The Library will be in Eco-Mode from 28 October onwards

News | Posted on Thursday 24 October 2024

In order to save energy and reduce carbon emissions, the library will restart 'eco-mode’ from Consolidation Week until the exam period. Typically, all three main library buildings remain open until midnight. However in eco-mode the Fairhurst and Burton will close earlier each day, at 10pm and 9:30pm respectively, while the Morrell will continue to stay open until midnight to accommodate late-night users.

UoYLibrary EcoMode

We ran a successful trial of Eco-Mode in August, and will now roll this out all year round with the exception of the Common Assessment Period at the end of each Semester.

Eco-Mode Details

Building Hours

  • Morrell: open 8am - midnight as usual
  • Fairhurst: opens 8am - 10pm 
  • Burton: opens 8am - 9:30pm

Goal: Significant reduction in energy consumption and carbon emissions, to contribute to the University’s sustainability goals 

When does this happen? The library opens 24/7 for the exam period at the end of each Semester, usually for 3 or 4 weeks. Outside of these two periods of time each year, we will be in eco-mode

Late-Night Study Options

We understand that students and researchers rely on late-night access to library resources. The Morrell is remaining open until midnight to accommodate these needs, and contains 640 study spaces (far more than the total number of people who typically work in the library between 10pm and midnight) as well as four IT Study Rooms, self-issue and self return machines, and of course the vast majority of our books.  

There are also two 24/7 library study areas available all year round: V/N/058 in Vanbrugh on Campus West, and an area of the Ron Cooke Hub on campus East. Also on Campus East is Library@Piazza (in the Piazza Learning Centre) which is open 7.30am to 10pm, seven days a week.

See our Locations page for more information on these spaces

Resources from the AV Suite and Music Library 

Floor 0 of the Fairhurst contains the AV Suite and the Music library. We know that students and staff rarely use resources from these areas after 10pm, but we would advise people to plan ahead and make sure any items you need to borrow or use in the library have been located and brought with you to the Morrell before the Fairhurst closes.

3D Printing

Although the Fairhurst will power down between 10pm and midnight, the one exception to this is the 3D printers in YorCreate, our maker space. As usual, the Ultimaker 3D printers can be used to print overnight (assuming the process has begun before 10pm) to allow for longer prints to be completed, and the Flashforge printers should not be used to print overnight. Note that although the printers may be working, YorCreate itself and the rest of the Fairhurst won’t be accessible during eco-mode hours. 

Feedback

To heat and light such large buildings uses a large amount of energy, and we want to be proactive in minimising the environmental impact where we can, whilst mitigating the impact on students and staff. We appreciate your understanding and support as we work together to create a more sustainable environment, and if you have any feedback on this initiative, positive or negative, we'd really like to hear from you. 

Contact the library