Best Practices

How Can a Layout and Design Service Help You?

By Ariel Servadio & Annette Hogan

It’s easy to have big plans for too small a space. That’s why collaborating with a layout and design service can be so helpful. After working on over a thousand library design projects, a design team like Gaylord's knows what mistakes to avoid, and will work with you to make the most of your redesign.

By simply providing details about the space you have to work with, your collection, patrons and staff, and how your library is used, a design service can help you determine the best use of your space. Whether your want to redesign your entire library or just create a new children's area, they'll help you find a solution that incorporates your needs, as well as important elements like ADA requirements. A convenient feature: all collaborating can be done remotely, through email or phone. You tell the design team what you’re looking for, and they tell you what’s feasible and how to go about achieving the perfect end result.

Once you’ve settled on a plan, Gaylord's design team creates a 3D rendering of the space as a CAD (Computer-Aided Design) image. They can specify details right down to the wood finishes of your furniture and the color of your carpet and walls, so you can see exactly how this new layout will look in your library, from every angle. How does it look when you first enter the library? What is the view from behind the circulation desk? The images of these various perspectives all conveniently arrive in your email inbox as JPEG or PDF attachments. These 3D renderings help you see what works and what doesn’t, before you place an order. If you don’t like the new look, your design team goes back to the drawing board.

The CAD images can also be useful for promoting renovations to your library board or substantiating your grant proposal. You can use the 3D renderings of your project to help the committee voting on it see how it will actually look and fit in the space. When Silvia Nebel, the librarian at the Center for Officer Training at the Salvation Army College in Chicago, used Gaylord’s design team to replace a circulation desk, this helped get her project approved. “The committee found the images useful, and they voted to purchase the desk,” she says.

Concerned about staying within budget? A design service helps you figure out how much your project will cost and works with what you have to spend. And working with a free service like Gaylord’s allows you to devote all of your funds to the renovation, instead of consultation fees.
Design services utilize years of experience and knowledge for your benefit, whether you are reconfiguring shelving, updating your color scheme or completely changing the focus of your library. They'll collaborate with architects and other designers, and coordinate deadlines for the delivery and installation of everything from the bookshelves to your circulation desk. They take the guesswork out of renovating! Gaylord's design service will guide you from idea to installation to complete the right renovation for your library, on budget and on time. 

Learn more about library layout and design services at Gaylord.com/LibraryDesign. Gaylord Bros.