A Guide to MIE Library services during COVID 19

The Library closed its doors in line with government guidance but Library staff have continued to work to support and deliver vital access to electronic books and resources, and to offer online services and information remotely. 

Below you can see a range of supports and measures that the Library is implementing to ensure continuity of service as well as the health and well-being of Library users and staff. 

To submit a request:

Go to Search + Find, the library’s discovery service;

Search for the book or journal you need;

Please note that copyright law only allows students to request one chapter per book or one article per journal issue not exceeding 10% of the work;

Click on the item that you wish to request to find full details of the item;

Requests must be placed by filling the request form below.  Please provide as much detail as possible especially the book title and page numbers;

Library staff will create scanned copies of requested book chapters and journal articles in compliance with copyright legislation;

You will receive an email with the .pdf attached when it is ready.

Restrictions

Only one article or chapter per request form submitted.

Requests for entire books submitted systematically chapter by chapter are a copyright violation and will be cancelled.

We cannot scan chapters from books that are currently checked out.

You can place no more than 5 requests at a time.

Copyright

In providing this service, we must follow relevant copyright laws.

In submitting a request, you are accepting a copyright declaration as part of the request process.

In summary, scanned items are for personal research use only, and may not be shared, distributed, or posted elsewhere online.

How long does it take?

We will endeavour to have your requested chapter or article scanned and emailed to you within 5 working days.

Please fill the request form:  https://forms.gle/m5KXpDUMQ1rZ9YxQ6

Our click and collect service will allow users to request items from the main lending collections for loan. Requested items will be retrieved, issued to the library user, and made available for collection within 5 working days of receipt of request.  

Requests must be placed via the Library website using MIESearch - there is a 'click & collect' button in each record. Only submitted Click and Collect forms are processed. 

• It will usually take a few days, depending on request numbers, for Library staff to process and issue items that have been requested from the shelves. 
• We would ask that no more than 6 requests be placed at any one time.
• Short term loan rule of one week still applies and Curriculum and Desk reserve books cannot be loaned out. 
• Library staff will then transport requested books to the Reception in St. Mary's building for collection within one week. 
• Student ID must be presented to collect your request.
• Normal borrowing limits apply (if you hit your limit, you will need to return some books before others can be borrowed).
• Requestors will be notified by e-mail within 5 days that their books are available for collection and will have one week to collect their requests from the date of email notification. 
• Failure to collect books may affect your ability to place future requests.
• After usage, Books to be returned to the Library Book Returns box at the reception of MIE.
• Please note that  if you order and you are over your book allowance, your order will not be  processed, so do bear that in mind. 

To ensure the safety of all Library users and staff the following measures will be implemented in the Library:

• Please note that for the time being, the usual Library entrance will function as the exit (apart from for wheelchair access). You will therefore need to use the Reception entrance of the St. Pats building to enter the Library via the Library PCs area. 
• There will be a traffic light system in place at the new Library entrance - when the Library is at capacity for a safe number of users, you may have to queue outside until somebody leaves. A member of staff will monitor the flow of traffic and allow you in as soon as possible. 
• When browsing and taking out books, users will be required to maintain 2 metre social distancing in all spaces and not to congregate anywhere in the Library.
• Masks are mandatory in the Library.
• The Library will provide hand gel and sanitising materials at key locations throughout the Library.
• Wipes will also be provided so that study spaces can be wiped down before and after use.
• Due to space restrictions, browsing of shelves will be limited to one person per aisle at a time.
• One person will be allowed in the printing/photocopying room at a time. 
• When finished with a book, it should be placed on the nearest available trolley. Books should not be re-shelved - Library staff will take care of this.
• When leaving the building, please ensure that all books are removed from study spaces and placed on trolleys.
• All study spaces will be at least 2 metres apart, limiting available seats in the Library to 20 spaces (6 in the Curriculum room, 4 PC Seats, and 10 individual study carrels in the Reading Room). These seats can be booked through an online system outlined further below.  Could you please wipe your area after you finish. 

This appointment based system will be in accordance with physical distancing requirements and will ensure equitable access to a limited number of study spaces in MIE Library. 

• There will be 4 PC desks, 6 Curriculum Room study spaces and 10 Reading Room spaces available to book.
• These can be booked for a period of 2 hours.
• There will be a period of one hour when the desks are not bookable and this is to facilitate cleaning in between uses. Once sanitising has taken place you may be able to check in up to 30 mins early. 
• Library users can browse and reserve the desired seat via a mobile-first interface on their smartphones. Once you have selected the Seat/Space and date/time, you will fill in a quick booking form. 
• Upon reserving a seat you will get an email confirmation with a unique 3 character code in the email that you can use to check-in (and later, check-out), to identify their reservation. Once you reach your booked seat in the Library, you can check-in by either scanning the QR code or by loading a special URL on your smartphone.  Users will be automatically checked-out at the end of the reservation.

This plan is developing in line with government and Institute direction and is subject to change.  We will use social media channels to keep our students and colleagues up to date on any developments.

Click on link below to book a space. 

https://mie-ie.libcal.com/r

The Library has rolled out a free book return service for graduate students to return their books by post and also offered the book return facility (bookbin) at MIE reception. 

All books currently on loan have been renewed and any fines accrued during the closure have been waived.