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All registered users may borrow materials.
University members can check out physical media at the →self-checkout stations.
External users can only borrow media at the service desk. To do so, you must present an ID card or a →library card.
Important: Please note our →loan periods.
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The following devices are available in the university library:
- Multifunction device (Library of Technology, Economics, and Law, Level 3)
- Multifunction device (Library of Design, Reading Room)
- Book scanner up to DIN A2 (Library of Design, Reading Room)
- Book scanner up to DIN A3 (Library of Design, Reading Room)
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We value our users' feedback! We welcome your praise, criticism, or suggestions, which you can send us at any time using the following anonymous form:
Of course, you can also speak with us directly at the service desk or send an email to bibliothek(at)hs-pforzheim(dot)de (Faculty of Technology, Economics, and Law) or to gestaltung.bibliothek(at)hs-pforzheim(dot)de (Faculty of Design).
Interlibrary loan allows you to access materials that the university library does not hold. This means you can order a printed book or an article from another library through interlibrary loan. However, not all types of materials can be ordered through interlibrary loan, such as loose-leaf collections or electronic resources.
Important: There is a fee of 3 EUR per interlibrary loan request for university members and 5 EUR for guests. The costs for interlibrary loan requests for official purposes (staff/faculty) are covered by the university library.
You can find more information on this topic here.
General library orientation sessions, as well as research and database training courses, are offered regularly. The dates will be announced here.
Faculty members who would like to incorporate library orientation sessions into their courses may contact Cristina Bacanu (Design Library) or bibliotheksleitung(at)hs-pforzheim(dot)de (Technology, Economics, and Law Library) at any time.
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Coats must be checked at the university library.
There are 7 lockers available in the Design Library.
In the Library of Technology, Economics, and Law, you will find daily lockers in the foyer and bag racks in the entrance area across from the service desk.
Please always keep your valuables with you. We assume no liability for items left in the coat check!
External users may use the print collection on the library premises free of charge. Borrowing and use of other services are only possible after prior registration. An annual fee of 20 euros is charged for this. The library account is valid for 12 months and can be renewed by paying the annual fee again. Use of the library is free of charge for students at other German universities, high school students, and recipients of social assistance or unemployment benefits.
To register, we require a valid photo ID with your current registered address as well as your email address. Please notify us of any changes to your information as soon as possible. Proof of eligibility is required for exemption from the annual fee. Please bring this with you when you register.
Important: Minors require a written consent form from their legal guardians. Please send the completed and signed consent form to gestaltung.bibliothek(at)hs-pforzheim(dot)de (Design Library) or to bibliothek(at)hs-pforzheim(dot)de (Technology, Business, and Law Library).
In the Library of Technology, Economics, and Law, students have access to our group study room, “Rotunde.” The study room is suitable for groups of 2 to 10 people and is equipped with a screen and a flip chart for collaborative work. For an introduction to using the equipment, please check in at the →service desk.
The room must be reserved during the lecture period. Reservations can be made starting 7 days in advance and up until 11:59 PM the day before. If you are unable to use your reservation, please remember to cancel it.
You can find all information and the reservation calendar here.
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The university ID card serves as a library card for members of the University of Pforzheim. It allows you to borrow and return materials on your own using our self-checkout machines (self-return is only available at the Design Library).
Find out everything you can do with your university ID card here.
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The university library’s website features two catalogs:
- The online catalog searches for books and eBooks in the university library’s collection. It also allows you to request →theses, place holds on items already checked out, and place orders via →interlibrary loan. Course reserves can also be found here. You can also access your →user account through the catalog.
- The Catalog Plus searches for books and articles in the university library’s collection and in several →databases.
Email contact
for the Library of Technology, Economics, and Law: bibliothek@hs-pforzheim.de
Library Design: gestaltung.bibliothek@hs-pforzheim.de
Mailing address
for the Library of Technology, Economics, and Law: Library, Tiefenbronner Straße 65, 75175 Pforzheim
Library Design: Library Design, Holzgartenstraße 36, 75175 Pforzheim
Visiting address
for the Library of Technology, Economics, and Law: Tiefenbronner Straße 65, 75175 Pforzheim
Library of Design: Holzgartenstraße 36, 75175 Pforzheim, 1st floor
Phone
: Library of Technology, Economics, and Law: +49 7231 28 6234
; Library of Design: +49 7231 28 6731
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The loan period for eligible items is:
- 30 days for standard loans
- 70 days for students in the Faculty of Technology, Economics, and Law who have registered a thesis with the Registrar’s Office
- 7 days for theses from the Faculty of Technology, Economics, and Law
- 1 to 3 days for the Library of Things
Non-circulating materials include newspapers, journals, and other particularly relevant literature. In most cases, these materials are marked with a red dot.
If there are no holds on the item, the loan period can be extended (→Extension)
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If you are a student in the Schools of Business and Law or Engineering and are currently working on your thesis, the library’s media storage service is available to you. This service allows you to securely store media at the library if you plan to work there regularly.
Please note the following:
- Please send an informal confirmation from your advisor stating that you are working on your thesis to bibliothek(at)hs-pforzheim(dot)de
- Registration with the Registrar’s Office is not required
- The locker space can only be reserved for six months at a time
- A one-time extension of six months is possible without proof
- You must check out media items using your library account. The standard loan conditions apply (→Loan Periods). Please remember to return or renew the media items on time.
- Items that cannot be checked out may not be placed in the locker
- Bound theses may be stored for a maximum of 7 days
- The locker is not freely accessible; please check in at the circulation desk
- After 6 months, the locker will be cleared
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The university library is open as follows:
| Design Library | ||
| Lecture and Exam Period | Mon. 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Tue. – Thu. 8:30 a.m. – 6:30 p.m. Fri. 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. | |
| Non-lecture period | Mon. 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Tue. – Thu. 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Fri. 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. | |
| Library of Technology, Economics, and Law | ||
| Lecture and exam period | Mon. – Fri. 9:00 a.m. – 11:00 p.m. (6:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m. supervised only) Sat. 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 p.m. (supervised only) | |
| Non-lecture period | Mon. – Fri. 11:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m. (5:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. supervised only) Sat. 11:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m. (supervised only) | |
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Members of Pforzheim University have several options for publishing their research findings electronically:
- OPUS HS PF
Both theses and scholarly publications (articles, monographs) can be published on the university’s digital repository. These can be made available either exclusively on the university’s intranet or also on the internet.
Important: The approval of both advisors is required for the publication of theses.
- DEAL
Eligible authors can publish in all hybrid journals from the publishers Elsevier, Springer Nature, and Wiley at no additional cost.
For publications in Gold Open Access journals from these publishers, eligible authors pay the list price of the Article Processing Charge (APC) minus a 20% discount. The APC fees are billed centrally and allocated to the author’s cost center or the project and its responsible person.
- Publish & Read
Eligible authors publish in all hybrid journals from the publishers Emerald, Sage, and Taylor & Francis at no additional cost.
For publications in Gold Open Access journals from these publishers, eligible authors pay the list price of the APC minus a discount of 15% or 20%, depending on the respective publisher. Here, too, the APC fees are billed centrally and allocated to the author’s or the project’s cost center.
Further information on open access publishing at HS PF and the transformation agreements can be found here.
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Design Section
Technology, Business & Law
Branch Borrowed items must be returned at the service desk during opening hours. They will be checked out immediately.
Outside of opening hours, the return box is available. It is located to the right of the library entrance.
Important: The return box is not emptied until the next business day, and the returned items are checked out at that time.
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As a general rule, the university library does not accept donations of media materials.
In exceptional cases and after prior consultation with the library administration, donations may be accepted. Media materials that are already in our collection or that cannot be added to the collection for other reasons are made available to our students to take home free of charge.
A self-checkout kiosk is available in the Design Library. Here, you can borrow, return, and renew items on your own at any time during opening hours, as well as view your account. To do so, place your ID card on the card reader; your account will then open, and you can simply place the items (up to 5 at a time) in the center of the table. As soon as green checkmarks appear on the display, the items have been checked out. Please then close the account by pressing the green "End" button.
A self-checkout kiosk is available in the Library of Technology, Economics, and Law. Here, you can borrow and renew items on your own at any time during opening hours and view your account. To do this, place your ID card on the card reader; your account will then open, and you can simply place the items (up to 5 items at a time) in the center of the table. As soon as green checkmarks appear on the display, the items have been processed. Please then close the account using the green "End" button.
A course reserve is a thematically organized collection of literature and materials related to a course, which is made available for consultation for the duration of the semester. Items from a course reserve cannot be checked out.
In the Library of Design …
In the Library of Technology, Business, and Law, the course reserves are located behind the periodicals shelf on the 3rd level.
During service hours (see →Opening Hours), qualified staff are always on hand to assist you with any questions you may have about using the library.
Whether you’d like to return items, register, pick up reserved items, or borrow items such as flash drives, calculators, or extension cords, the team at the service desk will be happy to help.
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When using library collections and digital services, the Copyright Act, particularly Sections 53 and 60, must be observed.
Guidance from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research: Copyright in Academia.
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In the Events section, you will find not only →guided tours and training sessions but also other events organized or hosted by the library, such as (book) exhibitions, coffee lectures, presentations, etc.
In addition, this section lists events hosted by external providers or institutions that may be of interest to researchers, faculty, and students.
You can easily renew your borrowed items—provided they haven’t been reserved—through your →user account. Alternatively, you can renew them at the service desk, at the self-checkout kiosk, or by phone or email.
The loan period can be renewed as follows:
| Students, Design Library | 1x by 30 days |
| Students, Library of Technology, Economics, and Law | 4 times by 30 days |
| Students at the Library of Engineering, Business, and Law with a registered thesis | 4 times for 70 days |
| Professors | 5 times for 30 days |
If you have lost an item you borrowed, please contact the library immediately. We will then determine how the item needs to be replaced.
Please note: Items that are not returned within 10 calendar days of the fourth reminder are considered lost. The cost of replacement will be billed to the user (see Library Regulations, Fee Schedule §5).
Library users can place a hold on items that are currently checked out via the →Catalog. As soon as the item you requested is returned and ready for pickup, you will receive a pickup notification via email. Additionally, you can see in your →user account under “View or delete reservations” whether you can pick up the book.
The reserved item must be picked up at the circulation desk of the specified location within seven calendar days. Detailed information about reservations can be found here.
Note for professionals: A hold cannot be placed at the copy level, but only at the title level.
To access the university library’s digital resources from home, you must first establish a VPN connection; you can then access the resources via your browser as usual.
Instructions for VPN installation can be found on the intranet (for staff) or on E-Campus (for students). Please note that setting up multi-factor authentication is required for the VPN connection. If you need assistance, please contact Campus IT.
Important: Guests can only access electronic media within the library.
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There are several Wi-Fi networks at Pforzheim University:
hsx: This is the main network for university members. Authentication takes place directly via the Wi-Fi environment, so no VPN connection is required.
Eduroam: The network of the Education Roaming initiative provides internet access to members of participating institutions. Students and faculty at Pforzheim University can therefore also log in to the eduroam network at other institutions—for example, at the University of Karlsruhe or the University of Stuttgart.
Further information on the Wi-Fi networks can be found on the intranet (for staff) or on e-Campus (for students)
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Location: Library of Design
Location: Library for Technology, Economics, and Law
A wide variety of current newspapers and journals are available to you in the university library. These materials cannot be checked out and are located on Level 3, right at the entrance. Older issues and back issues can be found on Level 1 in our journal archive.
In addition, we offer a wide selection of electronic journals (e-journals). These are accessible via our databases and can be searched using the Electronic Journal Database (EZB).
