Frequently Asked Questions

Welcome to the Eduserv Chest FAQ page. We hope that you will be able to find the answer to your question here, but if not please feel free to contact the Chest Helpdesk via email at chesthelp@eduserv.org.uk or by telephone on 01225 470523.

• What does Eduserv Chest do?  
• What products are available?
• How do I order products?
• What are the conditions for purchasing?   
• Can my institution buy through Chest?
• How can Chest help suppliers and resellers?

What does Eduserv Chest do?

Eduserv Chest negotiates for all forms of commercially available electronic resource (abstracts, full text, journals, software, courseware, etc) for the education and research communities in the UK and Republic of Ireland, a number of institutions in Scandinavia, members of IATUL and various other groups. Chest manages the resultant agreements in most cases and makes the benefits of the agreements available as widely as possible. This enables better deals and lower prices for everyone.

The Chest collections policy is simple - Chest negotiates for, and manages, agreements that users have asked for. It is driven only by demand and the need to provide better value for money than can be obtained elsewhere.

Eduserv Chest is a service of Eduserv, a not-for-profit Information and Communications Technology Service Provider to education and the public sector. Offering software, data and courseware negotiation services, access management systems and online information solutions since 1988. Eduserv has built a reputation for delivering high quality, leading edge services and value for money. Eduserv is a UK-registered charity.

What products are available?

The following pages provide information on every current Chest negotiated Agreement:

 

Agreements for Online Data

Agreements for Software

Agreements for Training and Courseware

There is an Overview for each Agreement, accessible via clicking on the Agreement Name in the relevant table. The Overview sets out the details of the Agreement, including licensing terms and conditions, pricing and instructions on how to order.

How do I order products?

 

 

Close to the end of every Agreement Overview can be found instructions on how to order the product(s) covered by that Agreement. There are also links to downloadable copies of all necessary forms.

However, if you are at all unsure how to go about ordering any product via Chest, the Chest Helpdesk will be happy to help.

What are the conditions of purchasing?

 

 

Payment terms can be found close to the end of every Agreement Overview.

Licence terms for the majority of Chest Agreements are based on the standard Chest Terms and Conditions. However, you should always check whether these terms have been used as the basis for an Agreement licence and, even if they have, that there are no special conditions particular to that Agreement.

Can my institution buy through Chest?

 

 

A list of sites eligible to purchase via Chest can be found on this site. However these pages are protected by Athens and you will need a valid Athens username and password to access them. If you cannot access these pages please contact the Chest Helpdesk and they will be happy to confirm your eligibility for you.

How can Chest help suppliers and resellers?

There are various ways in which suppliers of software, data and training/courseware products to educational institutions can work with Eduserv Chest.

We offer:

• Negotiated Chest Agreements

  These agreements are usually for 3 or 5 years, almost all being for site licences, where all the staff and students of an institution may use the products covered with no cost other than a single, fixed annual fee. These agreements provide continuity for the community and provide the supplier with a guaranteed and steady income. Just as with Special Offers, Agreements are supported with full documentation on our web site, announcements to the community and an email list.

• Chest Special Offers

  These apply when a product is made available at a particularly attractive price. Special Offers have a lot more prominence than directory entries: they are individually listed with full information on our web site. Special Offers are announced to the entire community.

If you are interested in working with Chest or would like any further information on the potential for co-operation between Chest and your business, our helpdesk would be very happy to talk to you chesthelp@eduserv.org.uk