Australasian Virtual Engineering Library, AVEL, Portal, Subject Gateway, Engineering, Information Technology, Customer Survey, Customer Service, Virtual Team, Metadata.
The Australasian Virtual Engineering Library (AVEL) has been an important contributor to the development of Australian subject gateways since it began in 1999. The site was officially launched in July last year at the Institution of Engineers, Australia, Excellence Awards. Designed to provide easy access to quality IT and engineering Web-based resources, it was initially created to support the information needs of researchers working in the fields of engineering and information technology (IT). Originally conceived as a searchable, browseable database of high quality resources it has continued to change and add services in order to better meet the needs of its target audience. At the time of writing the database now contained over 3300 high quality records, covering all areas of engineering and IT.
This paper describes the evolution that AVEL has undergone in order fulfill, as well as anticipate, customer information requirements. It discusses the methods that were used to gauge the needs of customers and details the way that customers are using the site. The paper also outlines some of the current and future services that will meet these demands. The organisational structure of AVEL, its existence as a virtual partnership and the technical infrastructure behind AVEL are also explored.
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