Camberwell College of Arts, United Kingdom

Although the general trend for accommodation of university library physical stock is down, as an arts university UAL aims not only to retain existing stock but allow for future growth. In addition to the challenge, the range of size and weight of art books, as well as the intricacies of their sequencing, needed to be taken in to consideration in the planning of this new space. Occupying a floor of the new build extension at Camberwell College of Arts, the new library would increase the existing square meterage by approximately one third, and it was felt that the suggested ‘oblique’ runs of shelving would best meet the stock and space requirement. It would also allow for easy navigation, a straightforward sequencing, and clear visibility of end of bay guiding.

”We knew from the outset that we would need a shelving system that was very stable, given the long runs of shelves we would need to have and the loads they would be expected to carry. Thus, we favoured a four post system for this purpose. Uniflex offered strength with the aesthetic we wanted to achieve in the new Library. Thedesignconcept helped us create a layout that allowed lots of daylight into the aisles, that made for easy navigation around the collections as well as being visually appealing.” Kevin Canning Assistant Learning Resources Manager Camberwell College of Arts