Published by Communications and Public Affairs (519) 824-4120, Ext. 56982 or 53338
News Release
September 23, 1998
TRELLIS allows libraries to grow, intertwine
A new, integrated library system that allows users to search simultaneously the library collections of the University of Guelph, University of Waterloo and Wilfrid Laurier University will be launched formally at the University of Guelph's McLaughlin Library Monday, Sept. 28, 3:30-5:30 pm.
The TRELLIS system - the first such academic library collaboration in Canada - offers joint access to the catalogues and holdings of the three university libraries. It also provides access to other World Wide Web sites and databases. Users may access the system through computer terminals in any of the three university libraries, or from a home or office computer via the Internet. More than 400 users can log onto the system at one time.
More than 40 staff members from the three libraries worked for two years to implement the joint system. Its name is intended to evoke images of growth, linkage and cooperation, which is the purpose of the partnership. TRELLIS is a powerful way to connect faculty, students and staff to a rich variety of resources. Its search capabilities are more sophisticated than those previously available to most library users, it provides links to electronic journals and other online resources, and it allows access to World Wide Web and computer-based indexes and abstracts.
TRELLIS is one result of the collaboration of the TriUniversity Group of Libraries (TUG), a partnership formed in 1995 to formalize long-standing cooperation among the three libraries. TUG's goal is to provide students and researchers with seamlessly integrated library collections and services. More than 45,000 students, 1,600 faculty and nearly 4,000 staff are served through this partnership, which offers combined holdings of 7.5 million volumes. More than 3.5 million people use the libraries every year, and nearly $10 million is spent annually for information materials.
For media questions, contact Communications and Public Affairs at the University of Guelph, 824-4120 Ext. 3338
