3-D printers available for free

The UNC research hubs, located in Davis Library, the Health Sciences Library and the Kenan Science Library, provide a more innovative way to do research.

Joe Williams, the director of public services for UNC libraries, said the three hubs are coordinated and share information, but each one is specialized for the researcher’s need.

“A researcher can walk into any location, and they’re connected to a whole pool of resources of library staff and staff from other partnered organizations,” Williams said.

These hubs are not just for class assignments and research projects, said Judy Panitch, director of library communications. Anyone affiliated with UNC is free to use the resources for no cost.

“People come for their personal ideas and passions,” Panitch said.

Since opening, the hubs have reported increased student usage, Williams said. He said more than 1,400 transactions, whether research questions or consultations, have been reported at the Davis location alone.

“Everything is evolving,” Panitch said. “One of the ideas of the hub is that it was sort of where things happen and where we connect people and connect with other parts of campus. I think we’ve realized that quite well.”

The campus organization Be a Maker, known as BeAM, works to create a network of “Makerspaces,” which are collections of resources for students to use in their creative and innovative processes.

The research hub at the Kenan Science Library has Makerspaces with six 3-D printers, a 3-D scanner, soldering and other creative spaces. The library has recorded 263 uses of the 3-D printers and 22 workshops.

The research hubs have hosted fairs, Global Entrepreneurship Week, a Create-a-thon and a Women in Science Wikipedia Edit-a-thon.

One project, through a partnership with MakNet and the Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, is called the Maker-In-Residence. In the first maker-in-residence program, undergraduates are collaborating with an expert to build a telescope.

“The expectation is that folks will pay it forward. They will have this expertise and hopefully share it by either running a workshop or volunteering in the BeAM group,” said Danianne Mizzy, head of Kenan Science Information Services.

Williams said UNC libraries’ research hubs have surpassed expectations, but officials have more plans in store.

The Kenan Science Library is still completing renovations with a grand opening event in the works.

“We are continuing to build and expand services,” Panitch said.

The hubs have helped students complete many projects, from helping women’s studies classes map catcalling on campus to creating teaching models for campus professors.

“It just met such a need, so much energy around it,” Mizzy said. “People do such amazing stuff on this campus. The research and the inquiry and the projects that come up are fascinating.”

Lisa Croucher, the executive director of Triangle Research Libraries Network, said she understands the importance of different types of research.

“These hubs bring together a diversity of disciplines that allow faculty and students to learn from each other. It creates an opportunity to access technology and human resources,” Croucher said.

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