The State Library of the Republic of Uzbekistan, founded in 1870 as the Tashkent Public Library, is Uzbekistan’s legal deposit and copyright library. In 1920, the then “State Public Library of Uzbekistan” became the legal deposit for Turkestan publications. In 1947 it was renamed Ali-Shir Nava’i Library after the Uzbek poet. On April 12, 2002 it was renamed the National Library of the Republic of Uzbekistan.
Project background
Under the rule of current president Mirziyoyev, Usbekistan has been striving to become an effective e-government since 2016. The expansion of the digital competencies of the national library is an essential component in this process. Thus, LG emerged as contractor, issuing tenders for the Uzbek government’s projects.
Since book2net met or exceeded all requirements given in the tender, LG and the Uzbek government opted for our devices. In Summer 2018, the first shipment of 30+ devices arrived in Tashkent and were installed by our team. In 2019, new need for devices for the National Library branch offices around the country arose. Book2net won the 2nd tender, too, securing a shipment of 25 new devices to the country.
Book2Net Action
With both customized devices and standard solutions, book2net managed to fulfill all demands and could effectively contribute to the country’s digitization process. 60 of our proven solutions Hornet, Cobra, Flash, Kiosk, Spirit, and the X71 Camera were delivered in 2018 and 2019 to Tashkent and several other locations all over the country. All devices were installed by our technicians and the local staff was trained extensively to assure high-quality digitization of the Uzbek libraries.
Results
The National Library intends to digitize its entire stock of books, newspapers and photographs, making them accessible to the Uzbek public via an online platform. Thus, important cultural heritage from Uzbek history is preserved and made accessible to the local and rural communities all over the country. For the process of digitizing the collection, 60 new jobs were generated.
Book2Net ‘s intention is to develop practice-orientated book scanning solutions for the use in archives, libraries and museums by covering hardware, software and services . The book2net focuses on the requirements and needs of the end users of the digitization equipment. These needs are reviewed and incorporated into the development and ultimate design of our scanning solutions.