The north side of the fourth floor has reopened for use. The books on that floor are now stored on new mobile high-density shelving. Library users who do not have experience with this type of shelving should ask a staff member at the circulation desk on the 2nd floor for assistance with retrieving a book. The south side of the floor, including the study rooms, remains closed until the completion of the stack renovation project. Public Safety has placed caution tape around the perimeter advising users not to enter that area.
Category Archives: Building Maintenance & Improvement
Temperature in the Library Building
Library users may be wondering why the building has become so warm. It is not due to the level of heating that the College is using during the winter. It is actually due to the shutdown of cooling in the building for necessary maintenance. One of the many projects currently underway to maintain our campus involves piping replacement in our building. The contractor must replace hundreds of feet of pipe within the basement and shafts of the building. They have scheduled the project to have the heating side of the piping replaced in the summer, and the cooling side replaced in the winter. We are now in the process of replacing the cooling side of the system. Building and Grounds has some ability to control the temperature within the space however, the unusually warm days that we have experienced this winter present a challenge. Users may want to explore other study areas on campus as necessary.
Access to Book Collections While High-Density Shelving Installed
The fourth floor of the Newman Library is currently inaccessible due to a shelving modernization project. Library staff will retrieve items in the F – N call number range.
Users may request that books be held at the circulation desk for pickup by:
- using OneSearch on the library’s home page to identify the book in the catalog;
- selecting the Baruch copy and clicking “request”.
- Note: Books will be paged from the stacks at least once daily and placed on hold.
The stationary shelving on the fourth floor is being replaced with mobile high-density shelving that will create additional seating areas for students and consolidate the collections for easier access. This project follows the Library’s facilities master plan, which guides changes to the Library space to accommodate the needs of our students. Status reports on the project and the timeline will be posted below. While the hard copy books are unavailable, Baruch users will still have access to hundreds of thousands of e-books that the Library holds in its digital collections. In addition, Baruch students, faculty and staff may contact the library to obtain items that are not currently owned.
Update 6/4/2021:
The large tables on the fourth floor have been removed to make room for the compact shelving and the books are being packed for storage.
Update 7/19/2021:
The installation of the track for the mobile high-density shelving has begun. The date for the completion of the project has been revised to September 30, 2021.
Update 9/8/2021
The installation on the south side of the 4th floor is almost complete and work has begun on the north side.
Update: 09/15/2021
The north side is finished and the books from the 4th floor have been consolidated on that side. The removal of the south side legacy stacks is now underway.
Newman Library Open Regular Hours During Midterm Examinations
The Newman L
ibrary will NOT be open 24 hours during midterm exams in the spring 2020 semester. The Library will operate with its regular hours: 7:00 a.m. until 12:00 midnight. With the current concern regarding COVID-19 our cleaning crew must have access to all areas of the Library, which is not possible when we are open continuously. This a temporary measure and we hope to be open 24 hours during final examinations.
Atrium Ceiling Glass Replacement Project
The scaffolding in the Library has been constructed to enable workers to replace the glass in the ceiling of the atrium, which has been the source of flooding in the building.
It will take approximately three weeks for the scaffolding to be fully built and it will occupy the entire atrium space. The project will take at least six months.
Library users should follow the signs to navigate safely around the work area and to locate services that have been temporarily moved.
First day of construction of the scaffolding
We regret the inconvenience to library users while this necessary repair work is done. The project reflects the longstanding commitment of the College to maintain our building for the benefit of current and future members of the Baruch College community.
Thank you for your understanding and patience during this project.
UPDATE: October 24, 2018
The scaffolding now extends farther to the west side of the floor (see accompanying photo.). Once completed it will enclose the entire interior of the atrium space on the 2nd floor with a central passageway leading from the entrance to the spiral staircase
Second day of construction of the scaffolding
The reference desk has relocated to room 225 on the northeast side. Signs are posted to direct library users to the new location. Today the standing workstations in the center of the atrium space will begin to be relocated to the perimeter of the space. Students who use these computers to submit print jobs are reminded that the College provides a mobile printing service that enables students to submit jobs from their own mobile devices whether on or off campus. Students do not need to log into a computer on campus to print. Details on the mobile printing service are provided in a previous news post.
UPDATE: November 13, 2018
The construction of the scaffolding has progressed past the library floors and has almost reached the atrium ceiling.
Scaffolding on November 12, 2018
Computer Lab Renovation Update
UPDATE: August 25, 2017
The Martin E. (’59) and Laurie Kaplan Computing & Technology Center is open on schedule.
Staff at the New Help Desk
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The College is on schedule with a complete renovation of the 6th floor student computer lab that will provide all new equipment and furniture, group collaboration rooms, and an expanded help desk. The new lab will open for the fall 2017 semester. The construction work has now progressed to the north side of the floor where the entire wall will be removed to extend student seating to the windows. As a result, the lab will be closed from April 7 through August 25.
Removal of the North Wall (4/17/2017)
North Side Facing the Atrium (4/17/2017)
To accommodate lab users during this construction period, additional computers were placed throughout the Library, including rooms 344, 444 and 544. Printers were added to the Library’s third floor lounge area and in rooms 360, 460 and 560. Computer labs will also be available on the east side of the Vertical Campus on the 6th floor from 8:00 a.m. until 11:30 p.m.
Below are photos of the work in progress on the SOUTH side of the lab. We look forward to announcing to the Baruch community the Grand Reopening of the Martin and Laurie Kaplan Computing and Technology Center.
Group Collaboration Room Being Painted
New IT Help Desk Under Construction
Building a Printer Alcove
Carpentry Work in Aisle Facing New Help Desk
Installing Wheelchair Height Counters
Wiring the Help Desk Staff Area
Collaboration Area Before Installation of Glass Walls
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REPRINT OF AN EARLIER POST
The Project
Baruch College is undertaking a complete renovation and upgrade of the main student computer lab on the sixth floor of the Information and Technology Building at 151 East 25th Street. Work will begin on Wednesday, November 16, and is expected to last through Summer 2017. Our goal is to have the entire facility renovated by the start of classes in Fall 2017. Although we regret the inconvenience students will experience during the renovation period, the College looks forward to providing an outstanding, new student-centered facility.
The new features of the lab will include:
- An expansion of the total area of the lab with student seating extending to the windows through the removal of the interior wall on the north side of the floor
- Easy access to the help desk, relocated to the entrance hall area
- 6 new student collaboration rooms with special presentation and conferencing equipment
- New computers at every seat plus new printers, scanners, and other equipment for student use
- New furnishings— tables, chairs, and lounge seating— to support group work as well as individual work
- Electrical outlets at every table
- A bring-your-own-device area
Schedules and Accommodations: What to Expect
The renovation will be accomplished in two phases.
Phase one will start with the construction of a temporary wall to separate the lab’s north and south sides. Full-scale construction will then begin on the south side, while the north side remains open. Once the south side renovation is completed, the south side will reopen.
Phase two of the work will focus on the north side.
Note: While each side is under construction, lab computers will be relocated and available on various floors of the Newman Library. To accommodate extra use of the library, temporary additional seats will be available on each floor for the duration of the project.
The architectural renderings of the renovated lab are provided below.
South side of the lab including collaboration rooms
South side of the lab showing the help desk
South side of the lab from above showing help desk and entrance
North side of the lab with lounge seating and individual work stations from above
Printer alcove and bring-your-own-device area
North Campus HVAC Project Update
As reported earlier this month, Baruch College—in partnership with the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York (DASNY)—is working to upgrade the HVAC systems of the North Campus. An important piece of this $14 million capital project is replacing the cooling towers on the roofs of the Newman Vertical Campus (NVC) and the Information and Technology Building. These towers play a significant role in the maintenance of temperature.
Unfortunately, this work has been slightly delayed. Here is an update:
This past Saturday, Jan. 28, a street crane successfully removed the existing cooling towers of the Information and Technology Building (see image left). The downside of removal, however, is that there is no direct way to modulate the temperatures throughout the NVC and the Information and Technology Building while work is in progress.
Be advised that campus engineers are doing their best to accommodate temperature-related complaints. The problem: When heat is reduced in one area, another area becomes even colder, and vice versa. Unfortunately, we anticipate that this situation will continue through this week, until the temporary chiller‒moved to accommodate the crane and other connections‒is back in operation.
Expected to be operational by Monday, Feb. 6, the temporary chiller will make it easier to modulate temperature. The first of the new cooling towers should be operational at the end of March or beginning of April, and the entire project is scheduled for completion this summer.
When completed, this upgrade will allow campus engineers to control the numerous components that balance the heating and air conditioning to the North Campus floors and rooms.
We apologize for any inconvenience and will continue to keep you apprised of developments.
Thank you for your patience and understanding.
Lisa Edwards
Assistant Vice President of Campus Facilities
Construction on Library’s 3rd Floor Related to Possible New Shelving
Library users will notice that several areas of the book stacks on the third floor have been temporarily closed for construction. During September a work crew will be drilling in the ceiling above these areas to analyze the load strength of the floor above. We would like to install high density shelving on the fourth floor to allow us to increase space for student seating. The plastic enclosures around the drilling locations will prevent plaster and dust from spreading across the library. The actual drilling is scheduled for late in the evening to minimize disruption to our users.
Library users who need any books or bound periodicals from an area that is closed should inquire at the circulation desk on the second floor. Please do not enter aisles that are roped off with caution tape.
The idea to install high-density shelving emerged from planning discussions with students and faculty. During that process it was very clear that increasing the seating capacity of the library is a high priority.
We regret the inconvenience that this work may cause during this month, but we expect that library users will appreciate the benefits that result.
Internet & Wi-Fi Service Interruption in Library Building – April 3 – 6
Due to essential air conditioning repairs in the Library & Technology Building there will be no network services, including Internet access and Wi-Fi service, in that building and the Annex Building on Friday, April 3 beginning at 7:00 a.m. and continuing until Monday, April 6. Network services are planned to be restored in the building by 9:00 a.m. on April 6. The Building will remain open its usual hours during the service outage. Services will operate as normal on the rest of the campus network.
Internet and WiFi Service Interruption after 6:00 p.m. on May 15
Due to essential electrical repairs in the Library & Technology Building there will be no network services, including Internet access and wifi service, in that building and the Annex Building on Thursday, May 15th, beginning at 6:00 p.m. Network services are planned to be restored in the building by 8:00 a.m. on the 16th. The building will remain open, its usual hours during the service outage. The library will be open until midnight and circulation services will remain open as previously scheduled until 10:00 p.m. On the rest of the campus network services will operate as normal. The labs on the 6th floor of the Vertical Campus will be open until 11:30 p.m., because the main computing lab in the Library building will be closed during the outage. On Friday, May 16th the library will open at 7:00 a.m. and remain open continuously for final examinations until 11:59 p.m. on May 23rd.