From MARC to Linked Data: A Large-Scale BIBFRAME Implementation in an Academic Library in Latin America

Abstract

This paper presents a case study of the first comprehensive institutional transition from MARC21 to BIBFRAME in Latin America, carried out at the University of Concepción (UdeC) Library System in Chile, a collection of approximately 250,000 bibliographic records and 90,000 authority records serving some 26,000 users. Using a qualitative case study methodology, the study documents the technical, organizational, and cultural challenges encountered between May 2022 and June 2023, including large-scale record conversion (approximately 1,900,000 cumulative changes), the development of new bibliographic and authority description policies, and continuous staff training, carried out in collaboration with EBSCO, Zepheira, and the Library of Congress to ensure interoperability with the FOLIO Library Services Platform. The study analyzes the benefits achieved, including greater metadata flexibility, richer resource description, and improved discovery, alongside the emergence of new professional roles such as UX librarians, knowledge curators, and authority analysts. Based on this experience, the paper proposes a staged implementation model, structured as three consecutive steps plus two permanent activities, intended to guide other libraries considering a similar transition. The paper concludes with the library's future directions, including native BIBFRAME cataloging through FOLIO's Marigold module and the growing intersection between Linked Data and artificial intelligence in library services.

Keywords: BIBFRAME, Linked Data, MARC21, Academic Libraries, Data Migration.