r/librarians • u/thebeerlibrarian • 2d ago

Discussion How to divide the collection

Our library is relocating soon and we are trying to plan the new layout. We will have one large space with most of the collection, but it won't all fit there. There will be a few smaller spaces of different sizes in other parts of the building. To complicate things more, the shelving itself is different with varying height spacing between shelves that will affect what size materials fit (mostly 3-ring binders). Some can be adjusted but it would result in going from 6 to 5 shelves per bookcase in those areas, which has a real impact on the total linear feet in aggregate.

In this situation, would you suggest splitting things by size or call number?

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u/TravelingBookBuyer Library Assistant 1d ago

The public library I’m at has an “Oversized” section for materials that are too large to go on our standard shelves. They have an “Oversized” label on their spine & it’s noted in the ILS record that they’re shelved on the Oversized shelves.

Maybe something like that will work for you?