What is SmartHub
SmartHub is our online resource booker (ORB) that gives our makers and creators the ability to learn, develop and create in our technical labs. Whether you need a resource or a specialist making facility, we offer bookable access to training, technical consultations, equipment loans and workshops or studio access.
Navigating our labs
All our facilities are broken down into separate labs and services to make it as easy as possible to find and engage with our amazing facilities and workshops. We have five technical areas to engage with based on your specialism.
To migrate between our sites, you can use the Switch function in the top left hand side of the menu. Here you can traverse to another lab or service by selecting the corresponding tile you wish to migrate.
SmartHub Site links
How to access
All our technical labs will require specialist training to access, which can be through timetabled sessions or accessed through self-directed sign-up. This covers the health & safety of the area, basic operational function of the resources or machinery, in order to support you with the basic processes and techniques to help shape your creative outcomes.
SmartHub Dashboard
The SmartHub dashboard allows you to navigate all services available to you for making bookings, finding technical training and developing risk assessments for your equipment loans. Here you can also manage bookings and review alerts associated to your account.
Making a booking
Making a booking couldn’t be simpler. Just log into AUP.SISO.CO, locate the desired lab and get started with making a booking from the available resources or facilities you wish to book. All items are catalogued into headings to make it nice and easy to locate a resource you are looking to book. All bookings can be made 30 days in advance and can be made against any resource by nominating a date and a time you wish to use the equipment or facility.
- Please note, all bookings are only kept for 30 mins (1hr ERC) after the nominated collection time, before the booking is automatically restocked.
Ad-Hoc Bookings
Any booking can be made immediately. This is know as an ad-hoc booking and will allow you to check an items availability, before immediately taking the resource or space available. However, resources are limited, so we always ask you to ensure you book in advance to avoid disappointment. This is to encourage good professional practice when trying to access limited resources.
Training
All areas within our technical facilities are viewable through each lab. However, some items or facilities are protected by inductions or demonstrations and can only be engage with or loaned, once you’ve unlock the training. These training sessions are either delivered as part of your programme content, or are engaged self-directly through our Technical Enrichment programme. All our training is provided by our competent and trained technical studio coordinators in each area.
Inductions
Inductions cover basic health & safety, by providing training on how to operate or work safely with a resource or facility. This basic training provides you with the first stage of access, by inducting you into a facility or key resource needed to get you started with your modules.
Demonstrations
Demonstrations are offered to all our students and can be delivered as part of your programme content. Alternatively access can be provided at a basic level from our Technical Enrichment programme, which we offer all our students via self-directed workshops within SmartHub. These workshops are designed to build on a process or technique, in order to enhance your knowledge and understanding of a certain discipline appropriate to the lab you are working in.
Technical Enrichment
Our Technical Enrichment programme offers an enhanced learning opportunity to gain training in new technical areas, not usually engaged with during your programme delivery. These sessions will offer basic level inductions and training in order to encourage our community of creatives to try new processes. To find available enrichment sessions, head to the relevant lab you wish to engage with, and follow the cog icon on the main dashboard page to view our available inductions and demos.
- Please note these sessions are only available from Monday 28th October 2024, Wk14 onwards.
Technical Consultations
Technical consultations are provided as a self-directed offer to support one to one triage to our creatives. These 30min slots can be used to book time with a specialist technician, in order to gain specifc support towards a technique or process you are currently working with for a module. These sessions can be found under our Technical Enrichment cog on the main page of our dashboard.
- Please note that the consultations are designed for supporting a work in progress technique or process on a current module and will not offer 1-1 inductions or demonstrations during this session.
Pre Booked Resource Check-In
Location check-in allows a trained user to collect a booking (workshop space) or check into a booking by using their mobile devise or scanning the location QR code.
To collect a pre-booked session, you'll need to ensure that you activate a booking you are collecting in a space. To activate a pre-booked sessions, you'll need to do the following
- Collect a booking by opening the dashboard
- Here the user will see all their bookings in order of date and time. The current session will be at the top in date order.
- Locate the booking to collect in the list and select the down arrow (top right) to flip the tile.
- Once the tile is flipped, please select the Check-out button to collect the booking
- You will have 1 hour to collect your booking post the collection time stated.
- Once the booking time is complete, the booking will return to stock automatically in order for the next booking to take place.
IMPORTANT - Please note, if the booking is not collected, then the resource or space booked will restock (delete) for others to book.
AD-HOC Booking collections
The location check-in feature will specifically apply to a our labs that provide bench and studio work spaces. These check-in areas allow ad-hoc (not yet booked) sessions to take place with immediate effect, if available to use and not booked by others.
The below location cards can be found in all our workshops where this is possible and will provide immediate resource or space access once scanned and logged in to collect the location.
IMPORTANT - Please note if a booking is collected, it will auto restock at the end of the stated session time booked. If a booking is not collected within the agreed collection time, the booking will return to stock 1hr after the proposed collection time identified.
Resource Lab Access Hours
We value health & safety with the highest regard, therefore any process, equipment or resource that is associated with a medium to high risk level will be closed from access out of core hours while we have no designated competent person overseeing the area.
Core Opening Hours
All our labs open from 9:00-12:00 & 13:00-17:00, Monday - Thursday and 9:00-12:00 & 13:00-16:30 on a Friday during the semester (term time).
Outside the semesters (term time) hours, our equipment and bookings are closed to our users and will only be available for bookings by appointment.
Our Library is open 8:30 - 19:30 Monday - Thursday, 8:30 - 17:30 Friday & Saturday 10:00 - 13:00 (term time)
Twilight Hours
Twilight hours from 17:00 until 20:00 on main campus will still be supported for basic activities in low risk areas. Students will however be able to continue working with low risk activities where formally trained to do so. These areas will be accessible as normal, following the lone working policies of the University.
The following learning resources available outside core hours are areas such as the Library, programme base rooms, computer suites, edit suites, basic workshops / studio benches in low risk areas and multimedia studios. These areas will continue to be accessible during out of hour.
Please refer to your Course Lead or Studio Coordinators for further details on process and resources applicable to out of hours operations.
IMPORTANT - Please note that due to loan working policies in place, all students are encouraged to work on site in pairs where applicable in order to conform with these safe system of process. All twilight users must sign-in to reception in order to use these low risk areas or participate or activities.
Live Booking Schedule Screen
Live booking screen schedule links can be found on all our landing pages for each lab. By using these links you are able to review the current utilisation of a resource and identify the available access of a specialist resource.
Terms & Conditions
Our T&C are designed to provide clear expectations on how we expect students to engage with the our technical labs. This outlines our service to you and what you are to expect from using our labs. Each time you make a booking, you will be asked to agree to the terms of our conditions. This must be read and understood before you loan any resource from an area. More details can be found via the link below.
(Please scroll further for guidance on how to book)
How to make a booking
Making a booking couldn’t be simpler. To get started follow this basic guide to get you engaging with our resources and facilities here at AUP.
- Sign into SmartHub via the appropriate site you intend to use via aup.siso.co.
- Use your AUP email address provided at enrolment to access.
- Once logged into the dashboard, locate the icon for ‘Book a Resource’ to commence with a booking.
- Click the ‘Book a Resource’ icon to get started.
- Start your booking by either using the ‘Book a Resource or Facility’ option.
- Alternatively if you are booking from the ERC, this will be ‘Book by Equipment Type’
- You can also book by ‘Search by time’ to see what’s available if you have a specific time and date in mind.
- Once you’ve identified how you wish to search your booking, browse the resources or facility options by reviewing the categories. Here you can traverse the broad range of options available to you, catalogued to make it easy to browse specific processes and resource types.
- Please note that if you are on our Pre-degree campus, you will need to change the ERC site from HE to FE via the toggle at the top left hand side of the screen.
- As you review your booking needs, you can add to your basket multiple resources. As you change your category search you can add new items to build your booking.
- One selected your booking will go green to show you have successfully added this to your basket.
- Once ready to proceed, you can check out by identifying the date and time you which to collect and return the available items.
- readys to proceed, you can check out by identifying the date and time you which to collect and return the available items.
- Please note that if you have searched via time, this will already be set when adding items to your basket.
- Check your timings and ensure you are able to collect at the designated time and that you are able to return before the stated due back time. Once you have all you need to proceed with your booking, you can complete the basket. This will take you through to a page to review and check prior to agreeing our terms and conditions and committing the booking.
- Please read and agree the terms and conditions before completing the booking. Once happy, slide the approved toggle at the bottom of the T&Cs page to complete your booking.
- At the dashboard you’ll have an overview over your Bookings, Due back items and any items you are Overdue for retuning.
- You can review and manage your booking at anytime by clicking on the the ‘My Bookings’ icon on the main dashboard page.
- Within ‘My Bookings’ you will be able to review current and past bookings. Rebook the same items, edit your booking and cancel a booking no longer needed.
- Once you’ve booked, an automated email with be sent to you via email and through an internal notification via your dashboard.
Booking conditions
When making a booking, please be aware of the following booking conditions in play.
- Bookings can only be placed against resources that have been secured by training.
- You can book 72hrs per booking (ERC only).
- All bookings can be made in advance by up to 30days.
- Bookings are held for 30mins (1hr ERC) after the booking collection time stated, before being returns back to stock for reissue if not collected.
- Items not returned at the agreed time you have started will result in your account being suspended for 5 days.
Credits:
Created with images by • undefined - The woman's hands close up, the masterful studio of ceramics works with clay on a potter's wheel