Library Research Services
Library
Services Home > Research Services
"I read an article a couple of years
ago about the effects of fly ash on ASR..."
"My customer would like some advice on deicers for driveways.
I know what to tell him but I'd rather have some documentation..."
"I'd like a list of web sites for cement and concrete..."
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Portland Cement Association's Library offers a variety of information
services to PCA Members, related industry groups, and others seeking
information on all aspect of cement and concrete.
The Library holds one of the world's largest collections of information
on cement and concrete, over 100,000 materials. Founded in 1938,
the Library maintains and continually updates its collection with
important material on cement chemistry, concrete technologies, manufacturing
process, environmental technologies, and health and safety issues
related to the industry.
Research
One of the Library's most important services is to provide background
research on technical topics related to cement and concrete. Researchers
and writers often need to establish a baseline, or state-of-the-art,
regarding prior research, both to avoid duplication of effort and
to gain larger perspective on a particular issue.
To support these needs, the Library staff is able to draw on both
its own extensive collection as well as hundreds of electronic databases
and web resources. Some of the major databases we have access to
include:
- Compendex (Engineering Index online)
- Chemical Abstracts
- Energy Science & Technology (U.S. Dept. of Energy)
- NTIS (National Technical Information Service)
- Corrosion Abstracts
- Enviroline
- Ceramics Database
- TRIS (Transportation Research Information Service)
Our professionally-trained staff checks relevant books, reports, and
journals; they also search selected databases for additional material.
Depending on the requestor's needs, information can be provided in
the form of bibliographic references or actual materials, using email,
fax, or mail. To request a search, please submit this form,
and a librarian will contact you.
Other Services
The Library offers many other services, including:
- Web access to its online
catalog, containing 25,000 references to books, reports, journals,
videos, and electronic materials
- Answering quick reference inquiries
- Photocopies of journal articles
- An Image Library containing thousands of digital images, slides,
and negatives
- Interlibrary loan (a means of obtaining publications on loan
from other libraries)
- Specialized Bibliographies
on hot topics
- Up-to-date list of cement and concrete web sites
- Bimonthly New Acquisitions list
- Email alerts on customized topics (PCA Members)
- Referrals to subject specialists within PCA
Online Catalog
The Library's online
catalog lists over 25,000 books, reports, standards, journals,
electronic documents, and videos. It can be searched by author,
title, subject, publication date, and other fields. The Library's
cataloging records are contributed to the OCLC network, an online
consortium of 55,000 libraries around the world offering reciprocal
services.
Hours
The Library is open for research Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m.
to 4:30 p.m. We invite individuals interested in visiting to schedule
an appointment ahead of time. We will be happy to assist you in
locating pertinent materials, using our online catalog, and can
provide a general orientation to our collection.
How to Reach Us
For general inquiries about library services, contact us at library@cement.org,
or call (847) 972-9178.
Staff contacts:
Fees
Some fees for literature searching,
photocopying, and other services apply. PCA Members receive discounts,
as detailed in the Members area.
Regular fees are generally as follows:
| Research |
$75.00/hour |
| Photocopying |
$12.50 per article 1-20 pgs. |
| |
$2.00 per each additional 10 p. |
| Shipping |
$5.00 |
| Rush copy fee |
(within 1 hr) $5.00 |
| Database Fees |
Varies depending on the database, time connected, format of
information desired |
Please contact the library, library@cement.org,
for an estimate of costs for a particular search.
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