Our monthly round up of information and library developments to May 2009.
Goodbye Mike
New email for archive enquiries
EBSCO Science and Technology Collection
Picture gallery re-launch
New library charges
Model workshop restoration
New IMechE Engineering Heritage website
James Clayton lectures
New books
Expanded library catalogue
New subject guides
New FAQs page
New Cherry Hill model
Snapshots - free market research reports
Syndetic Solutions - enhanced library catalogue
Books24x7
Crosby paintings
George Stephenson lectures
New postcards
10 reasons for using the IMechE library service in 2009
Goodbye Mike
After 38 years service in the library, we are very sorry to see our librarian, Mike Claxton, leave the Institution. We wish him all the very best.
New email for archive enquiries
Please note there is a new email address for all archive enquiries - archive@imeche.org. Archivists Fenella Philpot (Mondays-Tuesdays) and Laura Gardner (Wednesdays-Fridays) will answer all archive enquiries.
EBSCO Science and Technology Collection
We are pleased to announce that we have secured a subscription to the EBSCO Science and Technology Collection. This encompasses over 830 leading full-text scholarly journals, covering sectors from automotive to process engineering.
It will be especially useful if you are carrying out literature reviews for a student project, or if you are trying to locate research on a particular concept.
Access is via the Virtual Library.
Picture gallery re-launch
We are pleased to announce the re-launch of the updated Picture Gallery, a resource of digitised pictures from the IMechE archive collection. The gallery can be browsed by subject area and images can be sent to friends as free e-cards. Print purchase enquiries can also be made.
The subject areas are: aircraft, cars & road vehicles, energy & power, portraits, Institution of Mechanical Engineers, industrial & machinery, railways, ships & boats, and models.
New library charges
Please note that new library charges come into force on 1st April 2009.
Model workshop restoration
Restoration work is currently be carried out on the engineering workshop (c. 1893-1910) made by E. J. Windsor. The workshop design, scale 1 inch to 1 foot, is based on visits to the Woolwich Arsenal and on contemporary machine catalogues. The model is held in the Library and consists of screw-cutting and other lathes, drilling machines, planers, a shaper, slotter and milling machines, grindstones, vices, a lining out table and a barrow loaded with turnings.
New Engineering Heritage website
The Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) is pleased to announce the launch of their Engineering Heritage website where you can explore the history of mechanical engineering; learn about the Institution of Mechanical Engineers or find out about 1 Birdcage Walk, the headquarters of the Institution. The website includes a Mechanical Engineering timeline and a gallery of IMechE past presidents with biographies.
James Clayton lectures
James Clayton Memorial Lectures dating back to 1997 plus the very first Clayton Lecture by Frank Whittle (1945) are now available on the Presidents' Choice website.
James Clayton (1869-1944) was a British mechanical engineer who played a great part in laying the foundation of the modern rayon industry. He bequeathed a considerable sum of money to the Institution for the purpose of encouraging mechanical engineering science. James Clayton's Biography is also available on Presidents' Choice.
New books
To view our latest book purchases please visit our Recent Acquisitions page Click on the book images for table of contents and summaries.
The library team welcomes book purchasing suggestions from members. If there is a particular title you think we should have in our collection please email details to library@imeche.org . Please note that book purchases are dependent on library funds and the discretion of the Librarian.
Expanded library catalogue
We've completed a data transfer project which has expanded our online Library Catalogue. The following records have been imported:
Proceedings of the IMechE 1939-1984
Engineering in Medicine 1971-1988
Journal of Mechanical Engineering Science 1959-1982
IMechE Conference Proceedings 1963-1970
Automobile Division Proceedings 1948-1950
New subject guides
The following subject guides are now available:
Process Industries guides (interactive):
Bulk materials handling
Food engineering
Offshore engineering
Oil, gas and chemicals
Pharmaceutical
Resources for Engineering Technicians 
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Please visit Guides and Leaflets for a list of our Subject Guides
New FAQs page
The library has put together a Frequently Asked Questions webpage which provides answers to over 30 types of common enquiries from Adjudication to Work Placements. The page can be searched by subject or by browsing the list of questions.
New Cherry Hill model
World renowned Model Engineer Cherry Hill has donated a new model of the 1857 Blackburn agricultural engine to the IMechE. The model is based on patents granted to Isaac and Robert Blackburn in 1857 and 1859, for ‘improvements in engines or implements to be employed in Agriculture, applicable also to the Transportation of Heavy Bodies, to the Traction of Carriages and the Conveyance of Passengers’. Information and drawings from The Engineer (1857) and Mechanics Magazine (1857) were also used. The model, made to ¾ inch to the foot, consists of some 5200 components and won a Gold Medal at the 2005 Model Engineer Exhibition.
Snapshots
Free Market Research Reports
The Information and Library Service has teamed up with Snapshots to offer market research reports to members via the IMechE Virtual Library . The reports provide up-to-date statistical overviews of over 30 different industries in 40 different countries ranging from UK valves to Argentinian tractors. Information on the market trends, market size, key companies, segmentation and future forecasts is given. The service will help you assess the market potential of a particular sector to support strategic plans and business presentations.
Syndetic Solutions - enhanced library catalogue
We currently have a free trial to Syndetic Solutions which provides enhancements to our Library Catalogue . Users can view images of covers, tables of contents and summaries of books in our library.
Books24x7
A new ebook database, Books24x7 is now available in the Virtual Library . The service provides access to over 350 industry-leading reference books. In particular core business and management books are offered to support CPD learning. Members can read executive blueprints which cover best practices providing insight and guidance on pressing strategic issues. Members can also search, browse and view the complete contents of every book in the collection. Please login to the Members' Area and select the Virtual Library menu option.
Crosby paintings
A number of original paintings from IMechE's archive collection have recently been restored. These include five by Frederick Gordon Crosby (1885-1943), one of the greatest motoring artists of the classic car era. As a resident artist for The Autocar magazine, Crosby witnessed and recorded the exploits of the most legendary figures of racing. These beautiful artworks which capture the excitement of motor racing's golden years will now be available for all visitors to Birdcage Walk to view in the newly created Crosby Room on the ground floor of the building. There are limited prints available from the IMechE library. For further information please visit the Crosby Prints webpage.
George Stephenson lectures
George Stephenson Lectures dating back to 1997 have been added to Presidents' Choice and can be downloaded for free. The George Stephenson Lecture is one of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers' most important lecture series. In recent years it has become the tradition that the President of the Institution presents this lecture. To date it has been presented in more than thirteen different countries around the world and has encompassed wide ranging topics such as education, alternative engines, offshore engineering, railway engineering and pressure vessel technology.
New postcards
The following postcards have been created using images in our collection:
Postcard 1
Viaduct across the Sankey Valley, Liverpool and Manchester Railway, 1831.
Postcard 2
Forward checking drum of the Great Eastern, 1857.
Postcard 3
Installing turbogenerator insulation, Parsons’ Heaton Works,1927.
Postcard 4
The Bournemouth , built for the Festival of Britain,1951.
Postcard 5
'The Progress of Steam - A View in Regent Park 1831’. Henry Thomas Alken, 1828.
Postcard 6
British Empire trophy race at Donnington [detail]. F Gordon Crosby, 1938.
If you would like free copies of these postcards please contact mailto:library@imeche.org or tel: +44 (0)20 7973 1274.
10 reasons for using the IMechE library service in 2009
Reason 1
It's your library too! We provide a service for both staff and members.
Reason 2
Friendly, professional staff dedicated to answering your enquiries
Reason 3
A quiet space to work without distractions
Reason 4
Daily newspapers and magazines to browse in our sofa area. Plus new coffee machine!
Reason 5
Fact-finding research service – just contact a member of ILS staff. We can help you find statistics, industry reports, mailing lists, company information, biographies and much more.
Reason 6
We can get you books or articles for your professional development or to help you in your work.
Reason 7
Historical information and archives about IMechE, past members and famous engineers
Reason 8
All IMechE proceedings, seminars, conferences & lectures from 1847 to present day
Reason 9
The Virtual Library allows you to access information from your own desktop
Reason 10
High quality reference collection (including company directories, dictionaries, biographies, quotations, correct forms of address, engineering statistics and salary surveys).
We look forward to hearing from you soon. Please complete the online enquiry form or forward your enquiries or comments to mailto:library@imeche.org , tel: +44 (0)20 7973 1274. You are also welcome to visit us in person!