Category Archives: Case Studies

Polish National Library - exterior view of the building

Dragon & Lizard at the National Library of Poland

Customized solutions for the National Library of Poland

The Biblioteka Narodowa a Waszawie was founded after Poland’s independence in 1918 and opened in 1930. However, the precious collections, which also include the library of the famous Wilanów Palace, suffered considerable losses during the German occupation in 1944.The National Library is one of the most important cultural institutions in Poland and holds about 162,000 old prints, over 26,000 manuscripts, 120,000 printed music and 130,000 atlases and maps, including parts of the famous Codex Suprasliensis. As a major research institution and main archive of Polish literature, the library shares all digitized data via the website Polona i Academica .

Polish National Library - exterior view of the building
Polish National Library logo

The National Library of Poland in numbers

objects

employees

Digitized objects per day

 

Project background

Our cooperation with the Polish National Library began in October 2016 when they were looking for a partner to carry out the planned digitization project “Patrimonium – Digitalization and Access to the Polish National Heritage from the Collections of the National Library and the Jagiellonian Library.”

The initiator of the project was the National Library, which has been very active in the field of digitization for many years and makes its resources accessible in electronic form. The implementation of this new major project represents an enormous quantitative and qualitative advance in digital access to the most valuable and oldest collections of Polish literature.

The 652,000 objects that will be digitized in this project are extremely diverse. The most valuable group comprises the collection of 305 copies of old atlases, including the oldest work, a valuable Strasbourg edition of the Geographia of Claudius Ptolemy from 1522.

Show scans
Employee of the Polish National Library at the book2net Dragon

BOOK2NET ACTION

The digitization of these valuable collections posed a particular challenge for us as developers and manufacturers of scanning technology. A solution had to be found that is particularly gentle, but at the same time offers the highest possible resolution so that the digital copies also meet the requirements of detailed further research. In addition, the desired system should deliver high productivity due to the tight project timeframe.

Our newly developed A1 scanners exceeded the expectations of our customers in terms of quality, productivity and variability: Freely selectable setting parameters allow individual recording positions as well as standardized, productive work processes. The variable angle adjustment of the camera position guarantees exact scan results in the book fold and overlap area. Our LED lighting concept (UV/IR free) ensures outstanding illumination. The V-shape support can be precisely set at an angle from 80° up to 120° in combination with corresponding panes.

The book2net team manufactured and tested the required scanning systems within just three months. All devices were installed, checked and calibrated on site within eight days, including training of the staff.

Results

A total of 19 book2net systems (17 Lizard and 2 Dragon systems) were delivered to the National Library and installed in April 2018. They have been in continuous operation ever since to meet the objectives of the Patrimonium project. The book2net team is proud to have made a contribution to the digitization of unique and valuable cultural treasures in Poland, so that they are available to a broader public as well as further scientific research.

See Dragon See Lizard

FURTHER CASE STUDIES

irish-newspaper-archives

Large-format scanner at the Irish Newspaper Archives

High-Performance Scanning at the Irish Newspaper Archives

For decades, the Irish Newspaper Archives, along with their sister company MicroMedia Ltd, have been turning their large collection of newspapers into microfilm. With the age of digitalization offering a new level of accessibility, their online database has become the largest digital newspaper archive in Ireland, offering digital scans of currently 18 titles, with more than 9 million pages of news, spanning 245 years.
Stacks of newspaper volumes in the depot of the Irish Newspaper Archives

“With the Flash A1 scanner, our scan productivity has increased by 75% over the existing large volume scanners we had in place.”

Jonathan Martin

The Irish National Archives in numbers

of Irish history

newspaper pages

digitized pages per day

Project background

book2net Flash A1 at Irish Newspaper Archives

MICROBOX cameras have been used at the INA since the early 1970s, helping create their extensive microfilm archive. MICROBOX technologies have been found to be exceptionally reliable and durable. One particular camera had been in use for almost 30 years, and unsurpassed by comparable newer products, when the arrival of sophisticated scanning technologies finally rendered it obsolete. In the early 2000s, Microfilm cameras were replaced by flatbed scanners. Since then, the INA has used many different models from MICROBOX, the latest of which is the Flash A1.

book2net action

In order to achieve higher productivity when carrying out their digitization projects while at the same time guaranteeing the highest image quality and user-friendliness, the Irish Newspaper Archives were looking for high-end large format scanners. Book2net was able to meet these requirements perfectly with the Flash A1, which enables time-saving double-sided scans up to DIN A2 format. The efficient software can also automatically combine scans of individual A1 pages in a user-friendly manner.

Upgrade with book2net Hornet A0
After successfully using our Flash A1 system, the archive management opted for our A0 system as well. In addition to the expanded format option, which now allows the double-sided scanning of formats up to DIN A1, the dual sensor technology of the book2net Hornet also significantly improves the image quality.

Results

Fast processing, easy large-format scanning and a user-friendly interface are the key features for enhanced productivity, combined with careful handling and the guarantee of constant image quality for further use of the data in the online archive. Those are realized by our large-format scanning systems Flash A1 and Hornet A0. The scan rate for newspapers up to DIN A1 format could be doubled due to the faster two-sided capturing.

About the Flash

Further case studies

rish Architectural Archive exterior rear view

A1 Repro Stand at the Irish Architectural Archive

Image Quality meets Cost Efficiency at the Irish Architectural Archive

Cartlann Ailtireachta na hÉireann, the Irish Architectural Archive, was established in 1976 to collect and preserve material of every kind relating to the architecture of Ireland and make it available to the public. With 2.5 million drawings ranging in date from the late seventeenth to the twentieth centuries the collection of the Irish Architectural Archive includes the most significant body of historic Irish architectural drawings in the world. Also housed in the Archive are
500,000 photographs, making this one of the largest collections of photographs in Ireland.
rish Architectural Archive exterior rear view

“We are delighted with the X71. The results are beyond our highest expectations.”

Colum O’Riordan
CEO, Irish Architectural Archive

The Irish Architectural Archive in numbers

drawings and documents

photographs

books and journals

 

Project background

Until the end of 2017 the Irish Architectural Archive was working with photographers for commissioned work on demand, which was associated with high costs per item. Thanks to grants from the Department of Culture and an architect whose collection the Archive is holding in their premises, the Irish Architectural Archive was able to invest in their own digitization equipment,

book2net A1 reprographic studio in the Irish Architectural Archive

book2net action

The installation of an A1 repro system equipped with our X71 camera in April 2018 was the starting point for the digitization of the collection, with the architecture publications from the Rowan collection being scanned first for a current exhibition project. It soon became clear that working with the book2net system was the most productive solution, enabling forensic analyses due to the excellent image quality. The high resolution of the X71 camera made even the finest lines on the originals visible and made it possible to produce high-quality enlargements for printing exhibition posters.

Results

First results with enhanced image analysis have been successfully achieved. The Irish Architectural Archive is now able to open its collection to the wider public and scholars. The next major project will be the digitization of the outstanding photographic collection, which holds about 500.000 items and is one of the largest in Ireland.

About the repro stand

Further case studies