How to Library

Library Services:

• Borrowing media or using media in the library
• Renewal of loan periods online, by telephone, at the circulation desk
• Access to e-books
• Access to electronic journals and specialist databases
• Access to DIN standards, VDI regulations, VDE guidelines
• Workstations with WiFi
• PCs, scanners, printing stations
• Self-service terminal, book return boxes, payment stations
• Acquisition requests via web form
• Interlibrary loan
• Consultation, library tours and training courses
• Publication lists, online publication server (OPUS)
• Support services for open access publications
• Locker service management

You can get individual assistance in all libraries. We will answer your questions during service hours - our specialist staff will be happy to help you.

Information Library Eupener Straße. Office hours can be found on our website.Research consultation hours at Bayernallee, Boxgraben and Jülich libraries usually on Thursdays during service hours.

Contact:

• in person at your library
• Email: bibauskunftfh-aachen.de
• Form: Questions & Feedback
• Form: Training Requests
• LiveChat: https://fhac.de/BIB-chat
• Phone: +49. 241. 6009 52057

• Library (Introductory) Tours
  Library Services ( borrowing, books, journals, electronic media, printing station, WiFi/VPN) | Search in Catalogue PLUS
   
• Literature Search for Seminar Papers and Final Theses
  Acquiring search techniques | Searching in databases and catalogues | Procuring documents
   
• Literature Management with Citavi or Zotero
  Collecting bibliographic references | Managing citations, images and own ideas | Creating bibliographies automatically | Applying faculty-specific citation styles | Showing Mac users Zotero
   
• For Teaching Staff
  Tailor-made offers, suitable for your teaching or research area | In your courses as well | Contact us

All training courses are also held online.

You can renew loan periods. The new loan period usually ends 4 weeks after the renewal date. It is not renewed automatically. You can renew personally on site or by telephone during service hours or you can use the online renewal service via your library account (renewal requests by email only in exceptional cases, please).

However, if the media are reserved by other persons, the loan period will not be renewed.

The media items must be presented at the library after 24 weeks at the latest.

For interlibrary loans, the loan periods are set by the lending library. You cannot renew interlibrary loans online.

For your thesis, you can request an extended loan period.

The shelf arrangement goes from left to right, from the top shelf to the bottom shelf, with the next shelf unit following in the same order.

The shelving is arranged according to the media number, i.e. first according to the letter combinations, then according to the consecutive book number.

The shelving system arranges all subject areas from the general to the specific. The basis of our media listing is the GHBS (shelf classification of the comprehensive university libraries of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia).

Catalogue PLUS is Your Entry Point to Literature Searches

• The "Catalogue" tab displays all printed and electronic media in the library.
• In the "More" tab, you can search for books and articles in various databases simultaneously.
• In the "Supraregional Search" tab, you can select search areas (libraries in Aachen and Jülich, in Germany, worldwide or only journals).

Licensed content is only available to members of FH Aachen (campus-wide, via VPN or via Shibboleth). The installation instructions for the Virtual Private Network (VPN) are available on the pages of the Data Processing Centre (DVZ, Datenverarbeitungszentrale).

Further Information:

In Catalogue PLUS, you also have access to databases and electronic journals ("Further Sources"), interlibrary loan ("Search") as well as your loans, orders, reservations and fees ("Account").

You can find out more on the page "Search & Discover".
Individual help with literature research and acquisition is available at your library, at the research consultation hours and at the information desk.

Contact:

• Phone: +49. 241. 6009 52057
• LiveChat: https://fhac.de/BIB-chat
• Email: bibauskunftfh-aachen.de

Trackballs as Mouse Alternatives

Control is achieved through a large, smooth-rolling ball, eliminating the need to move the mouse. At the libraries Eupener Straße and Jülich the trackball is already connected to the computer. In the library Bayernallee you can request the trackball at the service desk.

High-Contrast Keyboards

Extra-large and high-contrast labeling enhances readability and usability. At the libraries Eupener Straße and Jülich the keyboard is already connected to the computer. In the library Bayernallee you can request the keyboard at the service desk.

Accessible Lockers

Keys for easily accessible lockers can be borrowed from the libraries Bayernallee, Boxgraben, and Eupener Straße at the service desk.

Shelf Assistance

Do you need assistance with finding, selecting, and retrieving your literature from the shelves? The library team is here to help you – feel free to approach us at any time!

Wheelchair-Friendly Study Spaces

All libraries are either on the ground floor or accessible via elevators. Wheelchair-friendly study spaces are available in the libraries.

In almost all buildings of FH Aachen, the library operates printing stations. Upload your PDF documents online to print them at FH Aachen's printing stations. You will need your FH Identifier to log in.

The printing station is suitable for printing something for your own use. We cannot guarantee scale accuracy, colour fastness or ink coverage. If you need high-quality printouts, for example for presentations or your thesis, we recommend that you contact professional companies (e.g. copy shops). After logging in, your user name, open charges as well as an overview of new and printed files are displayed.

Fees for Printouts at the Printing Stations:
Printouts will be charged according to the Annex to the Regulation of Fees and Fines of the Library of FH Aachen and booked to your library account. (Black and white per DIN A4 sheet printed on one side and depending on the degree of coverage 4-30 cents, colour 5-30 cents).

Please pay outstanding fees as soon as possible:

• Cashless with your FH Karte at the payment station
• For amounts of 5 € or more by bank transfer to the account of FH Aachen:
  IBAN: DE11 3905 0000 1070 8591 43, BIC: AACSDE33 (reference line: Your FH Identifier and your name)
• By cash during the service hours in your branch library

Please be considerate of other library users.

•  Keep quiet and refrain from making phone calls in the library.
• You can eat and drink in the dining hall or in the cafeteria. Please do not eat or drink in the library! You can also take bottled water with you to your study place in the library.
• Leave your workplace in a tidy condition.

You may also demand mutual consideration. If you need assistance, please let us know. Our staff are authorised to give instructions and have householder's rights, which we will make use of if necessary.

We are grateful and open to your feedback - in person or by form ( anonymous as well).

Please handle the media with care | This includes removing sticky notes before returning them. We do not want grease stains, coffee stains or to read your notes. Please also refrain from underlining or marking in the media. Please report any existing damage - preferably before borrowing!
We will report any theft or wilful destruction to the police! Book theft is not a trivial offence.

Outside service hours, our libraries are supervised by a security service. Personal service is not possible during these hours. Please use the appropriate devices for borrowing, returning books and paying fees.

Aside from that, the following applies: We will be happy to help you. Just ask us!

If you are missing something in our stock, you are welcome to let us know. You can make acquisition requests for the purchase of new (text) books and other media.

There are several ways to do this:

• in person - simply hand in your acquisition request to the staff in one of our branch libraries.
• online - fill out the acquisition form on our website.

If the item is not already available in the holdings or on order, the desired title will be procured within the framework of our acquisition guidelines and - if requested by you - it will be reserved for you. If the title is already available, we will inform you immediately and make the item available to you.

OPUS provides all members of the university the opportunity to publish academically relevant documents on the internet. These documents are stored, indexed, and made accessible through library catalogs and the internet. If you wish to submit student work, please send us the approval of the supervisor.

Central Publication Lists for Professors and Employees
Publication lists contain records of published academic works. Solely oral presentations and pure abstracts are not included. These lists are automatically published on the department and individual researcher websites.
Your academic publications are bibliographically recorded according to international standards and supplemented with additional details (DOI for full texts, electronic availability, and locations in departmental libraries).

Long-Term Archiving with Persistent Identifiers
Full texts stored in OPUS are assigned a Digital Object Identifier (DOI).

Selected final theses from faculties 4, 7, and 8 are listed in OPUS, searchable, and predominantly available in full text.

The library funds Open Access publications with the publishers Springer Nature and Wiley through the DEAL agreements, as well as in PLOS journals.

The Office of Research, Innovation, and Transfer supports Open Access publications with partial financing through the "Publication Fund Research" for publishers not covered by the library.

For more information on OPUS and Open Access:

• Page: Research & Publishing

Contact:

• Form: Questions for the OPUS Team
• Form: Report a Publication for Inclusion in OPUS
• Email: opusbibliothek.fh-aachen.de

As a general rule, use of the library is free of charge. Exceptions can be found on the page "Fees & Payment Options".

If the loan period is exceeded, fees are due immediately from day one - irrespective of a reminder. If fees and printing costs are not paid in a timely manner or if they exceed a certain amount, we will block your library account. You can pay at the payment station with the credit on your FH Karte, in cash in the library or, for amounts of € 5 or more, by bank transfer to the FH Aachen account at Sparkasse Aachen
IBAN: DE11 3905 0000 1070 8591 43, BIC: AACSDE33 (reference line: your FH Identifier and your name)

Notifications - Advance Reminders - Dunning Notices

• will be sent to your official FH email address.
• advance reminders - without legal claim as a special service two days before the deadline.
• for external users: to the specified email address.

Media Loss or Damage
Please report informally. If the media item is not recovered, you will have to replace it. We charge a handling fee of € 25 per media item.

Loss of FH Karte
Please block without delay https://services.fh-aachen.de

Excerpt from the Regulation of Fees and Fines (Gebühren- und Entgeltordnung)
If the loan period is exceeded per media item
1-10 days € 2/media item
11-20 days € 5/media item
21-30 days € 10/media item  
31-40 days € 20/media item  
41 days and more € 20/media item + € 25 handling fee + book replacement Loss/media item  € 25 handling fee + book replacement

Contact

• Email: mahnung.bibliothekfh-aachen.de
• Phone: +49. 241. 6009 52056
• Ms Dipl.-Bibl. Eva-Maria Horita & Ms Janet Gärtner

According to § 29 of the Higher Education Act in connection with § 10 paragraph 2 of the Basic Regulations, the University Library of FH Aachen is a central operating unit of FH Aachen, consisting of branch libraries and library administration.

The use of the library is governed by the Administration and Usage Regulations as well as the Regulations on Fees and Fines of the University Library of FH Aachen in the respective valid version.

The user relationship is subject to public law. The place of jurisdiction for legal actions arising from the user relationship is Aachen.

All regulations are published as FH-Mitteilungen (FH Announcements) and can be accessed via the FH Aachen website.

For the FH Karte, the "Satzung zur Erhebung von Hochschulabgaben an der FH Aachen (Abgabensatzung)" (Bye-Laws on the Collection of University Charges at FH Aachen) applies.

For employees, the "Dienstvereinbarung über die Einführung und Verwendung der FH Karte für Beschäftigte an der Fachhochschule Aachen" (Works Agreement on the Introduction and Use of the FH Karte for Employees at FH Aachen) additionally applies.