SGML, or Standard Generalised Markup Language, is an international standard (ISO 8879) allowing the logical structure of electronic documents to be represented rigorously and independent of applications. This article does not discuss the actual standard, but rather proposes a strategy libraries can consider when implementing SGML applications on top of existing products, or when embedding these in innovative end‐user services. Experiences of SGML within the VUBIS‐Antwerpen Library Network (Belgium) are discussed VUBIS‐Antwerpen has adopted SGML as a key standard for the exploitation of its bibliographical data (union catalogues, document ordering online contents, current awareness, publishing on the World Wide Web). With the move towards electronic publication and distribution of documents, SGML tends to become a crucial standard for digital libraries. Projects such as TEI, ELSA, DECOMATE and ELVYN now focus on access to and delivery of full‐text electronic documents, using SGML to manipulate, process and transform the document for the purposes of full‐text searching or hypertext navigation.

Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to describe the development of interlending and document supply in Belgium -particularly in relation to Impala, a system for facilitating the service. Design/methodology/approach -The history of Belgium, its libraries and interlending and document supply is described. Findings -The paper finds that Impala has been an outstanding success in facilitating a fast and cost-effective service with a high satisfaction rate. Originality/value -The paper is of importance to all librarians who are interested in nationwide resource-sharing schemes.

Belgium, one of the smaller European Union countries, has long since integrated its interlending and document supply in a truly European context and 20 per cent of all supplies come from the document supply centres of neighbouring countries. The Belgian electronic documentordering system, IMPALA, is the heart of the system. New ICT developments in communication technology will render traditional ILL and document supply partly obsolete by making available full text databases.

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