Resource Sharing for Groups release notes, 18 July 2026
Release Date: 18 July 2026
Applies to: Resource Sharing for Groups libraries using Automated Request Manager (ARM)
Introduction
When borrowing automation detects that your library holds the requested item locally, the system can now build a recommended lender string before routing the request to Review. This release improves borrowing automation in the Automated Request Manager (ARM) for libraries that use Build lender string or Send request to lenders together with a borrower local holdings check. No changes to your borrowing automation are required if you already use these actions.
Recommended actions
For this release, we recommend that you review the following checklists and complete the relevant tasks so that you can adjust your policies and workflows and train your staff. These checklists identify updates that we have determined as significant for most institutions. We encourage you to review all of the items in the release notes to determine whether there are other items that might require additional action or follow up by your institution.
Administrative actions
These items require immediate action or decisions.
| Action |
|---|
| For best performance, clear your browser's cache before starting to work with Resource Sharing for Groups. |
Follow-up actions
In an effort to keep your staff informed of new features and changes, you may also want to consider these items.
| Action |
|---|
| Share these release notes with your colleagues. Visit the OCLC Community Center to connect with OCLC and other community members. |
| Brief borrowing staff on the new behavior: when a borrowing automation has an action to route a locally held item is to Review, a recommended lender string will now appear on the request if the automation has an additional action of either Build lender string or Send request to lenders. |
New features and enhancements
Recommended lender string for locally held items
What's new
When automation set up in Automated Request Manager (ARM) detects that your library holds the requested item locally, the system can now build a recommended lender string before routing the request to Review.
Previously, if automation matched a "held by your institution" (or "held by a custom holdings group") rule, processing stopped before a lender string was created. Staff who wanted to send the request out for ILL anyway had to build or research lenders manually.
With this release, if your borrowing automation set up in ARM includes Build lender string or Send request to lenders, that lender string is generated even when the item is locally held. Your existing routing rules still apply — the request can still go to Review — but you will also see potential lenders and local holdings information on the request.
Why this matters
Many libraries routinely fulfill locally held requests in-house: place a hold, notify the patron, and close the request. In other cases, staff may decide to borrow the item through ILL instead — for example, when the local copy is unavailable, at another branch, or not suitable for the patron's need.
This change saves time in those situations by giving you:
- A recommended lender string ready on the request
- Local holdings details (such as call number and shelving location) on the main request view
- The ability to send to lenders without rebuilding the lender string from scratch
How it works
No new automation action is required. This applies when your borrowing automation set up in ARM already includes:
- A Build lender string or Send request to lenders action, and
- A Borrower local holdings check, with an exception such as:
- If held by your institution → Route to Review, or
- If held by a custom holdings group → Route to Review
Processing order (what changed behind the scenes):
| Step | What happens |
|---|---|
| 1 | Automation in ARM matches your borrowing automation and builds the recommended lender string |
| 2 | Automation checks whether your library holds the item |
| 3 | If locally held → request routes per your exception (Review); lender string remains on the request |
| 4 | If not locally held → request continues through your normal automation path (including send to lenders, if configured) |
Important: When the "held by your institution" exception applies, automation builds the lender string but does not automatically send the request to lenders. You review the request and decide whether to fulfill locally or send it out.
What you'll see on the request
When a locally held item is processed through automation:
- The recommended lender string appears in the lender box on the request
- Local holdings details (call number and shelving location) display on the main request screen
- On lending requests in Review, information about items your library holds locally is displayed more prominently — introduced in the 17 May 2026 release
- The request is routed to Review according to your borrowing automation — same as before
- You can open the request, review local holdings and potential lenders together, and choose how to proceed
When the item is not locally held, behavior is unchanged: automation follows your existing borrowing automation setup (build lender string, send to lenders, route to purchase, etc.).
Configuration screen update
On the Automated Request Manager — Borrowing configuration screen, the read-only automation summary now more clearly reflects what happens when an item is locally held.
If your borrowing automation has both a "held by" exception and a lender action, the summary shows Build Lender String… under the exception block — even if your configured action is Send request to lenders. That is intentional: when the held-by exception applies at runtime, the system builds the lender string but does not send to lenders.
The (else) portion of the summary still shows your actual configured action. Add and edit screens are unchanged; only the summary display is updated.
Example — before:
Example — after:
What has not changed
- Your existing borrowing automation in ARM, exceptions, and routing rules work the same way — no reconfiguration is required if you already use build lender string / send to lenders with local holdings checks
- Requests that are locally held still route to Review per your automation; they are not automatically sent to lenders
- Re-running automation on a locally held request to bypass the held-by routing is not part of this release
- WorldCat holdings behavior for lender/supplier matching is unchanged
No action required
If your library already uses ARM with Build lender string or Send request to lenders together with borrower local holdings checks, you will see the improvement automatically after this release is deployed. No changes to your borrowing automation are needed.
Visit Automated Request Manager for additional information and workflows.
Important links
Support website(s)
Support information for this product and related products can be found at: