The Selection and Evaluation of Library Bookstacks

To THE LIBRARIAN, architect, or purchasing agent charged for the first time with the selection of bookstacks for a library, the task looks simple enough. In fact, at a glance, the products of the several manufacturers are so similar in appearance that it is difficult to tell them apart. Closer examination, however, reveals variations that may be the difference between a satisfactory installation and one that fails to perform as intended. It is important therefore that the individual responsible for drafting specifications for a library bookstack installation knows the criteria of good stack design, be able to evaluate the differences in the products of the several manufacturers, and knows something of the ways by which the performance of a bookstack may be tested. Although some form of shelving has been used for the storage of books since Biblical days, shelving design continues to evolve slowly. In earlier times, most library book shelves were of wood, a material used with very handsome effect in many modern libraries, By the middle of the last century, many commercial bookstack installations used cast-iron uprights or side panels, with wood shelves. Steel shelving first appeared toward the end of the century, and is still the preferred material. Other materials, such as aluminum, have been tried, but have not proved suitable for this purpose. Steel, of course, offers the advantages of strength, durability, fire resistance, and lower cost, as compared with wood. Although the terms are somewhat loosely and interchangeably used, most manufacturers refer to their product as “library bookstack” rather than “library shelving” and for this reason the word bookstack will be used throughout this paper to refer to installations using steel. Wood units are usually, but not always, called shelving. Two types of steel bookstack are used in library installations, neither