Technical Library leaves Klementinum after decades

Prague - Today, after decades, the funds of the State Technical Library (STK) began moving from the Prague Clementinum. Technical literature will be accessible from September in a new building in Prague Dejvice. Approximately half a million books will be moved over several weeks, and they hope to start trial operations in the new National Technical Library (NTK) on August 1.
The moving company today morning deployed a crane in the courtyard of the Clementinum, and books are being lowered onto a cart from the library window into a truck. Only modern collections are being moved; the technical library has rare prints several centuries old in its collections, which will be moved in a different way. The moving contract was won in a public competition by the company Stahl. According to library spokesperson Pavel Procházka, the move will cost almost five million crowns.
With more than 1.5 million volumes, NTK is set to be the largest source of technical literature in the Czech Republic. It promises users comfort in services, over 1300 study places, and nearly 600 relaxation spots. The entire building will have WiFi signal, 250 computers for public use, a night study room, self-service borrowing and returning of books, and a café.
With the new building, according to Procházka, the way the library functions will entirely change. While until now 90 percent of publications were borrowed "over the counter", meaning that readers had to order a book remotely and then go pick it up, in the new building, 600,000 books will be available for free selection. This was preceded by seven years of work, with all catalogs digitized and all books equipped with a special chip.
"We primarily want to offer the option of choice," says Procházka about the new library system. According to him, every library user should be able to quickly and easily find any book; those who will need assistance will receive it. Readers will be able to choose between a common study room or a small study room where they will have privacy.
NTK was established at Fleming Square according to the design of the studio Projektil and cost 2.25 billion crowns. The public will find the funds of the State Technical Library and part of the funds from the libraries of ČVUT and VŠCHT. From July 1, the library will have a new status, changing from the State Technical Library to the National Technical Library.
By moving the STK from the Clementinum, spaces will be freed up in the baroque complex, the seat of the National Library (NK). The mentioned 600,000 books that will move are just a fraction of what NK manages. Therefore, the gained space does not resolve the long-term spatial problems of NK. The Slavonic Library was originally supposed to move into the spaces left by STK, but now NK has decided to use them as needed as the repairs of the Clementinum complex continue. "It will be a kind of balancing space," said Eva Štanská from NK to ČTK.
Even after the failure of Jan Kaplický's blob project, NK still considers a potential construction of a new building. It is currently finishing the depositories in Hostivař and planning the renovation of the Clementinum. It is also considering some relatively fundamental interventions in the architecture of this national cultural monument, but it is still unclear to what extent these could be realized.