As per the Illinois State Library (ISL), each fiscal year, library staff will submit delivery volume counts as requested by the library systems. The Illinois State Library's Delivery Committee, comprised of representatives from IHLS and RAILS systems and ISL staff, designates four weeks for delivery physical hand counts. Prior to each count period, we send information to each library through our delivery route mailing lists and RAILS E-News.
FY2025 delivery count schedule:
- August 19-23, 2024
- November 18-22, 2024
- February 24-28, 2025
- May 12-16, 2025
To receive notices about delivery count dates (as well as other delivery service notifications), add the "System Delivery Contact" position to your Library Directory & Learning Calendar (L2) account.
Instructions
RAILS member libraries that receive delivery via RAILS or contracted vendor must physically hand count outgoing delivery items during the delivery count periods.
- Login to the RAILS website to access the online form.
- Enter the total number of containers and items only for the day(s) in which your delivery occurs.
- Outgoing delivery items are those items that are being delivered from your library to another location and include items from your collection that are being sent to fill interlibrary loan requests, as well as items you are returning to other libraries.
- Delivery counts begin on a Monday. Please physically hand count all of the items in each of your delivery containers and complete the online Count Form each day of the Delivery Count period. Hand count outgoing items using this same procedure through the following Friday.
- Each Delivery Count period, a number of libraries will be randomly selected to have an audit of their bins performed for the entire count week to confirm the accuracy of the delivery count. No additional work will be required of libraries selected for audit; however, libraries will be contacted in the case of a discrepancy between the manual audit count and the submitted count.
Thank you in advance for participating in this itemized count. Your assistance will help us continue to offer high-quality delivery service and to provide accurate delivery statistics to the Illinois State Library.
If you have any questions, please contact railsdelivery@railslibraries.org.