News from Esprit Soutron

Citation

(2002), "News from Esprit Soutron", Program: electronic library and information systems, Vol. 36 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/prog.2002.28036aab.004

News from Esprit Soutron

News from Esprit Soutron

Increase in users of Bibliotech Pro library management system

The Esprit Soutron Partnership (ESP) is delighted to announce a rapidly growing client base for their integrated Library Management Solution, BiblioTech PRO. BiblioTech PRO is a comprehensive system for cataloguing, circulation, acquisitions, serials, search and retrieval via an advanced Web interface and reporting on corporate information resources both physical and electronic across multiple offices. The flexibility of the database and the speed of deployment make it a safe choice for many firms faced with migrating library and know-how applications to the Web.

BiblioTech PRO is now firmly established as a leading UK solution used by some of the foremost City law firms, major insurance companies, professional institutes, international consultancies and large government departments. Clients have enjoyed the reliability and robustness of the underlying Progress RDBMS built on SQL industry standards with word and phrase indexing. That and the unique capabilities of the Progress Web Speed application environment deliver Web applications that are truly scalable. Integration with legacy systems and global directories is accomplished via SonicMQ, a leading edge solution for business and integration projects.

ESP sales director Graham Beastall said: "We have learned that clients want two things above all else – reliability as a system scales in size, and flexibility, especially in the Web interface. BiblioTech PRO delivers these two must-haves in abundance. What excites me most, though, is the response people have when we show the system's simplicity and ease of use. As we now start to deliver more and more functionality through the Web and integrate enquiry management systems, we see great opportunities for our clients to improve their service to users."

BTP is proving to be an extensible and flexible solution. New modules have been developed with tremendous speed for loose leaf management and feedback measurement using the Web development tools, while recent integration projects covering e-journals, authenticated access to host databases and networked CD-ROMs are realising the promise of a truly integrated information environment.

Recent clients include organisations as varied as Nokia Networks, Royal Botanical Gardens of Edinburgh, the Ministry of Defence and the Industrial Society.

xdirectory launches with support from across the library and information sector

The Esprit Soutron Partnership unveiled version 1.0 of their xdirectory information management suite and an impressive list of pre-purchasing customers at the Library and Information Show 2001, held in Birmingham in June 2001. xdirectory, built from the ground up for the Web, offers a fully configurable, browser-based environment for creating and publishing searchable Web information directories. It hands customers the power to construct database-driven e-directories for their organisation's intranet or Web site, whether they be digital image and multimedia catalogues, subject resource gateways or specialist data collections. The flexibility of the xdirectory solution has meant that as part of the launch ESP were able to announce a formidable list of pre-adopting organisations drawn from across the library and information sector with plans to utilise the product in a variety of ways.

The World Energy Council will be using xdirectory to build a wide-ranging membership directory that links together information about its committees, member organisations, key contacts and publications. South Bank University is bidding for a European Project with ESP working as their technical partnership and xdirectory as the key software component. Conwy Borough Council, the earliest xdirectory adopter, has already progressed to a live implementation – Friday, 15 June seeing the launch of the Conwy Community Directory, a large-scale community database built using xdirectory to bridge the information gap of several council libraries and information agencies.

The Dublin Core (DC) metadata standard is established as an increasingly important part of the infrastructure of the Web. Recently mandated by the UK government and attracting international and interdisciplinary support, xdirectory is fully DC-compliant, providing an ideal platform for standards-aware organisations. In this context the City of Leeds Libraries will be using the software suite to build their business resources portal and De Montfort University have chosen xdirectory as the next generation replacement for their resources catalogue currently implemented around the path-finding, but now ageing, ROADS technology.

Managing director Jim Burton sees xdirectory as a critical component of the growing ESP solutions portfolio "… xdirectory is a powerful and hugely configurable solution that can meet the increasingly sophisticated and fast changing needs of our customers. We are delighted at the immediate success of the product and excited to be working with such an excellent group of early adopters. We are well on the way to delivering sister products for xdirectory that will further extend the reach of our information management suite."

ESP's Networked Information Management System plays an integral part in the new £60 million Norfolk and Norwich Millennium Library

The Esprit Soutron Partnership is delighted to announce the implementation of their networked information management system in the Norfolk and Norwich Millennium Library at the County Hall, Norwich.

The installed system provides access to a range of electronic information resources including CD-ROMs, DVDs, online subscription services and applications – all using ESP's flexible ICT suite of products.

The Norfolk and Norwich Millennium Library, based at the Forum, is one of the largest National Lottery funded projects to date, receiving almost £30 million of the £60 million required in National Lottery funding, and is the central focus in local people's learning and leisure. The Library offers resources to support people of all ages and abilities who are following personal learning paths, whether in support of a career, as part of their school lives or as an individual interest.

It is expected that the Library will attract some one million visitors in the first year, rising to more than 1.2 million in the following year. It provides 70 publicly available PCs linked to the Northlink library management database.

The Millennium Library's objective was to create fast, multiple and simultaneous user access to CD-ROM and electronic information, access provision to other sites and users including other library service points. There was also the need to enable the integration of developing publishing media and other formats including multi-level DVDs and to improve the management and control of a range of information resources and applications.

Jan Holden, service manager of Norwich and Norfolk Lending Libraries, commented: "We are delighted with the service and expertise of ESP Ltd. They fully understand the demands placed on information professionals within large-scale libraries and, in xdirectory, have the ideal tool for maximising information accessibility …"

Local area network access is provided to staff and public within a public library environment. Wide area network access is provided from branch libraries, learning centres and similar outlets, all attached to the corporate network. Access to remote users is also available via the Internet.

The networked information management system, running on a Windows platform and utilising three Citrix MetaFrame application servers to improve management software distribution, incorporates elements of their highly successful ICT solutions range, Fenwood:CD and the recently launched browser-based information management solution xdirectory.

For further information please contact: Graham Beastall, Esprit Soutron Partnership, Wyvern Business Park, Derby DE21 6BF, UK. Tel: +44 (0) 1332 821800; Fax: +44 (0) 1332 821801; E-mail: nfo@espritsoutron.com; URL: espritsoutron.com