the members of the company from president to office boy. The janitor has been given rending matter on the care of furnaces and boilers, the stenographers have constant use for books giving them chemical terms, the office boys are keen for books on chemical analysis, and the research chemists are always present.
THE FUNCTIONS OF A RESEARCH LIBRARY I N T H E DYESTUFF INDUSTRY B y JULIAN F. SMITH.National Aniline and Chemical Co.. Inc.. Buffalo, N.
Y.
The Schoellkopf Research Library, so named in honor of the pioneer makers of American synthetic dyes, began to take form in August 1916. Its organization was so planned as to conform as nearly as possible t o that of the best institutional and reference libraries.
