Introducing colour coding signage at Te Puna Library

Navigating a library should be as enjoyable as reading a great book. We are excited to introduce our new color-coding signage system designed to help our library patrons find what they need on the shelves.

You Said, We Did: A Smarter Way to Navigate the Library 

This improvement was initiated after Subject Librarian Sana Saleem attended a design student presentation in March 2024, where a student suggested we consider a “colour coding system” to make it easier to find print materials on the library shelves, relevant to their subject area 

 Students said : 
“ It’s hard to know sometimes which section of the library starts and ends when looking for print books”

We did: 
We heard our student voice —and we initiated a project  to improve access to our print collection for all library users (in particular visual spatial learners) by introducing subject area colour coding in accordance with the Unitec’s  brand wayfinding palette that match the colours of Schools and show how our collection is closely aligned with Unitec’s teaching and research. 

Our new colour-coded signage system is now live across the library. 

Some examples of how our students have responded to this initiative:  

• “Easier to find the colour for my subject area” 
• “I love the design you're going with. It is simple, straight to the point and the colour is well thought out, making it well uniformed with the unitec colours”. 

Library project team  

This project was led by Sana Saleem, project members Anna Wheeler and Stephen Brebner worked together to successfully implement the project by improving signage to replace the current bay end signage on all three levels at Te Puna Library. The project was delivered in two parts : Level 2 and 3 at the end of 2024 and Level 1 earlier this year. 

The project team partnered with the Copy Centre to ensure the signage was professionally designed  in accordance with Unitec’s brand. 

How it works 

Here’s an example of the new colour-coding for one section of the library: 

Level 1 Te Puna                                   

ECE - one colour that represents the Teaching Area (Early Childhood Learning) that aligns with majority of the subject headings listed on the bay end sign

Bridgepoint and NZ/Pacific - two colours that represent the Teaching Areas/Schools that align with the  subject headings listred on the bay end sign.

Why it matters 

• Relevance to student's learning: The alignment of the Library's physical collection to our teaching areas is highlighted
• Branded wayfinding: Easier to find the book collections aligned the Schools
• Accessibility: Prominent colours and headings support users who struggle with reading
• Efficiency: our library users can locate resources quickly.  

Post implementation feedback after project completion in September 2025 showed that our initiative has enhanced user experience and had a positive impact on Unitec Library space, print collections and our diverse learner's confidence in wayfinding. 

Study space increased based on student feedback

In first semester 2025 Student NPS survey, 33 students who use the Te Puna Library asked for more study areas in the library, for example one construction student said:

" Would like to see more sitting areas in the library as it’s hard to find a spot to study, especially during busy times. “

To address the need for more study spaces, we are piloting some study space in the north-east corner by the grey wall on level 1 of Te Puna. We logged jobs with FM to provide electrical power to each desk, fix broken tiles and move existing wooden partitions to make it more inviting and welcoming for our students.

We asked students what they think of the individual desks/study area:

“Very convenient to study here and is closer to my classroom”



How these changes have impacted our student’s user experience
We are observing that more students are utilising the new space that has resulted to increased student usage

Next steps
We will continue to engage with students about study space and innovate to create a library environment that continuously adapts to support learning.

Building Hours for the rest of this year + summer break

 Study & Exam weeks hours - Monday 4 November - Thursday 20 November, 2025

Te Puna (B180) will be open longer hours over the study and exam weeks period
Mon - Thurs: 7am - 10pm
Fri - Sun: 7am - 7pm
Public Holidays: CLOSED

Waitakere library hours will remain the same as during semester time

Summer Holiday hours Friday 21 November 2025 - 23 February, 2026

Te Puna (B180)
Mon - Sun: 7am - 6pm
Public Holidays: CLOSED

Waitakere library (B520)
Mon - Fri: 8pm - 5pm
Sat - Sun: CLOSED
Public Holidays: CLOSED

From Monday 23 February 2026, the building hours will return to normal hours 

See full details for Waitākere Rangimarie (B510) and Library Hours on Library hours.

Safetyhub upgrade

Unitec Library subscribes to a database of safety videos called SafetyHub (click link to access).

Here is a message from the SafetyHub provider:

Safetyhub will be unavailable:

• Offline: Friday 31 October, 9:00am (AEDT)
• New, upgraded Safetyhub Available: Tuesday 4 November, 12:00pm (AEDT)

More information

The Safety Hub Team are on track for the Safetyhub upgrade on the 4th of November. In the lead up, we wanted to share some more information around what you can expect.

What are some of the new features I can expect to see?
•    Ability to set recurring training
•    The ability to create course bundles
•    More intuitive custom course creation
•    Better participant training experience
•    Interactive mode on Safetycare training
•    Creating custom certificates
•    Ability to set custom pass marks for all Safetycare courses
•    Enhanced reporting functionalities
•    And more! 

FAQs

Can I take a look at the new platform?
At this stage we have nothing to show you. A few weeks out we will get some walkthrough demos out to you.

What will happen to historical training records when the new Safetyhub platform is activated?
All existing participant information and training history will be migrated to the new Safetyhub platform, ensuring you can access historical data.

What will happen with all Custom Courses when the new Safetyhub platform is activated?
All existing Custom Courses created by your organisation will be migrated to the new Safetyhub platform, including accompanying resources.

I use Safetycare SCORM files. Does anything change for me?
No, any SCORM File packages you may have utilised will remain accessible via the same links.

Being a Single Sign-On (SSO) client, will the authentication automatically rollover to the new Safetyhub platform?
No, they will not automatically rollover as Metadata cannot be migrated (due to security reasons). Please follow the simple steps outlined in the SSO Migration email that was sent to our SSO clients alongside the announcement email to complete this process.

I use Safetycare embedded video links, or direct video URLs. Does anything change for me?
No, any Safetycare video link you may have utilised will remain accessible via the same links.

Will there be any downtime where we cannot access the current Safetyhub platform?
Yes, Safetyhub will be entirely offline at this time as the new platform is made live:
•    Offline: Friday 31 October, 9:00am (AEST)
•    New, upgraded Safetyhub available: Tuesday 4 November, 12:00pm (AEST) 

A further reminder to complete any ‘In-Progress’ training by October 30th.

The Team at Safetyhub

Study space with power sockets on Level 1

 

Te Puna Library has added new study space with power sockets on Level 1.

 We appreciate your patience as we continue to improve our facilities to better support your learning experience. 

We welcome your feedback on the new study spaces and other aspects of the library — please use this form to share your thoughts.

AI and Unitec Library

If you have used Unitec Library’s databases or eBooks recently, you may have noticed some new AI features. Several of our databases now have GenAI integrations.

For example, the AI Insights feature (available in the EBSCO databases) and the ProQuest Research Assistant (ProQuest databases) help you to assess the usefulness of a full-text article, by generating and highlighting 2-5 key points per document. You can use this AI feature, alongside the article abstracts, to help you select the most relevant articles from a list of search results. Some of the library’s eBooks also provide AI-generated key concepts and chapter-level takeaways.

Related sources are also sometimes suggested by these AI tools - these suggestions may help you to broaden your research. For example, ProQuest's Research Assistant (eg in the ABI Inform database) will offer some suggested sources to explore, and the Ebook Central Research Assistant suggests related eBooks from the collection.

These features use Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) models, which means that the generated content comes from within the database collections only. This helps with accuracy and reliability of the content generated, but even so, the quality of the content generated from these features can vary. 

Please use our feedback form to let us know any experiences you have with the features. For example, do you find the AI generated content useful and accurate?

You can access the databases via the Subject Guides or via our Databases A-Z. 

If you would like more information please contact your Subject Librarian.

Library lucky draw - International Orientation

 🎉 Congratulations to Gopika Raju! 🎉

We’re delighted to announce that Gopika Raju, a Master of Applied Business student, is the winner of the Library’s Lucky Draw held during International Student Orientation on 16^th July!

Gopika has received a $10 printing voucher, which can be used at any printer in Te Puna Library—a perfect way to get started with printing study materials, assignments, or notes.

Thank you to everyone who took part in the draw and helped make our international orientation event a warm and welcoming experience, particularly to Sana and Nora for coordinating the lucky draw. We’re so excited to have you all here and look forward to supporting your academic journey.

(Photo of Nora and Gopika)