SFU Library

What SFU Library does

SFU Library is the library system of Simon Fraser University, a public research university in British Columbia, Canada, established in 1965. It operates as a departmental unit of the university rather than a separately incorporated entity, with three physical branches: W.A.C. Bennett Library (Burnaby, the main campus), Belzberg Library (Vancouver), and Fraser Library (Surrey), plus a Special Collections unit, Student Learning Commons, and Research Commons. The library serves SFU's undergraduate students, graduate students, faculty, researchers, students with disabilities, and the general public, providing access to books, articles, journals, databases, media, course reserves, study spaces, and research assistance. Core services include the Library Catalogue (powered by Ex Libris Primo), the Summit Research Repository, the Digital Collections platform, the Media and Maker Commons, citation management tools, and adaptive technology workstations.

The library's technology stack is built on established library platforms rather than proprietary AI systems. The discovery and catalogue layer runs on Ex Libris Primo, while the Public Knowledge Project (PKP) represents an open-source publishing platform developed and hosted by SFU that is used globally for scholarly journal management. The library exposes an API at api.lib.sfu.ca, integrates with Canvas LMS, LibKey Nomad browser extension, and WriteAway writing support, and uses Matomo and Google Analytics for web analytics. Partnerships include membership in COPPUL (22-library reciprocal borrowing consortium) and COAR (international open access repository association), plus the Multicultural Canada digitization project in partnership with eight cultural institutions and the Department of Canadian Heritage.

Because SFU Library operates as a publicly funded university department, its business model is non-commercial: services are provided free of charge to SFU students, faculty, and staff as part of university funding, with limited external access available to the general public. There is no disclosed revenue, pricing model, or independent financial structure. Value is delivered through institutional budgets, government grants (e.g., for the Multicultural Canada project), and reciprocal interlibrary agreements rather than through customer payments.

Name

SFU Library

Legal name

Simon Fraser University Library

Website

https://lib.sfu.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

1965

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

SFU Library is the multi-branch library system of Simon Fraser University, serving students, faculty, and researchers across three British Columbia campuses with discovery, research support, publishing, and accessibility services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Academic Library Services

NAICS

Libraries and Archives (519210), Libraries and Archives (51921), Educational Support Services (611710), Book Publishers (513130)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731), Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAEAGAB

Academic & Research Library Operations (College/University Libraries)

Education/Education Facilities & Support Services/Library, Media Center & Learning Space Operations

SECONDARYEDAEAGAF

Digital Library & Electronic Resources Operations (e-Resources, Repositories, Licensing)

Education/Education Facilities & Support Services/Library, Media Center & Learning Space Operations

SECONDARYEDAEAGAD

Special Libraries (Law, Medical, Corporate, Government) Operations

Education/Education Facilities & Support Services/Library, Media Center & Learning Space Operations

SECONDARYEDAGAJAI

Open Lesson Plans & Teaching Units (K–12)

Education/Educational Publishing & Learning Content/Open Educational Resources (OER) & Open Textbooks

Keywords

• Academic library services
• Research support
• Scholarly publishing
• Digital collections
• Institutional repository

Headquarters

HQ city

Burnaby

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Others

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

SFU Library is a multi-campus academic library system that provides physical and digital access to books, journals, databases, and media, along with research assistance, writing support, accessibility services, and scholarly publishing tools. It serves Simon Fraser University students, faculty, and staff through three branch libraries (W.A.C. Bennett in Burnaby, Belzberg in Vancouver, Fraser in Surrey), plus digital platforms including the Library Catalogue, Summit Research Repository, and Digital Collections.

Product overview

SFU Library operates as a multi-branch university library system serving Simon Fraser University's three campuses (Burnaby, Vancouver, Surrey). The core offering is the Library Catalogue (powered by Ex Libris Primo) providing unified discovery across books, articles, journals, databases, and course reserves. The library provides specialized services including Research Assistance with subject librarians, the Student Learning Commons for undergraduate support, the Research Commons for graduate students, and comprehensive Accessibility Services with adaptive technology. Key initiatives include the Public Knowledge Project (PKP) open-source publishing software, the Summit Research Repository for scholarly outputs, and the Multicultural Canada digitization project. The library offers SFU Library APIs for developer integration, plus spaces for media production (Media and Maker Commons), group and quiet study areas, and extensive digital collections including digitized archival materials.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• W.A.C. Bennett Library: Main library branch at SFU Burnaby campus
• Belzberg Library
• Fraser Library
• Student Learning Commons (SLC)
• Research Commons (RC)
• Special Collections
• Media and Maker Commons
• Multicultural Canada
• Public Knowledge Project (PKP)

Products and services

• Library Catalogue (Primo)
• Article Databases
• Course Reserves
• Research Assistance Services
• Citation Management Software
• Summit Research Repository
• Digital Collections
• Media and Maker Commons
• Student Learning Commons (SLC)
• Research Commons (RC)
• Accessibility Services
• SFU Library APIs
• Public Knowledge Project (PKP)
• Multicultural Canada
• Borrowing and Equipment Services

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration9 records

AI capability3 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core, key initiative and supporting.

• COAR (Confederation of Open Access Repositories)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSFU Library is a member of COAR, an international association of libraries, research institutions, and repository networks from more than 50 countries and all 5 continents. COAR promotes open access to research outputs globally.
• COPPUL (Council of Prairie and Pacific University Libraries)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner22 university libraries comprising COPPUL collaborate to extend library borrowing privileges to faculty, graduate students, and staff of member institutions. SFU participates in the Canadian University Reciprocal Borrowing Agreement.
• Multicultural Canada Partnershipkey initiativeStrategic or Co-development PartnerMulticultural Canada digitization project partnered SFU Library with SFU Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Jewish Museum and Archives of British Columbia, Multicultural History Society of Ontario, UBC Library, University of Calgary, University of Toronto, University of Victoria Library, and Vancouver Public Library to digitize and provide access to cultural heritage materials from Canada's diverse communities.
• Department of Canadian HeritagesupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment department providing funding support for the Multicultural Canada digitization project.
• Irving K. Barber Learning Centre, University of British ColumbiasupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner institution in the Multicultural Canada project, providing funding, materials, and support for digitization of cultural collections.

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights11 records

Broad incumbents

• OCLC: Global library cooperative providing shared cataloging, discovery, and resource sharing infrastructure used by SFU Library and comparable academic libraries worldwide for interlibrary loan and bibliographic services.
• Library and Archives Canada: Canada's national library and archives, operating at a broader scale across the country with extensive digital collections, cultural heritage preservation, and bibliographic services that overlap with SFU Library's mandate.

Direct peers

• University of Alberta Library: Western Canadian research university library offering parallel services including liaison librarians, special collections, institutional repository, and digital preservation programs serving a comparable user community.
• University of Calgary Library: Another COPPUL and Multicultural Canada partner institution, offering parallel academic library services, digital collections, and research support structures to a comparable research university community.
• McGill University Library: Major Canadian research university library with comparable multi-branch structure, rare collections, digital humanities programs, and interlibrary loan participation similar to SFU Library.
• University of British Columbia Library: UBC Library is the closest geographic and functional peer, serving another major BC research university with multi-branch locations, digital collections, special collections, open access initiatives, and reciprocal borrowing partnerships that overlap with SFU's.
• University of Victoria Libraries: BC-based partner in the Multicultural Canada project and a peer academic library with similar digital collections, Indigenous initiatives, and reciprocal borrowing participation through COPPUL.
• University of Toronto Libraries: Canada's largest academic library system, comparable in scale and multi-branch structure to SFU Library with similar research support, digital collections, and scholarly publishing services for a major research university.

Emerging players

• Open Library (Internet Archive): Open-source digital library initiative providing open bibliographic data and lending; thematically aligned with SFU Library's open-source publishing efforts through PKP and digital collection principles.
• Internet Archive: Non-profit digital library providing preservation and access to digitized cultural heritage materials; comparable to SFU Library's Digital Collections and Multicultural Canada digitization initiatives in mission and approach.

Market position

Strengths3 records

Weaknesses3 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/SFULibrary
• Instagraminstagram.com/sfu_library
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sfu-library

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SFU Library