Michigan State University Libraries

Collection Development Policy Statement: Packaging

With the establishment of the School of Packaging in 1952, Michigan State University became the first university in the world to institute packaging as a discipline; in 1996 the School was the first to offer a doctoral program in packaging. As the oldest and largest packaging educational institution in the world, The MSU School of Packaging is an internationally-recognized leader in packaging research; its faculty and graduates have made and continue to make significant contributions to every sector of the industry.

The School of Packaging offers both undergraduate and graduate programs leading to Bachelor of Science, Master of Science, and Doctor of Philosophy degrees. The program is designed to prepare graduates for positions in purchasing, production, quality control, package development, research, sales, marketing, testing or technical service. Specialized study may be done in areas such as food, industrial, or medical and pharmaceutical packaging. Graduate programs focus on distribution packaging, the environmental impact and recycling of packaging materials, human factors in packaging, packaging systems development and optimization, barrier characteristics of packaging systems and materials, quality preservation and storage stability of packaged products, the mechanical properties of packaging materials, and product and/or package damage in the physical distribution environment.

The packaging collection in the Main Library dates back to the founding of the School in 1952; however, a portion of the collection was removed in September of 1963 when the Engineering Library was created. What remained behind appeared to be a rather haphazard assortment of materials; however, more purposeful collecting since 1993 has resulted in a revival of the Main Library=s packaging collection, which is scattered throughout the building in a number of call number classifications, depending upon the packaging material (e.g., paperboard, plastics, glass, metal), packaged product (e.g., food, pharmaceuticals, electronics), or focus (package design), although AHF@ and ATS@ are the primary call number areas. Some materials are located in the Business Library (e.g., distribution packaging, warehousing, packaging law) or Engineering Library (polymer science). The School of Packaging Reading Room provides some additional support for the teaching and research needs of packaging graduate students and faculty and complements the Libraries= collections in this area.

The doctoral program in packaging will continue to require strong library support, with particular emphasis on food packaging innovations, permeability and shelf life, polymeric packaging materials, and tamper-evident and environmentally sound packaging. The growing number of online courses , including an online Master of Science in Packaging, as well as an overall desire for remote access to library resources, will continue to increase the demand for networked resources and electronic journals.

B. Relationships With Other Resources

Materials in the Business, Engineering, and Biomedical & Physical Sciences Libraries help support the needs of the School of Packaging.

As part of the Michigan Research Libraries Triangle, MSU Libraries maintains reciprocal borrowing agreements with the University of Michigan and Wayne State Libraries. Materials are also obtained via interlibrary loan from other CIC institutions or from commercial suppliers such as Pira International.

The emphasis is on current research and trends in the packaging industry.

The primary language of acquired materials is English. There is a limited amount of French, Spanish, and German language material.

The primary emphasis is on the United States, Canada, and Great Britain; however, since international coverage is highly desired, English-language publications may be purchased regardless of country of origin or geographic treatment.

The research journal is very important, but trade publications are also heavily utilized. Because of the undergraduate component, monographs also serve an important function. Emphasis has traditionally been on print materials; however, video and microform formats may be considered. Electronic resources will become even more prevalent in the future.

The primary focus is on current materials, although some retrospective collection building may be done.

Packaging resources fall into a number of Library of Congress classification categories depending upon the packaging material (e.g., paperboard, plastics, glass, metal) or packaged product (e.g., food, pharmaceuticals, electronics), although AHF@ and ATS@ are the primary call number areas. While every effort has been made to be as inclusive as possible, some areas of interest (e.g., shipping and warehousing, packaging law and regulation) have been omitted because they are treated in other policy statements (see Section II, C). Collection in most areas is at the instructional (3) or research level (4).

Specific policies, if any, on replacement, de-selection, out of print acquisitions, preservation, etc.

Replacement copies, if available, are usually ordered for high circulation material or that which is important to the completeness of the collection.

Preservation decisions follow the general guidelines established by the Main Library.