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NLB SILAS

History of SILAS

The origins of SILAS (Singapore Integrated Library Automation Service), from its 1987 launch to its growth into a shared catalogue across local member libraries of the consortium.

Last updated 6 April 2026

SILAS grew out of proposals made by the Library Association of Singapore in 1982. After a feasibility study and much preparatory work, a licensing agreement for software to run such a service was signed with the Western Library Network in August 1985. It was officially launched on 10 April 1987. From the past to present…

...a message from the founder

"I could not have predicted, when I arrived in Singapore exactly 14 years ago to take up the role of Director of SILAS, that the system I would be setting up would still be going strong into the new millennium.

Our shared vision then seemed a bit far-fetched to many—a national networked cataloguing and interlibrary lending support system that would allow the user to discover everything that had been published on a subject, whether it was held in Singapore, and whether it was available for loan. Yet just three years later, through a combination of hard work and cooperation, we had such a service running with some 35 libraries adding their holdings to a database of 4.5 million titles.

And now, with a database and a contributor community almost twice that size, SILAS is moving into a new generation of technology. I will follow its progress with great interest, and I wish all my SILAS friends, old and new, every good wish for future success."

Professor Bruce Royan