Interlibrary loan and document delivery - ILL SBN

ILL SBN (Inter Library Loan SBN) is a cooperative interlibrary loan and document delivery national service which can be freely accessed on the Internet and is designed for needs of librarians and end users.

The service enable libraries to make, receive and manage documkent supply request for both copies (in paper and/or electronic form) and original documents. It aims to improve services to libraries and users by ensuring transparency and rapid response to requests.

Italian libraries – whether or not they take part in SBN - and foreign libraries can participate in ILL SBN along with single libraries and local networks willing to cooperate at national level while continuing to carry out autonomous management of their services local level.

ILL SBN was born as an open system able to integrate itself with library catalogues and interoperate with other ILL services, ISO-ILL compliant. In Italy there are efficient library systems managing ILL services at local level, but meeting difficulties in communicating with one another and with other systems at national and international level.
ILL SBN was developed to foster cooperation among  libraries from different institutions, ILL systems developed under different contexts and libraries using different management softwares; it can thus become a national infrastructure able to make access to other libraries easier, including the foreign ones.
A national interlibrary loan and document delivery service is also considered by the IFLA (International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions) as a  prerequisite for international resource sharing. (Sharing of resources and documents – international delivery: principles and guidelines for procedures)

For more information: ILL SBN service