VTLS Delivers Fastrac RFID to Patrick Henry Community College

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Blacksburg, VA - VTLS Inc. recently completed the implementation of the Fastrac RFID solution for Patrick Henry Community College in Martinsville, Virginia. The Fastrac system will streamline workflow and processing tasks for staff as well as enhancing security. The project included an initial purchase of RFID book tags and CD/DVD tags to retrofit the current library collection. VTLS also provided workstations equipped with RFID tag readers and Fastrac software, security gates and handheld Bluetooth-enabled portable tag readers that allow staff to quickly take inventory.

Barry Reynolds, Coordinator of Library Services, explained the decision to purchase the RFID system; “We needed a new anti-theft system but wanted to take the next step and move from a technology that provided just security to one that could incorporate security with the benefits of RFID - high speed inventory tracking, shelf-order management, faster circulation processing; and, one day, patron self-check. And it had to work seamlessly with our ILS. The Fastrac system proved to be exactly what we were looking for and VTLS made the migration easy.”

Patrick Henry Community College incorporated Fastrac as part of the Lester Library’s ongoing construction project, allowing the installation to be implemented in phases as other elements of the facility upgrades were underway. The library had been awarded funding to upgrade its physical space and library technology completely in order to offer students an optimum learning resource center, while also improving the security of its collection and resources. The library was gutted and retrofitted during a project that spanned 12 months. Fastrac went live in April.

“Integrating an RFID system like Fastrac provides immediate tangible benefits to the Learning Resource Center,” stated Vinod Chachra, President of VTLS, Inc. and co-chair of the NISO RFID Revision Working Group. “Due to the physical layout of the building there are several entrances and exits that could not all be physically monitored from a single location. The Fastrac RFID gates we installed form a complete security perimeter and will notify staff whenever a secured item attempts to leave the center. With routine tasks made so much more efficient staff will also be able to spend more of their time providing personalized assistance to patrons.”

About Fastrac RFID:

Fastrac provides a complete circulation management system for libraries. The solution uses RFID technology to reduce staff workload by processing more items in a shorter period of time with fewer steps than traditional barcode circulation. Fastrac features include standard circulation stations, self-check stations, and technical processing (tagging) stations and security gates. Optional components include wireless inventory wands, return chutes that automatically check items in and automated sortation solutions.

About VTLS Inc.

VTLS Inc. www.vtls.com, a leading library software solutions company in business for over 30 years, provides visionary technology in library solutions to a diverse customer base of more than 1800 libraries in over 32 countries. Virtua is the premier ILS solution, Chamo is the Web 2.0 based social OPAC, Chivas is the facet-based discovery tool, and Fastrac is RFID technology for libraries. VTLS also provides cutting edge software and services for Digital Libraries. VITAL, based on Fedora, is an institutional repository with a complete Digital Asset Management solution. VITAL Media is a cloud based multi-channel streaming solution for education, training and learning. VTLS is one of the few ISO 9001:2008 quality certified companies in the library industry.

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