Setting Up Floating Collections

Floating collections processing is the ability to allow certain items to remain at the branch where they were last checked in. If an item is called to another branch, for example to fill a hold request, the item will stay at that branch when it is returned. The items move among branches as they are used, not according to a rotation schedule. Floating collections allow high-demand items to remain at high-traffic organizations, and collection contents to change with demand. They also reduce the cost of returning materials to a single starting point after each use at another branch. You can check in an item at branch B that belongs to branch A and, rather than putting the item in transit back to A, let it remain at B. The item’s Assigned Branch changes from branch A to branch B, and the reassigned item takes on branch B’s circulation parameters.

Floating collection functions are optional. If your system consists of organizations that do their own purchasing and processing, and item ownership is important to each organization, you may not want to implement floating collections. If your system does central purchasing and processing, then distributes items to branch organizations, you may find floating collections very useful.

Some libraries allow nearly all items to float. Others exert more control over what items may float and to what locations. You can configure floating options at the branch level, so that each “home” branch can determine if any of its items are allowed to float and to which branches. You can specify limits by the number of items attached to the same title (with the same material type) that can float into a collection, or by the number of items in each collection.

Individual items can be designated as exempt from floating. The item record includes a Do not float option that can be set manually for an individual item, through an item template, or by bulk change to an item record set. ILL items and reserve items with a reserve status of On Reserve or Permanent Reserve never float.