The libraries of the Western Regional Storage Trust (WEST) have reached a milestone in building a lasting shared print library collection, successfully archiving 500,000 volumes.
The Western Regional Storage Trust (WEST) is a distributed shared print journal repository program in the western region of the United States. Along with libraries from the University of California system, more than 70 research and academic libraries currently participate in WEST, including libraries from Stanford University, the University of Washington, Arizona State University, the University of Oregon, and Rice University among many others.
Through distributed retention commitments and archive-building activities, WEST safeguards the scholarly record while also creating opportunities to reallocate library space for new collections and innovative user spaces. Print journal volumes are consolidated and retained at high-density library storage facilities and more than thirty-five libraries. New titles are chosen each year for inclusion based on risk-management principles. WEST archives and retention commitments are visible internationally, through the Center for Research Libraries’ Print Archives Preservation Registry (PAPR) and OCLC WorldCat.
