Do you enjoy working with cameras, sound technology and lighting or would you like to use tablets, VR glasses and drones for your study project? At Hof University of Applied Sciences, you can choose from a wide range of equipment. Campuls Digital spoke to Steffen Unger, laboratory engineer at the Faculty of Computer Science, about what is important when borrowing equipment.
Tablets, photo and video cameras, drones, sound equipment and more – what is available at the Multimedia Rental? Via an internal server, students at Hof University of Applied Sciences can see which products can be borrowed in a so-called rental wiki. In addition to photos and detailed descriptions, there are also various manuals.
Who can borrow the equipment?
Steffen Unger: “The service was mainly set up for the media informatics students, but everyone else can borrow as long as the needs of the former can still be met. There is a flat fee of five euros per contract for processing, which must be paid at the terminal via Campuscard. Exceptions to this are loans that are declared as “project-related” by the respective lecturer. The lecturer must submit a list of all authorised students for whom the flat rate is then waived. This is particularly the case for robots, VR goggles and the like – devices that are not easily owned privately (simply because of the price).”
How long can the equipment be rented for?
Steffen Unger: “The standard hire period is four weeks. The rental period can be extended up to one day before the deadline, in consultation with the rental staff. There is also the option of agreeing a longer loan period from the outset, which is also frequently utilised. The third option is to take equipment on permanent loan “on call”. This usually applies to computers that are being removed from the laboratories for renewal.”
Where can I get in touch if I need equipment and with how much notice?
Steffen Unger: “There is a portal for this purpose on the university website. There you can find out the current lending dates and get in touch with the contact persons. The contact point for those interested is the B104 office. You can go there on the dates or by personal appointment. There you have the opportunity to find out about hire times and available equipment (see QR codes).
The lead time depends on the items to be borrowed. We do not have an unlimited number of everything available, so it is not a bad idea to at least find out about the availability of the desired equipment beforehand. To do this, it’s usually enough to pop into the room mentioned.”
Is it possible to borrow something as an employee?
Steffen Unger: “In principle, you can also borrow things as an employee. However, what I said at the beginning also applies here: first and foremost, availability for students must be ensured: Therefore, lending items to employees is a matter that necessarily requires personal consultation. Exceptions to this are university events, for which the required equipment can usually be provided.”
Good to know: In the Communication Design and Textile Design degree programmes at the Münchberg site, all enrolled students per degree programme can also borrow equipment.
