Is your library set up for the way people actually live?
At Lyngsoe Library Systems, we build practical technology for the everyday realities of running a library.
For patrons, that means checking out on their own terms and reaching the library outside opening hours.
For staff, it means less time sorting and more time with the people in the room.
ACCESSIBILITY
Do patrons at your library feel truly independent?
When self-service equipment isn't designed to be accessible to everyone, patrons with disabilities or simply other needs, end up waiting for staff assistance to complete basic transactions that should be simple. Gone is the independence that many patrons value dearly along with the time staff could have spent more productively.
True accessibility means every patron, regardless of age, ability, or how they move through the world, can use the library on their own terms.
Lyngsoe LibDeco™ and Lyngsoe Library Mate™ were put into the world to help with just this. Height-adjustable and with assistive technology, no patrons are accidentally excluded. And the same goes for the staff behind the scenes. The Lyngsoe Ergo Staff™ makes sure that wheelchair users can work at the sorter just the same.
19 LibDeco kiosks installed across 13 branches in a largely rural county, chosen for quality, accessibility, and usability. Staff are no longer tied to the counter and spend more time supporting the people who need it.
"The ability to raise and lower the table was really important to us. Children can use it, people in wheelchairs can use it, people on mobility scooters can use it. It's fully accessible."
— Angie Watkins, Libraries Improvement Fund Coordinator, Shropshire Council
DISTANCE
Does your library reach everyone it could?
Distance from the library isn't always measured in miles or kilometers. Sometimes it's measured in opening hours, or in the space between where people are and where the library happens to be.
Libraries across the world are finding practical ways to meet patrons where they are. Initiatives like bookmobiles and expanded opening hours do some of the work, but these solutions need staff to work, which might not be ideal on a tight budget. Some of Lyngsoe's automated solutions can help expand your library's reach and supplement your current setup.
Lyngsoe Self-Operated Library™ extends access beyond staffed hours, Lyngsoe LibCabinet™ puts a mini library in the places people already go, and Lyngsoe Smart Locker™ gets holds into patrons' hands around the clock.
Extended weekly opening hours by 59% with Self-Operated Library. Over 130,000 visits recorded outside staffed hours in three years.
"It's helped us reach more people, stay open longer, and offer something that genuinely fits the way our communities live."— Kate Holford, Service Delivery Manager
Recognize your library in any of this?
PATRON EXPECTATIONS
When was the last time your team really had time to help someone?
The role of the librarian has expanded into digital guide, community connector, and safe harbor for people who have nowhere else to go. But the time available for that role hasn't kept pace, because the underlying logistics haven't changed.
When Lyngsoe Sort Mate™ takes over the returns, staff get their hours back for the work only people can do.
Turnaround time for returned items dropped from several days to two hours. Circulation increased 30%, and staff were redeployed to more meaningful work.
Where does the challenge feel biggest in your library?
Every library on this page had different challenges and different community needs, before they got started. If yours is next, we'd like to be part of the conversations.
Tell us a little about your library, and the right person from our team will get back to you.