Documentary Heritage Access and Consultation Manual
Students and collaborators of our institution, the academic community and the general public may consult Tecnológico de Monterrey’s Documentary Heritage Special Collections. However, in order to preserve and protect these cultural assets, users must comply with certain basic standards, as described below:
1. Location of materials
1.1 Users and visitors may consult the Tecnológico de Monterrey Cultural Heritage page or the Library Catalog to find the items that are available.
1.2 Users who wish to consult any of these items should contact the person in charge of the corresponding collection to request references and obtain an appointment. Contact details of those responsible for the different collections and collection locations can be found on the Special Collections information page.
2. Access to consultation rooms
2.1 To gain access to the consultation rooms, users and visitors must show an official identification and fill out the Special Collection Visitor Registration Form provided by the Librarian. Access to the rooms and attention from staff are not guaranteed if an appointment has not been previously confirmed by the person in charge of the collection.
2.2 Users must not take food, drink, liquids and other materials that could damage the collections into the consultation rooms. When entering the facilities, users and visitors must leave any belongings outside that are not authorized by the Librarian or person responsible for the corresponding collection.
2.3 Visitors and users must respect the regulations on schedules and the code of conduct, and comply with all campus security measures and requirements.
3. Use of materials from special collections
3.1 Documentary collections may only be accessed in the consultation rooms; no materials may leave the facilities.
3.2 If the item to be consulted is already digitized, the user will be referred to the digital collection or to Tecnológico de Monterrey’s Institutional Repository. Researchers who need to physically consult such materials must justify this need on the original visitor registration form.
3.3 For any consultation of documentary collections, users and visitors must justify in writing the need for the material and schedule an appointment with the person in charge of the corresponding collection. In addition to having an appointment confirmed by the person in charge of the collection, to consult the documentary collections users must comply with the following requirements:
3.3.1 Students and active or retired employees of Tecnológico de Monterrey: must show their official credential and a written justification for requesting the material.
3.3.2 Professors and graduate students: only need to show their valid credential.
3.3.3 Researchers from other institutions: must show a personal identification and a letter establishing the nature and purpose of their research issued by the institution to which they are affiliated.
3.3.4 Independent researchers: must have a special authorization issued by the Documentary Heritage Administrative Office or the Administrative Office of the Library where the Special Collection is located.
3.4 The Librarian will be in charge of preparing the material and verifying that it is in appropriate condition to be consulted. Any material from the Documentary Heritage collections that, in the opinion of the Librarian or the Documentary Heritage Administrative Office, is not in adequate physical condition may not be consulted in its original format.
3.5 The Librarian will be solely responsible for delivering the requested item at the time and place previously confirmed to the user.
3.6 The user may enter the facilities to consult material with a pencil, a notebook and a laptop. Entering with any other article without the consent of the Librarian is prohibited.
3.7 Users may only take cell phones, tablets or cameras into the consultation room if the Librarian or person in charge of the collection has authorized it.
3.8 To access and use material from the special collections, users must comply with the Documentary Heritage Access and Consultation Manual.
3.9 This manual applies to all special documentary collections.
4. Rules for access and use of Documentary Heritage materials
4.1 Have clean, unadorned hands (washed and dried, without cream or lotion, and without rings, bracelets or watches) and, if necessary, use the gloves and mask that the Librarian provides, or their own gloves and mask that have been previously checked and authorized.
4.2 Make notes with a pencil and paper or a laptop.
4.3 Avoid propping up reference materials or putting or leaving work tools or any other object on them.
4.4 Never scratch or mark any reference material, or erase the notes or marks it may contain.
4.5 Notify the Librarian if they find objects, utensils, manuscripts or anything other than the reference material.
4.6 Handle the consulted material with extreme care.
4.7 Ask the Librarian for support objects (weights, pillows or cushions, acid-free paper to turn pages) or assistance for handling the material.
4.8 Only take photographs of the material in accordance with the provisions of the “Material Reproduction” section of Tecnológico de Monterrey’s Cultural Heritage Guidelines. Any reproduction must be authorized and supervised by the Librarian or person in charge of the collection. The reproduced material may only be used for academic purposes and in accordance with Mexican Federal Copyright Law.
4.9 Return the requested material in the exact condition in which it was received from the Librarian.
4.10 Sanctions for non-compliance with any of these rules will be imposed at the discretion of the Documentary Heritage Office or the Office of the Library where the Special Collection is located.