High Density Storage

About High Density Storage

The Penn Library's High Density Storage facility opened in July 1998 to house low-use research materials from the Penn Library collection. The facility, just a few blocks from the main campus, is located at 3001 Market Street, opposite 30th Street Station. This facility will hold up to 2 million volumes and is expected to accommodate the Library's shelving needs for twenty years, allowing less-used materials to be removed from core collections in the 15 Penn Libraries, and ensuring space for new acquisitions.

Two full-time staff manage the extensive day-to-day operations at the facility, including retrieving requested material, photocopying articles, shelving newly processed materials, and assisting members of the public.

High density facilities emphasize shelving efficiency. Materials are sorted and shelved by size on specially designed units that stand 18 feet high. We use a special lift to retrieve volumes stored on the high shelves. Because of this, the storage portion of the facility is not open to the public. Instead, requested materials are delivered twice a day to Van Pelt, and once a day to the other Penn Libraries.