scope:

This Recommended Practice provides design criteria for the many different types of spaces found within today's libraries. This document addresses the many and varied visual tasks encountered by users and staff during the course of their activities in libraries of all types. As energy criteria have gained predominance throughout society, so too has a focus on lighting quality. The relationship between energy demand and lighting quality is evident within this document.

With the diversity of tasks occurring within a library, as well as the differing ages of the target audience, it is not possible to provide complete, comprehensive recommendations for every possible situation. It will always be necessary for the lighting designer to have a clear understanding of the visual tasks and the demographic of the primary audience to determine whether the recommendations presented in this document are appropriate for the actual conditions encountered and to make the modifications required.