W: www.universitybusiness.co.uk | T: @UB_UK


and other information as part of a crowfunding pitch, accepting donations of any amount both privately and by text. Not all universities, it seems, can afford to dive straight into the digital age. Rather than view this as a


UNIVERSITY OF ABERDEEN


that keeping all these resources under the same roof is useful for both staff and students. “It emphasises connections between activities in finding, geting and using information,” he said. “With so much in one building we can also work closely with other services (such as IT services, estates, campus services, etc) – and working together underpins the desire of all of the service units on campus to provide the best possible student experience.” Bebbington believes that the


shift from print resources to digital technology is a positive one for libraries and librarians. “It has changed how we do things but not what we do,” he said. “Losing those vast silos of volumes has allowed us to develop the new facilities and spaces, and hopefully improve and update librarians' skills and knowledge to continue to support student learning and teaching.” He added: “Our role has always been to support the student learning, teaching and research experience. Changes in the way we deliver that support – for example, self-service issue and return of books – free staff for more qualitative things, such as answering enquiries, or delivering information skills training sessions. Also, IT allows us to deliver 24/7 access to absolutely core materials.” The library, which took the


place of its existing Queen Mother Library, was designed by Danish architect team schmidt hammer lassen (SHL) with construction from main contractor Pihl UK. They were tasked with creating a place that could accommodate the 10,000 or more students the university had gained since the older library's last extension in 1982. The finished building bears a funhouse mirror resemblance to Helsinki University Library inside, with asymmetrical white contours winding upwards around a large open atrium, while the glass façade fills every floor with a flood of daylight. A series of energy saving initiatives saw the building receive an 'excellent' Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Methodology (BREEAM) certification: these include harvesting rainwater for flushing toilets, keeping the fluorescent lights on programmed timers, and supplying 15,000 kilowat-hours of electricity each year using roof- mounted solar panels. It looks like Birmingham


University will be the next to enter the foray, with a projected £57m going towards a new building created by Associated Architects. Unlike some other universities, Birmingham have chosen to fund the development in a number of ways, with their website offering a video presentation


ABOVE & BELOW: The internal design and facade at Aberdeen


weakness, The University of Worcester took it as an opportunity to team up with the local authority. The Hive is Europe's first joint university library, a £60m project that took eight years to reach fruition, with help in the form of £10m from the Higher Education Funding Council for England and £7m from the regional development agency (not long before its dissolution in the face of the post-recession deficit). As a joint venture, the University has to balance public, family friendly features with more student focused facilities. Although certain issues required careful planning and consensus – such as ensuring that certain books are available during exam periods – the project has also created unexpectedly fertile areas of crossover, with resources including the local authority's archaeological archives being easily accessible for university students. Teacher training students also benefit from the children's library and resources on the first floor, while public-focused areas such as the gaming zones on the ground floor also provide a great place for students seeking to take a break in-between studying. As we begin the long road


to recovery from the global recession, it falls on universities to train the next generation of thinkers, workers and educators who will be responsible for sustaining economic growth. Although creating new studying facilities and keeping abreast of technological developments can be extremely costly, many universities cannot afford to lose students to places with superior resources. New ventures such as those in Worcester and Birmingham show that there are alternative ways of achieving the same goal, and it is essential that universities across the country strive to remain at the forefront of information technology as their students continue to shape our future. UB


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