Connecticut
company to move 1.5 million USU library books in late
summer
By Tamber Weston
April 30, 2005 | The long-awaited
Merrill-Cazier Library is almost complete and Utah State
University is gearing up for the move. Associate Director
for Public Services John Elsweiler confirmed that the
university has hired a moving company from Connecticut.
William B. Meyer Inc. specializes in moving library
collections and plans to relocate an estimated 1.5 million
books from the Milton R. Merrill and Cazier Science
and Technology (Sci-Tech) Libraries into the new Merrill-Cazier
Library.
The move will begin as soon as the new library's construction
company turns occupancy over to the university sometime
in August. Elsweiler said the university should know
a date in June.
William B. Meyers Inc. plans to send a team of three
to five people to Logan who will then train 25 to 35
locally hired movers to work full time on the project.
The company estimates that the move will take seven
to eight weeks to complete. Once the move has begun,
the first step will be to move journals, microforms
and other lesser-used items of the Sci-Tech Library
into the new library's automated storage and retrieval
system (ASRS). This move will clear space for books
coming by box truck from Merrill Library.
In the ASRS, items will be stored in shelving units
in a five-story rack structure that has four aisles.
A robotic crane will operate in each aisle, accessing
the shelving units.
The crane will deliver the appropriate shelving unit
to a station in the circulation or serials work areas,
where a staff member will pick the requested item from
the shelving unit and bring it to the service area for
delivery to the patron.
The system is thought to be accurate, fast and cost
effective, allowing for increased storage at a lower
cost per book than traditional library storage.
The university expects this new system to allow for
the expected growth of its library's collections for
the next 25 to 30 years.
The Merrill Library is at its limit, with no room for
growth. This, plus seismic stability and emergency routing
concerns, are the main reasons for the move. Not to
mention airflow and plumbing problems.
"We're making the move at the right time,"
said Elsweiler. "It's a great opportunity for the
university . . . I'm excited."
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