North hall of Shenzhen Library: A library and a smart booking sorting "factory"

Photo shows the exterior of the north hall of Shenzhen Library in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province. (People's Daily Online/Wang Xing)

The north hall of Shenzhen Library in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province covers about 72,000 square meters, with six floors above ground and three below. It is designed to hold up to 8 million books and offers 2,500 reading seats. Since opening on December 28, 2023, it has quickly become a popular cultural landmark for both residents and visitors.

Photo shows the interior of the north hall of Shenzhen Library in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province. (People's Daily Online/Wang Xing)

According to Liu Zhe, deputy director of the Shenzhen Library, the north hall sits at the geographic center of the city. Books returned to libraries other than where they were borrowed are first sent here, where an intelligent system sorts and redirects them to their original libraries for re-shelving.

Photo shows an intelligent book repository at the north hall of Shenzhen Library in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province. (People's Daily Online/Wang Xing)

Deeper underground is China's largest underground intelligent book repository. When a borrowing request is received, the stacker quickly moves to the designated bin and retrieves the box filled with books. A staff member then removes the requested books from the box and places them on a self-propelled rail trolley, which swiftly delivers them to service desks on different floors. The entire process takes about 10 minutes.

The north hall of Shenzhen Library is designed to hold up to 8 million books. (People's Daily Online/Wang Xing)

Photo shows the book lending area at the north hall of Shenzhen Library in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province. (People's Daily Online/Wang Xing)

Since opening, the north hall has seen a steady rise in both foot traffic and book lending. "To better serve readers, the first-floor service area stays open daily from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.," Liu said.

Photo shows the children's section at the north hall of Shenzhen Library in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province. (People's Daily Online/Wang Xing)