Architecture and urban planning (ENAC)

Training

The Library provides specific customised training, one-to-one or class-based.

• Presentation of the services to the teaching/research staff and to students
• Modules on the advanced search for information, citation, information management tools

For more information

Publications

The Library, via Infoscience, provides support for posting EPFL publications online :

• Help with importing publications
• On-site training (laboratories, administration offices) for familiarising oneself with Infoscience
• Help with exporting data to a personal page, a laboratory page

Expertise

The Library can also advise you on the following topics:

• Copyright, citation and plagiarism
• Publishing models, Open Access, Gold Open Access financial support, ORCID
• Management of research data

 The Library is subscribed to several databases that enable you to find different types of informations such as:

• bibliographic references of journal articles and technical reports
• full text journal articles
• plans and technical information
• photographs and videos
• interviews

Every database has its own search interface that is sometimes quite complex to use. If you need help, contact us: we are happy to answer your questions and we are happy to organise traning in one or other tool.

Specialised databases

Architecture and Urban Planning

• ArchiRès : Search for documents on architecture, urban planning and landscape architecture (books, reports, articles in periodicals) listed by the libraries of the National Superior Schools of Architecture and Landscape (ENSA) of France.
• Art And Architecture Archive : A full-text archive of magazines comprising key research material in the fields of art and architecture, dating from 1895 to 2005. Subjects covered include fine art, decorative arts, architecture, interior design, industrial design and photography.
• AS Encyclopaedia : Content type: Archive of the journal AS Architecture Suisse since its launch in 1972, including more than 8’000 pages of projects, profiles of architects or artists and other thematic articles related to Swiss construction, with a view to Europe and the world. Producer : AS Architecture Suisse. Access : free access for the years 1972-1991; restricted access to ENAC faculty members for the years 1992 onwards.
• Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals : Search for articles on architecture, planning, urban planning, conservation of the built environment and landscape architecture published since 1934 in journals worldwide.
• Building Types Online : Search of documents (technical drawings, professional plans, photographs and articles) about a large international collection of contemporary buildings (e.g. housing, office buildings, museums, schools, libraries, industrial complexes), comprising more than 850 international case studies from mostly the past 30 years.
• Detail Inspiration : Provides more than 2400 architectural projects carried out over the last 30 years and published in the magazine of the same name. Photographs, descriptive texts on the buildings, their plans and a selection of technical drawings are presented for each project.
• OnArchitecture : Audiovisual database (videos, photos etc.) offering a global panorama of the main architects and architectural works, experiences and issues associated with the field of architecture.
• TRANSFER Global Architecture : Series of articles online, exploring new ways to show and experiment architecture with digital media.This young free platform, based in Zürich, is a new editorial project with the ambition to produce and transmit original architectural knowledge.

Arts and Humanities:

• Arts and Humanities Citation Index – A&HCI (in Web of Science) : Search for articles in the field of arts and humanities.
• Art & Humanities full text : Access to full text publications dedicated to applied arts and cultural studies.

Transport:

• TRID: Transport Research International Documentation : The largest online bibliographic database of transport research.

Multidisciplinary databases

• Scopus : Search for articles in science, arts and humanities
• Web of Knowledge – WoK (with Web of Science) : Search for articles in science, arts and humanities.

You will also find a lot of information and publications in the fields of architecture and urban planning on the internet. Here are some links that we have selected.

Resources on architecture

• archINFORM. International databasease on architecture, identifying projects completed or not.
• arch daily International present-day situation in architecture
• Pritzkerprize.com. “Nobel Prize” for architecture
• Cité de l’Architecture et du Patrimoine
• architectes.ch
• Great Buildings Collection

Resources on urban planning

Selection of resources of the federal and cantonal administration :

• ARE – Federal Office for Spatial Development – Documentation: online access to ARE publications: press releases, newsletters, reports, factual data.
• OFS – Federal Statistical Office : various ways of accessing statistical information:
• “Statistique suisse” portal : portal giving access, on a single site, to the main statistical information on Switzerland from the statistical services of the Confederation, the cantons and the local authorities.
• Statistical Encyclopaedia of Switzerland : central and only directory for disseminating electronic files published by the Federal Statistics Office (and some of its partners in official Swiss statistics) and available to download for free.
• STAT-TAB – interactive data: easy and individualised access to statistical data: variables can be selected, combined and exported in different very well-known formats in order to rework the data locally
• The OFS publications, e-files on some topics and old volumes of the Statistical yearbook of Switzerland (1891- 1957) are also available online.
• FOEN – Federal Office for the Environment: access to information and publications on topics connected with urban planning (activities that impact on the landscape: planning, mobility, tourism etc.).

Selection of resources of the cantonal administrations in French-speaking Switzerland :

Other resources in Switzerland and abroad

• ASPAN – Association Suisse pour l’aménagement national
• Créville – Centre de ressources électroniques sur les villes : edited by the Maison des Sciences de l’Homme Val de Loire , Créville offers a selection of resources (texts and multimedia) of interest to players on the urban research stage, but also to professionals active in town matters. The new engine also hoovers up open access filings of the major documentary operators in the humanities and social science such as HAL, l’IRD, Revues.org, Persée and Cairn.

   

Books

The printed books are classified according to UDC (Universal Decimal Classification). You will find the books in conjunction with Architecture in the following areas (layout of the collections):

Subject areas, call numbers (starting with) and locations :

• Construction, materials : 690 (Arts et Architecture)
• Arts, fine arts : 700 (Arts et Architecture)
• Town planning and spatial planning : 711 (Arts et Architecture)
• Landscape architecture : 712  (Arts et Architecture)
• Architecture : 720 (Arts et Architecture)
• Buildings, typology : 725 (Arts et Architecture)
• Housing, vernacular architecture : 728 (Arts et Architecture)
• Drawing, design, furniture : 740 (Arts et Architecture)
• Geography : 911 (Sciences et Société)
• Transport : 656 (Sciences et Techniques)

Several copies of the books recommended by the lecturers for the courses at Bachelor’s and Master’s level are on offer in the Teaching Collection.

Ebooks

Some titles are also available in electronic format. These eBooks are accessible by default on the EPFL campus and remotely via VPN access.

Main eBook Collection :

• De Gruyter Architecture & Design / Arts
• Taylor & Francis Architecture / Urban studies
• Birkhäuser Basics Online
• Birkhäuser Bauwelt Fundamente

The collection of periodicals in Architecture and Urban Studies is made up of titles, in printed and electronic format, which can be found in the BEAST catalog of the Library.

Printed journals :

• List of architectural periodicals
• 2020 subscriptions list

Architectural journals (PER5000 to PER5338) located on the main floor (published in the last ten years) and in the basement of the Library can now be borrowed for a renewable period of 3 days. The latest issues published and available on display-racks remain to be consulted on site only. References collection, 19th century original volumes and a few special items are excluded from loan. For all specific loan requests or further information, please contact [email protected] or ask the desk.

Electronic journals :

You can search for the electronic periodicals on BEAST catalog or by thematic discipline, e.g. Architecture or Urban Planning. Online access is possible on the campus site, and outside by way of the VPN. Scientific journal subscribed by the Library are also accessible through BrowZine app.

Maps

The EPFL Library offers a collection of geographical maps of Switzerland, in printed and electronic format, as well as links to external websites offering geodata.

More information on maps and geodata

Standards

The EPFL Library makes standards available and offers privileged access to EPFL staff and students for the SIA and ISO standards.

More information on standards

The degree and Master’s dissertations of the Architecture section are listed in the institutional archive Infoscience and in the catalog BEAST. You can consult them at the Library (up to 5 documents simultaneously). Submissions filed since 2003 are available in digital format : Infoscience collection of Master’s dissertations in Architecture.

Access to the files of projects published between 2003 and 2014 with the link “fulltext” or “archivesma.epfl.ch” in the field “Additional link”.