The BIX library index was a voluntary comparison of key figures for public and academic libraries. Developed in 1999 by the Bertelsmann Foundation and the German Library Association (dbv), the BIX was carried out from 2005 to 2015 by the dbv together with the University Library Centre of North Rhine-Westphalia (hbz) as part of the Competence Network for Libraries (knb). Due to the lack of a sustainable long-term funding model, the dbv decided to discontinue the BIX with the publication of the 2015 results.

The aim of the BIX was to enable a nationwide performance comparison of libraries based on certain key figures in a brief, concise and yet meaningful form. For the academic libraries, 17 key figures - assigned to four so-called "target dimensions" of offer, utilisation, efficiency and development - were collected.

Paderborn University Library took part in the nationwide performance comparison in the field of academic libraries (BIX-WB) from 2004 to 2015, making its performance transparent both internally and externally. It achieved good results and rankings in the category of single-tier university libraries.

Since 2012, the results have been presented in the form of a rating, using the data of all libraries in Germany in the background as a framework for comparison. For each participating library, it was determined whether it was in the top, middle or bottom third of all comparable libraries in Germany in each of the target dimensions. The respective result was symbolised by the colours gold (top group), light blue (middle group) and dark blue (bottom group). The results of the four target groups were used to calculate the number of BIX tops (stars) for a library. The participating library received one star for each placement in the top group and half a star for each placement in the middle group. A maximum of four BIX tops (four times top or gold group) could be achieved. Based on the number of stars, it was easy to see in how many target dimensions a library was able to establish itself in the top group. The results of Paderborn University Library in the years 2012 to 2015:

Up to and including 2011, the BIX was structured as a ranking, whereby the exact position of each participating library within the target dimensions and in the overall ranking was determined on the basis of scores. Only the data of the other participating libraries formed the framework for comparison.

An overview of Paderborn University Library's positions in the BIX for the years 2004 to 2011 among all participating "single-tier" university libraries in Germany (the position among the participating single-tier university libraries in North Rhine-Westphalia is shown in brackets):

Paderborn University Library scores again in national comparison with other libraries

Paderborn University Library (UB) has been measuring itself against other academic libraries in Germany since 2004 as part of the benchmarking system "Bibliotheksindex BIX". Once again, Paderborn University Library has achieved excellent results in the two dimensions of efficiency and development. Here it belongs to the TOP group of all university libraries in Germany. In the two other target dimensions measured in the BIX - services and utilisation - it is, as in previous years, in the middle of the field.

Paderborn University Library's very long opening hours of 107 hours per week contribute to its good position. These are the sixth longest opening hours of all libraries participating in the BIX-WB.

The BIX also recognises the library's high proportion of expenditure on electronic media and services. It invested 68.7 % of its acquisition budget in the acquisition and provision of electronic media, which is the fifth best figure in Germany and the second best figure in NRW.

The intensive use of the library's electronic information media - databases, electronic journals and books, electronic seminar apparatuses, etc. - has a positive effect on the BIX: with over 1.165 million accesses per year, it achieves the highest value of all North Rhine-Westphalian university libraries and the third best value in Germany.

Although the range of electronic information media on offer is becoming ever more extensive and their use, which is not tied to the location and opening hours of the library, is becoming ever more intensive, the real 'location of the library' continues to prove to be the university's central place of learning, work and communication.

The continuous upward trend in the number of library visits and circulation figures in recent years continued in 2014: each primary user (academics and students at the university) visited the library an average of 64 times a year. With a total of more than 1.3 million visitors and more than 2.1 million loans, new record figures were achieved for the University Library in 2014.

However, the BIX also reveals two problem areas that cannot be solved by the University Library alone: firstly, the library's below-average resources for acquiring literature. Although the University Library received additional funds from the university, faculties, departments and institutes in 2014, it performed poorly in this area: for the entire year, only 124 euros were available for each primary user to purchase new information media (databases, electronic and printed books and journals, etc.). On the other hand, this is due to the significantly below-average staffing of the University Library, i.e. the number of employees available to provide the wide range of services of the University Library, from the acquisition, provision and lending of media to advice and training, the support of seminar equipment, the digitisation of media, etc. and for the further development of new, sustainable services.

"The BIX is one of the tools that help us to obtain a transparent picture of our performance and indications for further quality improvements," explains library director Dr Dietmar Haubfleisch. "We are delighted with the library's high performance and the high level of acceptance among our users. We recognise that we are strategically very well positioned. However, the BIX also shows us impressively where the shoe pinches and what needs to be done," he continues.

Background information on the BIX:

64 academic libraries - including 42 university libraries in two classes - took part in the 2015 BIX Library Index. The BIX Library Index measures the performance of public and academic libraries based on certain key figures: www.bix-bibliotheksindex.de.

Germany's best libraries: Paderborn University Library in 8th place nationwide

In this year's German library ranking, the BIX - Library Index for Academic Libraries, Paderborn University Library took 8th place in the category of single-tier university libraries. It was thus able to improve by two places compared to the previous year. In the field of efficiency, it is in 6th place, in the field of utilisation it is in 7th place and in comparison with other academic libraries in North Rhine-Westphalia it is in 3rd place, as in the previous year.

The German Library Association and the Bertelsmann Foundation have been carrying out the performance comparison for academic libraries for eight years now. In 2011, 33 single-tier university libraries provided data on their services, utilisation, efficiency and development potential. The BIX used this data to calculate 17 performance indicators and compile a ranking list. Participation in the BIX is voluntary. What all participants have in common is a high level of performance awareness and a desire for greater transparency.

Providing the best possible support for students and academics at Paderborn University, but also for the numerous external users from the city and region, in all matters relating to literature and information provision - with this strategy, Paderborn University Library achieved 8th place in the BIX in the category of single-tier university libraries.

This year's result for the library is particularly outstanding in the fields of utilisation and efficiency: in a state comparison of NRW, it is the most cost-efficient library, and in a nationwide comparison, the third most efficient.

1.16 million (physical) library visits per year and over 2 million accesses to the library's electronic services illustrate the strong demand for the library's services and testify to an exceptionally high level of customer loyalty. Paderborn University Library ranks second in Germany for the number of virtual visits per user, i.e. accesses to the electronic services. These high access figures confirm that the University Library is pursuing the right acquisition strategy for the needs of study, teaching and research. The proportion of expenditure on electronic media has been among the highest in Germany for years. At 62.33%, this figure exceeds the 60% mark for the first time. No other university library in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia invests a higher proportion of its budget/expenditure in electronic media.

Another guarantee for the success of the University Library is its long weekly opening hours of 7.30 a.m. to midnight and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. at weekends, which are above the national average.

"Excellent research, teaching and studies require a very good information infrastructure, and this is guaranteed by the University Library as a knowledge and information portal," says Dr Haubfleisch, Head Library Director. "The University Library's good results show that our efforts to continuously improve the University Library's offerings and services are successful."

Unfortunately, as in previous years, the results show that staffing and space levels are far below those of comparable libraries: With only 4.4 employees per 1,000 users and 415 square metres of user area per 1,000 users, it has the lowest values for both indicators in the NRW state comparison. With its available space, the University Library is well below the national average. An expansion that meets the spatial requirements of a modern university library with attractive, modern learning and work spaces remains the most urgent concern of the university library.

Paderborn University Library remains among the TOP 10 university libraries in Germany

The Library Index (BIX) for academic libraries uses 17 indicators to show the strengths and weaknesses of library services and analyses the general conditions of the participating libraries.

Paderborn University Library (UB) has been taking part in the BIX ranking since 2004 - now for the seventh time in a row - in order to measure itself against other libraries and thus obtain a transparent picture of its performance and indications for further quality improvements.

Paderborn University Library achieved 10th place out of 35 comparable libraries in the group of libraries with single-tier library systems. As in the previous year, it came 3rd in the NRW state comparison.

The result shows that the University Library is strategically very well positioned. In detail, the good positioning is based on the following factors, among others:

In the field of "Offers", as in previous years, the UB impresses with very long opening hours totalling 107 hours per week, the sixth-longest opening hours of all libraries participating in the BIX-WB, the third-longest opening hours of all NRW libraries participating in the BIX-WB.

In addition, the University Library scores highly in the "Services" target dimension due to its high proportion of expenditure on electronic media and services. It invested 58.39% of its acquisition budget in the acquisition and provision of electronic media and services, which is the third-highest figure in Germany and the highest in NRW.

The use of the library's electronic services - databases, electronic journals and books, electronic seminar apparatuses, etc. - is very important to the University Library's customers. - etc: With 155 virtual visits per primary user, it achieves the highest value of all North Rhine-Westphalian university libraries and the sixth best value in Germany.

In the target dimension "future orientation" ("development"), the University Library improved its position compared to the previous year from 13th to 8th place, and in 2009 it continues to rank 3rd among NRW libraries.

In the field of "efficiency", which focusses on the use of human resources in libraries, the University Library scored as the second most efficient library in NRW, and in a comparison of all participating libraries it improved from 17th to 12th place nationwide.

The University Library is the university's central place of learning, work and communication. This year's BIX comparison also drastically demonstrates what students in particular experience on a daily basis, namely that the size of the library is clearly inadequate. We can only hope that the library space will be expanded in the coming years.

The fact that the continuous upward trend in library visits and circulation figures in recent years slowed somewhat in 2009 has to do with the several months of remodelling and refurbishment work that was carried out in almost all fields of the university library, some of which led to considerable inconvenience for both customers and library staff (deterioration in the target dimension of use from 7th to 12th place, in the NRW state comparison from 2nd to 3rd place).

The second problem area, which has been known for years and cannot be solved by the University Library's commitment alone, is the available literature acquisition funds. Although the University Library was provided with a comparatively high level of tuition fee funds from the university, faculties, departments and institutes in 2009, this did not change the University Library's below-average performance in the indicator "Expenditure on literature/information per primary user".

Paderborn University Library and Paderborn City Library rank among the best in Germany and NRW

Libraries have the task of ensuring the supply of information for education and further education, study, science and research and providing free access to information for all citizens of the state.

Paderborn has an excellent library infrastructure. This is also shown by the current BIX: both Paderborn University Library and Paderborn City Library are among the 10 best libraries in their category nationwide.

Among the participating public libraries in cities with over 100,000 inhabitants, Paderborn City Library came 6th overall. Paderborn University Library achieved 9th place in the group of libraries with single-tier library systems out of 35 comparable libraries. In the NRW state comparison, the University Library took 3rd place and the City Library 1st place.

BIX - the library index brings together key figures from 257 German and Austrian libraries in a joint data index - similar to its famous namesake, the German DAX share index. 177 municipal and 80 university libraries in eight size categories provide their data for the ranking of the German Library Association (dbv). By comparing their performance, libraries learn to better assess their strengths and weaknesses and receive suggestions for improving quality.

The good performance of the two libraries is, among other things, the result of the consistent orientation of their offers and services to the needs and requirements of their customers. Excellent opening hours and the fact that the use and borrowing of books is free of charge in both libraries increase their attractiveness.

Compared to the size of the city, the city library has a relatively small media stock (1 medium per inhabitant) and is therefore below average. However, this stock is extremely up-to-date and customer-orientated. The number of loans in relation to the total stock is impressive. On average, each of the approx. 145,000 items in the Paderborn City Library was borrowed 6.1 times.

The University Library's primary task is to provide the approximately 15,000 members of the University of Paderborn with academic literature and information. However, its doors are not only open to students and academics: Interested parties from the city and region of Paderborn can also use the library at any time. Last year, around 3,600 'external' customers borrowed media from the University Library's collection. In total, the University Library registered around 1.2 million library visits in 2008, with an average of more than 4,200 visitors per day and even over 7,000 on some days of the week. Almost 2 million items were borrowed.

The latest BIX results show that Paderborn attaches great importance to the ongoing qualification of library staff: Here, the university library achieves the highest value of all North Rhine-Westphalian university libraries with 2.9 days per employee. The City Library has the highest training rate per employee in Germany.

However, the comparison also shows where resources are too limited or important framework conditions are not right. One of Paderborn's problems is its small public area - both the university library and the municipal library have a lot of catching up to do here.

Another performance success for Paderborn University Library - one of the ten best university libraries in Germany!

Paderborn University Library (UB) has achieved 8th place in the nationwide library ranking BIX in the group of libraries of single-tier library systems among 36 comparable libraries and 2nd place in the North Rhine-Westphalian state comparison.

The Library Index (BIX) collects a total of 16 key performance indicators relating to the services offered by the library and its facilities, its success with its customers and the optimal use of its resources. It summarises these key figures into the four "disciplines" of services, use, efficiency and development and ultimately determines (from this) points values from which the overall ranking is derived.

The University Library has been measuring itself against other libraries since 2004 - now for the fifth time in a row - in order to obtain a transparent picture of its performance and indications for further quality improvements. The University Library's excellent ranking is based on the following factors, among others:

• In the field of "Offers", as in previous years, the UB impresses with very long opening hours totalling 107 hours per week, the seventh-longest opening hours of all libraries participating in the BIX-WB.
• It invests 52.0% of its acquisition budget in the acquisition and provision of electronic media and services, which is the second highest figure in Germany.
• The ongoing qualification of employees is a high priority: here the University Library achieves the highest value of all North Rhine-Westphalian university libraries with 2.7 days per employee.
• In the target dimension "utilisation", the University Library improved its position compared to the previous year from 14th to 6th place.

Dr Dietmar Haubfleisch, Director of the University Library, is particularly pleased about the intensive use of the library and its services: "This shows in particular that the innovative strategy and enormous efforts of all University Library staff to offer library services in an efficient, customer-oriented and service-conscious manner are extremely well received by the University Library's primary customers, the students, teachers and researchers at the university. The quality of the library is certainly one of many good reasons for choosing Paderborn as a place to study."

The proportion of electronic information media and services - the University Library's electronic seminar apparatuses are particularly popular with teachers and students - is constantly increasing. As a result, although academics in at least some departments make intensive use of the media provided by the University Library, they rarely or never visit the library premises. At the same time, however, use of the library is constantly increasing: The library is fuller than ever before. In 2007, the University Library registered more than 1.25 million library visits, with an average of more than 5,000 visitors per day, and on some weekdays even more than 7,000, making the University Library one of the most frequented places at the university. Each member of the university visited the library an average of 89 times.

The "trend towards working in the library", which can also be seen in connection with the change in study programmes and working conditions for students, can also be observed in other German and European libraries, Dr. Haubfleisch continued: "Libraries are increasingly offering information media and services that are not tied to a specific location. At the same time, they are developing into highly frequented 'learning spaces' in which students can learn and work both alone and in small groups, where they are offered printed books and journals as well as databases, electronic catalogues, electronic journals and books, multimedia workstations, Internet PCs and WLAN workstations, scanners, photocopiers and printers as well as opportunities for specialist advice and support, training courses to teach information skills and much more. In order to be able to adequately meet this demand and remain fit for the future, the library's services and premises need to undergo innovative conceptual development."

Data - figures - facts:

More than 1.7 million media units, access to approx. 38,000 electronic journals and approx. 1,930 current journal subscriptions in printed form, open 107 hours a week and 345 days a year, 525 user workstations, more than 1.25 million library visits, approx. 17,200 active customers, over 1.78 million loans. Opening hours: Mon - Fri: 07.30 - 24.00; Sat - Sun: 09.00 - 21.00

BIX - the library index:

The detailed figures of the BIX, which has been maintained since 2005 by the German Library Association (dbv) and the University Library Centre of North Rhine-Westphalia (hbz) as part of the Competence Network for Libraries (KNB), the network for supra-regional library tasks, can be accessed at: www.bix-bibliotheksindex.de.

Paderborn University Library once again makes its mark in nationwide library comparison - among the top ten best libraries: "Ahead in NRW and OWL"!

How do libraries prove themselves as information providers, partners for science, teaching and studying as well as places to learn and work? Together with Paderborn University Library (UB), 75 university libraries wanted to find out: in 2007 they once again compared their performance in the Library Index for Academic Libraries (BIX - WB), the nationwide library ranking of the German Library Association. In this year's BIX, Paderborn University Library achieved eighth place in the group of single-tier university libraries and the best ranking among the participating university libraries in North Rhine-Westphalia.

Each library participating in the BIX-WB receives points for its performance in four "disciplines": Offerings, Utilisation, Efficiency and Development Potential. The scores are then added together to produce an overall ranking. This multidimensional ranking enables the library to compare itself on the basis of 15 key performance indicators and to periodically analyse changes in its range of services and obtain a differentiated picture of its own library.

Paderborn University Library was one of 76 academic libraries, including 10 university libraries from North Rhine-Westphalia, to take part in this "ranking" and achieved the best position among the participating North Rhine-Westphalian university libraries in the group of libraries of single-tier university systems with 8th place.

The Director of the University Library, Dr Dietmar Haubfleisch, commented: "By directly comparing our performance with other libraries - benchmarking - we can put our own work to the test and find out where we can still improve our quality. We are very pleased with our positive result, which also reflects the outstanding performance of the (highly motivated) staff at the University Library. And we see ourselves confirmed in our chosen path of strong customer orientation and high willingness to innovate."

Special performance features

As in previous years, the University Library once again achieved a top ranking of 7th place in the "Development potential" category, which provides information on how flexibly the library can adapt to current development trends and whether it can provide sufficient potential for necessary changes. Significant here, for example, is the importance attached to the ongoing qualification of staff: In the "training days per employee" indicator, Paderborn University Library has by far the best value for North Rhine-Westphalia with 3.2 training days per employee.

In the field of "efficiency", which is becoming increasingly important in everyday life, Paderborn University Library is in an excellent 7th place nationwide and even 1st place in North Rhine-Westphalia. Compared to the previous year, the University Library was even able to improve its position in the field of "efficiency" by 5 positions nationwide in this year's BIX. This reflects the above-average staff productivity of Paderborn University Library, which achieved by far the best value for North Rhine-Westphalia in this category.

When it comes to the expenditure a library spends on providing media per user (the lower the expenditure per user, the more cost-efficient the library's work), Paderborn University Library is the fifth most efficient library in a nationwide comparison and the "most efficient library" in North Rhine-Westphalia.

As in previous years, Paderborn University Library stands out in the field of "Services" due to two things in particular: with 100 hours of opening hours per week, Paderborn University Library has the fifth longest opening hours of the libraries participating in the BIX-WB. And with 52.8 per cent of its acquisition budget, the University Library invests more in the acquisition and provision of electronic media and services than any other participating German library.

2006 was also a good year for Paderborn University Library in terms of library visits: once again it was able to significantly increase its visitor numbers. Over 1.26 million customers visited the library in person. On average, 3,500 customers a day - on some weekdays even more than 5,100 - visited the library and used the numerous services such as information, (media) lending and document delivery as well as the reference collection and the individual and group workstations when working on site. The high number of visitors shows that Paderborn University Library is an attractive place to study and work with an interesting range of literature and specialised information. On average, every member of the university visited the library at least 87 times in 2006 - and at the same time used the library's extensive range of electronic resources.

Opportunities for optimisation

"Our good result is no reason for us to rest on our laurels," says Dr Dietmar Haubfleisch. "We also recognise our weak points and will only be able to maintain or even improve our leading position if, thanks to the support of the university, the resource situation improves sustainably over the next few years, our existing lack of space can be eliminated and the number of individual and group workstations can be expanded".

With 443 square metres per 1,000 users, Paderborn University Library only occupies one of the last places in the nationwide comparison of public space (and thus also user workstations) (average value: 781 square metres, maximum: 2,293 square metres); in relation to the other participating NRW libraries, it even occupies last place.

In terms of the "library staff per 1,000 users" indicator, it has the ninth worst value (4.9 library staff per 1,000 users; mean: 6.5; maximum: 13.4), which makes the library's efforts to intensify contact with its customers - in particular through increased training programmes - more difficult.

And with regard to the indicator "Expenditure on literature and information per 1,000 users", Paderborn University Library is in eighth last place.

Access to over 1.3 million media units - almost around the clock

At the end of 2006, Paderborn University Library had more than 1.3 million media units, approx. 1,930 current journal subscriptions in printed form and also offered access to approx. 30,000 electronic journal titles. More than 16,800 customers of the University Library borrowed over 1.38 million items. The library was open 100 hours a week, 344 days a year. Since June 2007, opening hours have been extended to 107 hours per week (Saturdays and Sundays now from 9.00 a.m. to 9.00 p.m.).

BIX - the library index

The detailed figures of the BIX, which has been maintained since 2005 by the German Library Association (DBV) and the University Library Centre of North Rhine-Westphalia (hbz) as part of the Competence Network for Libraries (KNB), the network for supra-regional library tasks, can be accessed at: www.bix-bibliotheksindex.de.

Paderborn University Library makes its mark in nationwide library comparison

Paderborn University Library (UB) took part in the Library Index for Academic Libraries (BIX-WB) for the third time this year and once again achieved a good ranking.

It once again took part in this voluntary nationwide performance comparison in order to be able to better assess its own strengths and weaknesses on the basis of key figures and comparative results and to receive suggestions for its future work. It does this in the knowledge that excellent universities need excellent libraries - service facilities that ensure the supply of the university, its research and teaching with the necessary information media - and that the performance and reputation of the library are essential building blocks for the performance and "image" of a university.

A total of 73 academic libraries, 11 of them from North Rhine-Westphalia, took part in this performance comparison in the fields of services, utilisation, efficiency and development.

In the group of "single-tier university libraries", Paderborn University Library achieved 11th place out of a total of 30 libraries compared in this category. It was ranked second best among the participating libraries in North Rhine-Westphalia.

In the field of "Development", the University Library was able to improve by three positions to third place nationwide. In the "training days per employee" indicator included here, it has by far the best value for North Rhine-Westphalia with 3.8 training days per employee.

In the field of "efficiency", which is becoming increasingly important in view of dwindling resources and the increasing financial difficulties faced by academic libraries, Paderborn University Library is in a good 12th place nationwide and even in first place in North Rhine-Westphalia. When it comes to the personnel costs that a library spends on providing media per user - the lower the expenditure per user, the more cost-efficient the library's work - Paderborn University Library is the fifth most efficient library in a nationwide comparison and even the "most efficient library" in North Rhine-Westphalia.

In the field of "utilisation", it is pleasing to note that the number of library visits and information media borrowed has increased compared to the previous year.

In the field of "Services", the University Library continues to impress with its extensive opening hours (100 hours per week) and the "Share of expenditure on electronic holdings in total expenditure on information provision"; here it achieves the highest value in a nationwide comparison at 43.8 per cent. However, as in previous years, insufficient room capacity and limited budget funds prevent a better position: with 469.3 square metres per 1,000 users, Paderborn University Library only occupies one of the last places in the nationwide comparison of public space (and thus also user workstations) (average: 832.7 square metres, maximum: 2,490.8 square metres). In terms of the "library staff per 1,000 users" indicator, it has the seventh worst value; this makes the library's efforts to intensify contact with its customers - in particular through increased training programmes - more difficult. And with regard to the indicator "Expenditure on literature and information per 1,000 users", Paderborn University Library is in fifth last place.

In 2005, Paderborn University Library had more than 1.3 million media units, approx. 1,900 current journal subscriptions and also offered access to approx. 26,000 electronic journal titles and approx. 14,700 electronic books. Last year, around 1.2 million loans were registered, which were made by 16,318 users. The library is open 100 hours a week and is available to all interested parties free of charge. In 2005, the library was open 349 days a week.

Paderborn University Library leads the way in NRW

Bertelsmann Stiftung and German Library Association (DBV) compare the performance of university libraries nationwide

In a nationwide performance comparison between academic libraries, Paderborn University Library was ranked 9th out of a total of 26 libraries compared in this category and thus achieved the best ranking among the participating university libraries in North Rhine-Westphalia.

This year, for the second time, the Library Index (BIX) measures the performance of academic libraries in terms of resources ("What infrastructure can the library offer for use?"), utilisation ("How are the services offered used?"), efficiency ("Are the services provided cost-efficiently?") and development ("Is there sufficient potential for necessary developments?"). The multidimensional ranking enables the libraries to compare themselves on the basis of key performance indicators and to learn from each other. 61 university and university of applied sciences libraries from various federal states took part in this year's BIX.

Paderborn University Library achieved the best position of all participating North Rhine-Westphalian university libraries in this "ranking" with 9th place. In the field of "Development", the University Library achieved a good 6th place, which shows that the University Library has the potential to adapt quickly to current development trends. A particular focus is on the provision of electronic holdings - a field that is becoming increasingly important. Paderborn University Library invests 47% of its acquisition budget in the acquisition and provision of electronic media and services. This is by far the highest figure in this category.

The University Library has taken part in this voluntary nationwide performance comparison in order to determine where the library stands and to be able to better assess its own strengths and weaknesses on the basis of key figures and comparative results.

It does this in the knowledge that excellent universities need excellent libraries - service facilities that ensure the supply of the university, its research and teaching with the necessary information media - and that the performance and reputation of the library are essential building blocks for the performance and "image" of a university. For example, the university library can be one of the factors that play a decisive role for future students when choosing where to study.

The results of the BIX were calculated by the Institute for Applied Social Sciences (infas) on behalf of the Bertelsmann Stiftung and the DBV. This summer, the Bertelsmann Stiftung's funding of the BIX will come to an end as planned and the project will be taken over by its co-operation partner, the German Library Association (DBV).

Paderborn University Library ranks at the top in nationwide performance comparison

In the first nationwide performance comparison "Library Index for Academic Libraries (BIX-WB)", Paderborn University Library is ranked 9th in the category "single-tier university libraries" and 2nd in the NRW comparison - after Bielefeld University Library and well ahead of the former comprehensive university libraries in Siegen and Duisburg-Essen and Dortmund University Library.

After the performance of public libraries was measured for the fifth time this year by the Library Index compiled by the Bertelsmann Foundation and the German Library Association, the performance of 50 academic libraries (single and two-tier university libraries and libraries of universities of applied sciences) that took part in this nationwide performance comparison has now also been surveyed and compared for the first time.

The "target dimensions" of resources ("What infrastructure can the library offer for use?"), utilisation ("How are the services offered used?"), efficiency ("Are the services provided cost-efficiently?") and development ("Is there sufficient potential for necessary developments?") were measured and evaluated.

In the target dimensions of resources, efficiency and development, Paderborn University Library is one of the top 10 single-tier university libraries in Germany. In the "development" target dimension, it is even ranked 2nd and 1st in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. In the "resources" target dimension, it is one of the top 7 libraries nationwide and ranks 2nd in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia.

The BIX places particular emphasis on the provision of electronic information media, as these are playing an increasingly central role for students, teachers and researchers. The Paderborn University Library achieved the highest value of all libraries participating in the performance comparison nationwide with 35.26 per cent for the corresponding indicator "Proportion of expenditure on electronic holdings in relation to total expenditure on information provision".

The extensive opening hours of the university library - at 100 hours per week, one of the most generous in the whole of Germany - have a very positive effect.

In times of increasingly scarce resources and growing financial difficulties for academic libraries, which make it ever more difficult to acquire sufficient electronic and printed media for study, teaching and research, the efficient use of financial resources is becoming ever more important. Among other things, BIX also takes into account the personnel costs that a library incurs for the provision of media per user: The lower the expenditure per user, the more cost-efficient the library's work is. In this respect, Paderborn University Library is the second most effective library in North Rhine-Westphalia after Dortmund University Library. The importance of continuous staff training is documented by the indicator "training hours per employee". Here, Paderborn University Library achieves the highest value of all North Rhine-Westphalian university libraries with around 25.1 hours, and ranks third in a nationwide comparison. Three measured indicators show the problem areas of Paderborn University Library quite impressively: At 439 square metres per 1,000 users, it has significantly less public space (and thus also user workstations) than all other libraries; this value is only undercut by Cottbus University Library, which, however, also has only a third as many students as Paderborn as users. Paderborn University Library has the fourth worst value for the "library staff per 1,000 users" indicator; this makes the library's efforts to intensify contact with its customers - in particular through increased training programmes - more difficult. Unfortunately, the University Library also ranks fourth to last in terms of the indicator "Expenditure on literature and information per 1,000 users", where it is noticeable that all single-tier university libraries in NRW participating in the BIX-WB are in the lower half of the ranking. If the libraries in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg in particular perform very well in the BIX nationwide performance comparison, this is primarily due to the fact that they have had significantly higher annual budgets for decades than the libraries in NRW and (therefore also) Paderborn University Library.