Axiell, the leading vendor to public libraries in Europe and the market leader in Scandinavia, today announces the expansion of its operations in Germany. Jürgen Keck, formerly with OCLC, joins Axiell as Sales Director. In his role, Jürgen will be responsible for sales to public libraries in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. In addition, Axiell Arena, an advanced and robust online portal for libraries, is now available for the German library market. The solution is adapted for BIBDIA and Axiell Quria®.
As society evolves and changes, so must libraries and their services. A recent survey by Axiell on German libraries highlighted that libraries aspire to become meeting places, and to extend their availability to patrons. In addition, it showed their desire to support reading competences and manage the needs of a diverse audience in their communities. The move to e-media and digital solutions is also high on the agenda. Axiell’s solutions, leveraging the experience of Scandinavian and European libraries, are designed to help libraries manage their transformation to a modern public library and become the “third place”, where the patron is the centre of the service.
Commenting on the expansion in Germany, Joel Sommerfeldt, CEO of Axiell Group, said: “I am extremely pleased to welcome Jürgen Keck to the Axiell Group. His experience and network in the German library industry will help ensure that our solutions and services, such as Arena and Axiell Quria®, meet the needs of the market. We look forward to working together to deliver solutions that will transform and help German libraries provide world-class services to their local communities, just as we have in Scandinavia for more than 30 years.”
Axiell Arena, used by more than 400 libraries across Scandinavia, was introduced to German libraries at Bibliothekartag. The modern flexible web solution, consisting of both a CMS and an OPAC, supports a broad range of interactions with patrons online and meets the needs of German libraries to extend their online presence. The solution currently supports BiBer’s portfolio of library solutions as well as Axiell Quria®, Axiell’s cloud-based, digital-first library services platform.
“I am glad that I have joined Axiell. The company has solid experience in the library market and a passion for literacy, learning and preserving cultural heritage – all pillars of a democratic society. That passion comes across in how solutions and services are developed, and so I am really looking forward to bringing those solutions to the German speaking library market,” says Jürgen Keck, Sales Director for Axiell Public Library in Germany.
