This summer, ground was broken on a new addition to the Library Collections Annex, the University Library’s off-site materials storage facility, located approximately four miles from College Hill. When fully outfitted, the additional module will increase the Annex’s total storage capacity to approximately 2.3 million items. Completion is set for mid-December 2014.
The current Annex module was opened in 2005 with an estimated capacity of 1.5 million volume equivalents. At its opening, the Annex was expected to provide sufficient storage capacity for 15 years of collection growth. Several on-campus construction projects, such as the John Hay Library renovation, required more items to be sent off-site than initially planned. As a result, the facility is almost completely filled 9 years after its first day of operation. The new module will provide space for another 1 million volumes. Because items in the Annex are housed by size, the ultimate number of items held depends on the mix of materials stored.
Like the current module, the new addition will feature sophisticated climate controls and a state-of-the-art security system to ensure the long life of materials stored there. Items requested from the Annex are delivered to campus within 24 hours on workdays; shorter articles and chapters may be scanned and sent directly to users as well.