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Design Library

The Design Library is a collection of available Pages and Components that can be used to develop a site in Terminalfour.  It provides mobile responsive templates improving web acessibility to UCD websites. Access our Design Library guide to discover our design library components.

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Websmart template mobile banner

Overview

Design Library Project aims to regularly update and extend our existing templates as UCD Design Library to deliver a modern & fresh look for UCD websites.

It started in 2022 by redesigning the existing UCD web templates and introducing new content types within our Design Library to allow more choices to website managers in how they build their site. The design library has two scheduled annual releases.

By adopting the UCD Design Library the website owner ensures that the website is accessible and is in line with EU Web Accessibility Directive.

Sharing the same layout across all websites reinforces the UCD branding while ensuring the best practices for web design are applied. This also allows easy administration of the UCD sites with enhancements that can be applied automatically to all websites, such as:

  • Improved responsiveness
  • Improved accessibility
  • Fonts and colours in line with UCD branding
  • Improved page headers and footers

353

UCD websites utilising the Design library

92%

The accessibility score for migrated websites jumped from 56% in May 22 to 91% in January 23.

8

drag and drop template pages

46

elements added to the UCD component catalogue
UCD Science Centre

Mobile friendly websites with web accessibility and UCD branding built in

2

releases a year with enhancement requests welcomed
UCD Campus in autumn

Guide

Extensive guide to demonstrate and display design library components

Visit our WebSmart Community

Benefits of Design Library

With the support of schools and units across campus 276 UCD websites are using the Design Library, improving the accessibility score for those. If we consider only the UCD Design library websites, the score stands at 91%.

After the first phase of migration to the Design Library  was completed (190 websites) the average UCD accessibility score went from 66% in July 2022 to 71% in November 2022. Currently the overall score for UCD websites stands at 77.1%. 

Other benefits of using UCD Design Library:

  • Regularly updated with new components available 
  • Allows for web developers to focus on Information Architecture, Content, Imagery/Video, Goals/Measurement. Making sites easier and quicker to build.
  • Provide an array of pre-built page layouts within the Design Library for commonly used pages such as Staff Page, News Page, and others.
  • Flexibility in the components, bringing personality to each page.
  • Integration of images and videos to the components, allowing dynamic websites. 
  • Components built purposely for web accessibility, including mobile friendly layout.

Resources

A list of resources are available to facilitate the creation and maintenance of websites using the Design Library. 

Timeline

The Design Library project started with its proposal in January of 2021 and the migration of UCD websites started in July 2022. Here is a comprehensive timeline of the project:

  • January 2021

    Proposal

  • May 2022

    Design Library first release with 42 components, and 8 template pagesRelease 1.0 Components

  • July 2022

    Web team starts migration of websites

  • Summer '23

    New components Search Form & Affiliates Logo Slider added and enhancements to existing Pre-filter A-Z, Shortened Home Slider, Testimonial Slider components. Release "Own Brand" facility within the Design Library. Summer '23 Components

  • Winter '23

    New Document repository component type, two columns link card, and enhancements to quick links, home slider, and video and image gallery.Winter '23 Components