Increasing access to information

Bodleian Libraries Book Storage Facility

The Bodleian Library, located in Oxford, is the largest university library system in the United Kingdom. Due to the sheer number of collections it’s held since being built in 1602, space was becoming sparse and a new solution for low-usage items to be stored elsewhere was needed. This led to a unique purpose-built warehouse in South Marston, on the outskirts of Swindon. Working alongside architects Scott Brownrigg, our team designed a bespoke storage facility to hold the overflow of the Bodleian Libraries vast collections.

The Book Storage Facility (BSF) has the capacity for 8 million volumes; combining 10,000 square metres (m²) of warehouse space with 1,000m² of ancillary office and processing space. The Book Storage Facility stores lower-usage items from the Libraries' collections including books, maps and manuscripts primarily from the 18th century onwards. Our team also provided transport impact advice on the public network during the book migration and operational phases, as well as ecology and waste management advice.

With the BSF now housing low-use collections, this has given the New Bodleian Library the space its needed to be redeveloped as a modern special collection’s library and research centre. This has increased the overall speed of access to information by providing direct access to high-demand print collections.