"Ferrari" of Library Tech has Arrived
The “Ferrari” of library circulation technology arrived this past Monday (June 9). Staff and local service technicians had it operational on Wednesday. Thursday, staff took it for a spin and see. Today, Woodlawn Public Library began to zoom along the track. Who said public service operations are always slow?!
Video of AMH in action: Once the books are off the conveyor belt, the real beauty of AMH appears. It is oddly fascinating to watch.
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The Two Brains: Andrew Poplawski proudly stands beside the Library’s latest time saver—Ultrasort NXT by TechLogic. Just like its human companion, this unit is the brains of the operations, and their shared purpose is to make sorting library items—from drop off to reshelving—as efficient as possible. |
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All sorted: These beauties in a row are the workers. The rollers on top move the library materials along while the white bin sensors read the RFID (radio frequency identification) tags and decide where each item goes. |
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Full systems ahead: Together, the brain and workers, make up the Automated Materials Handling (AMH) unit. Its purpose is to free staff from sorting tasks and allow them to focus on more complicated or people-oriented jobs. |
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Human caretakers: The Library’s AMH has its own crew of people to make sure it has what it needs to work well. |
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Red buttons are cool: Everyone enjoys a red button, especially when it is attached to safety. This is a close-up of the top of the sorters. The dark grey rollers move items up and down the line and the blue bands pull items sideways, off the line, and sliding down the black ramp into a sorting bin. |
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Software to control all: Every sorting situation can be unique if you have flexible software. Andrew Poplawski shows the digital view of the Library’s AMH. |
Contact
Kasia Morrison
Communications Officer
Halifax Public Libraries
Phone: (902) 490-5852
Cell: (902) 476-8605
Email: morrisk@halifax.ca