Auto-Graphics Offers Book-Buying Functionality through SchoolCAT™ Cataloguing Product

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE


Contacts:
Albert Flores
Vice President, Sales & Marketing
Auto-Graphics, Inc.
(800) 776-6939 ext. 1502
abf@auto-graphics.com


Mona Klausing
Director
Blue Mine Group for Auto-Graphics, Inc.
(858) 792-2633 ext. 107
mklausing@blueminegroup.com



Auto-Graphics Offers Book-Buying Functionality through SchoolCAT™ Cataloguing Product
Partnership with Baker & Taylor, Inc. enables K-12 libraries to purchase curriculum materials

POMONA, CA. — Auto-Graphics, Inc. (AUGR.PK), a technology innovator providing library automation solutions for over 35 years, today announced that its SchoolCAT™ cataloging product serving K-12 school libraries now provides online book-buying functionality through a partnership with Baker & Taylor – a worldwide distributor of books, video, music, and games. The new e-commerce functionality, accessed through Baker & Taylor’s School Selection interface, offers SchoolCAT subscribers the ability to purchase curriculum materials and provides the additional benefit of curriculum-based recommendations for building out a library’s collection.

SchoolCAT, which is used by 259 subscribers nationwide, currently consists of over 4 million MARC records, of which 3 million are K-12 specific. Through the partnership with Baker & Taylor, SchoolCAT cataloguers will now have the ability to purchase titles directly when acquiring a MARC record. This unique functionality couples similar tasks relating to collection development to efficiently catalog and acquire titles through one convenient interface, thereby streamlining processes and saving valuable time for library staff.

“We take pride in constantly expanding our products and services to our library customers. Recognizing the heavy workload of school librarians, we’re working to centralize and automate routine library transactions to simplify their workflow and increase productivity,” stated Paul Cope, Auto-Graphics’ President. “This convenient, new e-commerce gateway is an important distinction and advantage over other cataloging alternatives in the marketplace.”

Baker & Taylor's School Selection solution provides all of the online ordering capabilities that librarians require, plus access to a comprehensive collection of over 800,000 titles. School Selection makes locating and ordering books, video, and audio fast and easy. It also provides its users E-Lists, easy-to-use drop down lists for selecting subject, grade level, age, curriculum and awards. All transactions are seamlessly and securely conducted through the SchoolCAT module, with purchases fulfilled and shipped to the customer by Baker & Taylor.

“We are thrilled to partner with Auto-Graphics and offer its K-12 library customers the ability to be part of a revolutionary new service,” said Phil LaBoon, Vice President of School divisions at Baker & Taylor. “It is just another example of how we strive to listen to the market’s needs.”

The book-buying feature is also available through Auto-Graphics’ AGent platform of library automation products – including AGent VERSOTM integrated library management system, AGent Search™ federated search tool, and AGent Resource Sharing™ interlibrary loan solution – serving public, academic and special libraries.

About Baker & Taylor, Inc.
Baker & Taylor, Inc. (www.btol.com) is a global information and entertainment services company that offers books, videos, music, games and services to libraries, educational, and medical institutions, retailers, and Internet retailers. Based in Charlotte, N.C., the company has been in existence for over 178 years, developing long-term relationships with over 30,000 suppliers, including book publishers, movie studios, game producers, and music labels. Baker & Taylor maintains the largest combined in-stock book, video and music inventory in the United States, and serves the broadest customer base in the industry. Baker & Taylor is owned by Willis Stein & Partners, a leading private equity investment firm specializing in investments in profitable, well-managed, and growing businesses targeting the consumer products and services, media, business services, manufacturing, and health care industries.
For more information, please visit http://www.btol.com/index.cfm

About Auto-Graphics, Inc.
Founded in 1950, Auto-Graphics has been a technology innovator for more than five decades, providing data automation solutions to customers across multiple industries. For the past 35 years, Auto-Graphics has helped libraries of all sizes become more efficient and patron-centric. Its flagship solution, AGent™, is the one of the most comprehensive library automation platforms available today, allowing libraries of any size manage, share and search their resources. The AGent integrated product suite – currently used by more than 5,000 libraries in North America – comprises a complete ILS system for public libraries; a robust ILL solution for consortial entities and member libraries; and a powerful federated search solution for both public and academic libraries. For more information, please visit www.auto-graphics.com.

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