Full report - State Library of Victoria - Victoria Online

Financial
Management
Financial Management: Delivering
the Library’s services to budget target
The 2007–08 year has brought new challenges
to the Finance Division. Further extension and
improvement to the budget model has been
implemented, which will greatly assist data quality
for forecasting and planning purposes.
The division continues to change and adapt as
the Library shifts its focus to the digital world.
This shift has required improvements in reporting
and a streamlining of the end-of-month reporting
cycle. Further work is still to be carried out
on upgrading the purchasing and commitment
systems to improve the overall financial
management of the Library’s operations.
Other Financial Information
Material revenues arising from exchange
of goods or services
There were no transactions of this nature.
Intangible assets
The Library has no recorded intangible assets.
Bank Loans, bills payable, promissory notes,
debentures and other loans
There were no transactions of this nature.
Issued Capital
The Library has no issued capital.
Ex-gratia payments
There were no transactions of this nature.
Charges against assets
There are no charges against assets
recorded by the Library.
Events subsequent to balance date
There were no events subsequent to 30 June
2008 that will have an impact on the 2008–09
reporting period.
Major Contracts
There were no major contracts in excess
of $10 million.
Victorian Industry
Participation
Policy
None of the State Library of Victoria’s contracts
valued at more than $3 million in metropolitan
areas and $1 million in regional areas triggered
the VIPP.
National
Competitive
Neutrality
The annual review of Library fees and charges
was completed during the year. A key aim of this
review is to ensure that all fees and charges
comply with the National Competition Policy.
Compliance
with Building
and Maintenance
Provisions of
Building Act 1993
The State Library of Victoria redevelopment works
comply with the Building Act 1993. The State
Library of Victoria is compliant with the Building
Code of Australia and with the relevant Australian
standards for all buildings and building works.
Essential services are maintained in accordance
with the Building Code and the relevant Australian
standards specifi c to the maintenance
of essential services.
Library
Redevelopment
In close collaboration with Major Projects
Victoria, work continued to conclude
outstanding projects from the Building
Redevelopment program.
While some works remain incomplete, signifi cant
progress was achieved to:
install variable speed drives to cooling
towers to reduce energy consumption
complete installation of the dust and
mould vacuum extraction units for
use by conservation staff
replace sprinkler pipe work to Pitt
Building Levels 5 and 6 to improve the
fi re-protection systems in those areas
update and extend the capacity of the
security hardware and software systems
re-turf the front lawn with droughtresistant
Kikuyu grass.
The building has suffered from the effects of
age and weathering associated with the drought,
resulting in the removal of some deteriorated
segments of the Library façade. While unsightly
and potentially exposing the substrate to further
deterioration, the removal of loose or potentially
unsafe pieces of the façade reduces the risk
to public safety from material falls. It will be
necessary to undertake a signifi cant program of
rectifi cation works, subject to funding availability.
The Library will be pursuing funding
for the refurbishment of Queen’s Hall in order
to complete the substantial restoration of the
building. The Library’s original Reading Room,
and a space of signifi cant heritage value which
has effectively been unused since the relocation
of the Arts and Music Collection in 2003, Queen’s
Hall remains the last of the substantial spaces
in the Library that require restoration
and refurbishment.
Technology
Services
The Technology Services Division is responsible
for technical operations, web services, and
application development for Vicnet and
the Library.
The division is also responsible for the
improvement and expansion of service delivery
and technical support across the Library,
including the internet and wireless environment
for the public areas. The use of the Library’s
technology in the public areas, including free
internet use through public PCs and wireless,
has been very successful, with a 68 per cent
increase in traffi c for 2007–08.
The division has been an active participant
in a number of core slv21 projects, and has
realigned its technology architecture to deliver
on those project requirements. For example, a
storage area network has been installed for the
Digital Object Management System.
A collaborative project between staff, the
technical group, applications development and
web services has been the development of the
Library’s new intranet, The Fridge. Offering
a personalised experience through branding,
look and feel, navigation, access to policies
and procedures, human resources and fi nancial
reporting, it will also provide a personalised
desktop for individuals, groups and, in particular,
the Library’s front-of-house reference desk.
In 2007–08 there was a signifi cant
expansion of the Library’s technology
infrastructure, including:
the implementation of advanced backup
hardware and software and the
preparation of a Disaster Recovery Plan
a PC replacement program of 105 systems
a signifi cant expansion of the technology
for the Vicnet ISP, incorporating a
network-monitoring system
server virtualisation.
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Library Board of Victoria Annual Report O7—O8