Continuations & Standing Orders

Preface
Continuations and standing orders represent a frustrating and time-consuming area of book acquisitions. Efficient management of continuations requires a staff knowledgeable in all aspects of standing order procedures, with prompt and accurate service being essential.

Midwest Library Service has been providing continuation and standing order programs to libraries for over three decades with the same commitment to high quality as our firm order system: prompt delivery, accurate invoicing, immediate reporting, convenient communications, and personal Library Service Representatives. Our reputation for excellence is well established, and we invite you to place your continuations list with us.

Scope
Our Continuation & Standing Order Service encompasses most series and continuations from U.S. publishers. Our services do not include supplying magazines, journals, or loose-leaf updating services.

Procedure
Our Continuation & Standing Order Service incorporates both automated systems and personal surveillance. Instead of relying on the filing and ordering systems of the publishers, we place orders for specific volumes as books are due to be published. If the next item in a series is not received when scheduled, we initiate a new order for the same item. This procedure helps avoid potentially missed volumes and eliminates any dependence upon the publishers' filing systems. If in-house information is not available on future volumes to be published, we call the publisher for future projections and publication schedules. This information is then used to update our new title records.

Ordering

  1. Orders may be sent in any format (lists, multiple copy order forms, printouts, electronic, etc.).
  2. To facilitate prompt service on continuations, we request the title of the series, the starting edition or volume, and the publisher's name.
  3. Continuations can be supplied in the following categories: monographic and non-monographic, numbered and unnumbered, regular and irregular, proceedings, yearbooks, and annuals.
  4. We provide clerical assistance to those libraries wishing to transfer standing orders to us previously on order with publishers.

Cost, Billing & Shipments

  1. Continuations are billed in a range of discounts from list price to 10%. Some continuations published by societies, non-profit organizations, university departments, etc. are billed at list price plus a nominal service charge.
  2. We invoice according to the library's specifications and, if requested, individual funds can be billed separately. Invoices are normally shipped with the books, but they can be mailed separately if requested.
  3. Shipments are made weekly from our facility in Bridgeton, Missouri by United Parcel Service, United States Postal Service, or truck. Shipments and invoices are sent separately from firm orders and addressed to specific departments within the library.

Advantages

  1. Because of our method of ordering specific volumes, we are in regular communication with the publishers.
  2. Our status reports are prompt and accurate and should eliminate library claims.
  3. Specific claims from an individual library resulting in an updated status report will generate new status reports to all libraries ordering the same series.
  4. We do not drop ship.

Quality service depends on good communication between the library and the book supplier. Your personal Library Service Representative and our convenient communications provide easy access to us regarding your continuation orders. We invite you to try our service by sending us your next list of standing order titles.