Page 30 - Journal of Library Science in China 2020 Vol.46

LI Yuhai, JIN Zhe, LI Jiahui & LI Jue / Five questions in the construction of smart library in China 029

regional library alliances, including Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Library Alliance, Yangtze River Delta
Library Alliance, and Pearl River Delta Digital Library Alliance. In addition, China initiated a
few international library alliances, such as China-Central and Eastern Europe National Library
Alliance and the Silk Road International Library Alliance. Library alliances in different forms
and subjects have promoted the co-construction and sharing of digital resources, cooperative
storage of electronic resources, joint development of bibliographic data, interlibrary loan and
document delivery, and cooperation in reference services, which have improved the level of
document guarantee and the ability to serve the society as well as scientific research activities
in the library community. With the successful development and launch of new generation of
library service platforms, the original library alliances shall also be transformed and upgraded
into smart ones, and a smart platform shared by regional libraries should be built using emergent
technologies such as big data analytics, cloud computing and the Internet of Things. In China,
there is the Joint University Librarians Advisory Committee (JULAC) in Hong Kong, which is
an alliance for shared platforms. Abroad, there is the Wales Higher Education Libraries Forum
(WHELF) in the UK.
Second, integration of scattered information resources with the library as the center. The
most important function of the library in the smart stage is to integrate information and data
resources scattered in different departments and institutions with the library as the center, so
as to make sure the library has the most comprehensive, convenient and authoritative access
to information and data. In order to benefit from an integrated and unified source of data to
provide the relevance of user needs and activities, the smart library needs to cooperate with
other relevant departments and institutions. For example, public libraries need to integrate
public data of various fields, including health care, environmental protection, food safety and
urban planning; strengthen cooperation with government departments at all levels and integrate
governmental open data; and work with information development research centers, archives,
science museums and other institutions to promote data sharing and integration. University and
professional libraries need to cooperate with departments/schools and research institutes to help
them collect and organize scientific research information and data, and promote the openness
and sharing of scientific data and research achievements; at the same time, they shall work with
the departments of archives, student management and educational administration to integrate
and organize data within the universities and research institutions for convenient search and use
by all parties.
Third, cooperation between libraries and enterprises. The development of librarianship cannot
be accomplished without the participation and support of social institutions and related enterprises.
Furthermore, the construction of the smart library (especially resource building and use of
technical equipment) cannot be achieved without the participation of distributors, service providers
and scientific and technological enterprises. The research and development of technological
products in the library are mostly completed by those enterprises, as they have both the ability to