Clipsham stone was used for repairs to the existing building and Ancaster Weatherbed for the new work. The new windows are aluminium. Architectural metal work is stainless steel, chosen for durability. The shelving is a standard system in a purpose-made oak enclosure. The built-in desks are stained board with oak casings.
Ventilation is by natural means, exploiting the large thermal mass of the existing building.
The lantern over the crossing, a bold new addition to the College skyline, has a sensor controlled fan and openings to prevent summer overheating. The level of service which the Library has been able to offer has been transformed. By 1989 all books destined for the new Library had been re catalogued onto a computerised system. These records were to prove invaluable when the automated housekeeping system came on line. A Reclassification Project, completed prior to the move into the new building has, over the course of three years, reorganised all open access material from the old and inflexible fixed shelf system into a modern subject sequence, using the Library of Congress classification scheme.