Skip to Main Content

Alma Fulfillment Resource Guide

This guide covers all aspects of the fulfillment process. This includes maintaining all patron records, loaning materials, returning/renewing loaned materials, managing lost items dealing with fines and fees as well as course reserves.

Returns and Renewals

Returning Materials

You can return materials either by viewing the patron's record or by simply scanning in the barcode of the item.

To return items via the patron's record:

  1. Navigate to Fulfillment > Manage Patron Services to bring up the Patron Identification screen, then look up the patron's record (See Loaning Materials).
     
  2. From the patron record, click on the Return tab.

     
  3. From this tab, scan in the item barcode or enter it manually and click on OK.
     
  4. The item will be automatically checked in and summary information will appear below.

 

To return multiple items or without displaying the patron record:

  1. Navigate to Fulfillment > Return Items. The following screen should appear:

     
  2. Scan in each barcode. Information about each item will appear below including the patron's name that checked out each item.
     
  3. If you want change the return date for the items being returned, before scanning the first barcode, click on the "Override return date and time" box and choose the date and time you want the system to register with each item.

 

Renewals

To renew items for a patron:

  1. Navigate to Fulfillment > Manage Patron Services to bring up the Patron Identification screen, then look up the patron's record (See Loaning Materials).
     
  2. Confirm that the Patron Services page has the "Loans" tab highlighted, then change "Loan Display: Loans of this session" to "Loan Display: All loans" by clicking on the drop down arrow and selecting "All loans".



     
  3. To renew selected items, click on the boxes on the left of the items you want to renew, then click on the "Renew Selected" button.

     
  4. To renew all of the patron's items, either click on the "Renew All" button or select all of the items and then click on the "Renew Selected" button.

     
  5. Items are now renewed. You may either continue to other tasks within the patron record, or click the Done to exit.

Note: Technically, it is possible to renew a loaned item by repeating the Loan Materials workflow with the barcode of the loaned item.  However, if these steps are performed on an item that has been declared Lost, the item will be renewed but the replacement cost of the item will not be refunded to the patron.  For this reason, this workflow is not recommended to renew loaned items..