Guide for contributors

1. General information

Unsolicited contributions from both members and non-members account for a significant proportion of the content published in The Structural Engineer. As such, we actively encourage readers to submit articles (or suggest ideas for potential articles) to the editorial office at: editorial@istructe.org. If you are unsure as to whether your contribution is suitable for initial consideration, we welcome the submission of a synopsis on which an initial determination can be made.

Submitted articles are initially considered for suitability by an Editorial Advisory Group member (all of whom are Chartered structural engineers). One EAG member is associated with each of the primary sections of The Structural Engineer. They provide advice and ideas on that section to the editorial team. Depending on the type of article submitted, it may be necessary to send the article to several peer-reviewers (experts in the field) so that factual accuracy can be checked and suitable enhancements suggested to the author/s.

Upon request, published authors are entitled to receive three print copies of the issue in which their article appears. We are however, unable to supply authors with final-version PDFs.

Please note that postal submissions can no longer be accepted.

2. The Structural Engineer’s sections

The Structural Engineer is made up of the following sections (although not all sections will appear in every issue):

Upfront
This section consists of an editorial written by an in-house staff member, general structural/civil engineering (industry) news and news specific to Institution members and/or Institution activities. This section does not have an Editorial Advisory Group member.

Feature
Feature articles often (but not always) accompany a significant Institution award or event. Examples of Feature papers may include: The President’s Inaugural Address; The Gold Medal Address; The Sutherland History Lecture; The Milne Medal Address etc. Articles written by a technical journalist that focus on topics of significant importance/current topicality may also be commissioned from time to time. Nevertheless, contributions from the readership – of a general nature, focussing on “hot topics” likely to appeal to a significant proportion of the audience - could also be considered for inclusion in this section. Contributions thought to be potentially suitable for publication may be sent to impartial peer-reviewers for “light touch” assessment and feedback for authors.

The current Editorial Advisory Group member is Mr Don McQuillan (FIStructE).

Project focus
This section contains detailed reports on specific, worldwide structural engineering projects on both large and small scales. The engineering challenges faced during the design and build phases are a key aspect. These articles are usually between 2,500 and 6,000 words in length, accompanied by up to 20 high quality images. The current Editorial Advisory Group member is Dr Allan Mann (FIStructE). Contributions thought to be potentially suitable for publication are sent to impartial peer-reviewers for more detailed assessment and feedback. Authors can expect to receive an initial decision 1-2 months from submission. Every effort is made to limit the overall time from submission to publication, to less than nine months.

Professional guidance
Articles submitted for consideration in this section should provide information and advice on everyday matters affecting the structural engineer, and topics can be wide-ranging. Recently, published material has focussed on areas such as health and safety, contract law and presentation skills. Negotiation skills, interview techniques, PI insurance advice and tips on how to correctly photograph buildings are just some of the potential topics that this section might cover. Articles tend to be short and punchy (max. 2,000 words but often considerably less). Articles thought to be suitable for publication are rarely sent for further peer-review.

The current Editorial Advisory Group member is Mr Simon Pitchers (MIStructE).

Technical
This section consists of regular Technical Guidance Notes written by the Institution’s in-house team (and externally peer-reviewed) as well as submitted articles that that are technical in nature. Typically these articles will focus on methods of analysis, material properties and aspects of design of structures. Contributions thought to be potentially suitable for publication may be sent to impartial peer-reviewers for assessment and feedback.

The current Editorial Advisory Group member is Mr Chris O’Regan (MIStructE).

Opinion
Articles suitable for consideration in the Opinion section include short, “Viewpoint” articles where the author writes on a subject of particular personal interest/concern. These articles may inspire further comment or debate that will either take the form of subsequent Viewpoint articles, or possibly be more appropriate as a contribution to “Verulam” (The Structural Engineer’s lively reader’s letters sub-section) depending on both the length of the article and the author’s/editor’s preference. This section also publishes book/product reviews and interviews with world-leading engineers. Articles thought to be potentially suitable for publication are rarely sent for further peer-review, although letters for consideration in the pages of Verulam are considered by the Verulam Editor (who’s identity remains a closely guarded secret!).

The current Editorial Advisory Group member is Mr Angus Palmer (MIStructE).

Research
This section publishes in-depth research papers that represent an advance in structural engineering that can be applied (or has the potential to be applied) in practice. Whilst highly academic or mathematical manuscripts should be directed to specialist research publications (including papers that offer only incremental advances) suitable topic areas could include (but are not limited to): development of new materials; field measurements of the way structures perform; assessment methods for existing structures etc. Papers should contain a full, up to date reference list and are likely to receive a higher level of technical scrutiny than contributions to the ‘Project focus’ section. It is rare for any paper to be accepted without comment and revision. Research papers are usually between 3,000 and 6,000 words in length, accompanied by an appropriate number of figures and tables. Contributions thought to be potentially suitable for publication are sent to impartial peer-reviewers for detailed assessment and feedback. Authors can expect to receive initial feedback 1-2 months from submission. Every effort is made to limit the overall time from submission to publication, to less than nine months.

The current Editorial Advisory Group member is Prof. Ian Burgess (MIStructE).

At the back
This section contains relevant Institution and Regional Group diary dates and various types of advertising. This section does not have an Editorial Advisory Group member.

3. Copyright

Copyright for the text/imagery remains with the author/s (and/or those from whom permission to reproduce text/imagery has been granted to the Institution, where the author is not the copyright owner).
Copyright for the design/layout of material published in The Structural Engineer resides with the Institution.

As such, according to copyright law and the Institution’s Regulation 10.2, Institution member contributors do not need to sign a Licence to publish document.

All non-member contributors (irrespective of whether they are the lead author) are required to sign a Licence to publish form at the point their article is approved for publication.

All material published in The Structural Engineer carries the copyright of the Institution, but the intellectual rights of the authors are acknowledged.

Where an article includes material that is not owned by the author/s, appropriate permissions must be obtained by the author/s, and supplied to the editorial office at the point of article submission.

4. Submitting material

Contributions should be submitted via email to: editorial@istructe.org.

Text

Text should be supplied as a Word document separate from any images (photos, figures, tables etc) and written to a standard of UK English commensurate with reader expectations of a world-leading technical publication. If English is not your first language please ensure that a native English speaker has proofread your article prior to submission.

Articles accepted for publication are professionally designed by The Structural Engineer. Authors should not attempt to replicate any design/layout elements in their submission.

The editorial office reserves the right to edit the text during the copyediting, proofreading or design processes should this be deemed appropriate/necessary by the editorial office and design team.

Imagery

The Structural Engineer is designed to a professional standard and the inclusion of high quality imagery - to enhance reader understanding and experience - is strongly encouraged.

Images should be supplied in .JPEG format and be high-resolution - at least 300dpi for pictures and 600dpi for line drawings and graphical data. Each image should be supplied as a separate file and not embedded into a Word document. We are unable to accept images that have been lifted from the web e.g. Google images, as they will not be of a sufficient resolution for print.

Where emails exceed the file size accepted by the Institution’s servers (>10MB), a web-based file-hosting service (e.g. Dropbox) should be used by the author to supply the editorial office as necessary.

It is the responsibility of the author/s to obtain permission from the copyright owner for all images supplied. Proof of all permissions granted should be supplied to the editorial office at the point of article submission.

The editorial office reserves the right to edit, include or omit images during the page design process should this be deemed appropriate/necessary by the editorial office and design team.

5. House style

5.1 General

The Structural Engineer encourages authors to supply their professional qualifications so that these can be included in the article.

Figures and tables should be referred to sequentially in the text as ‘Fig. 1’, ‘Table 1’ etc. Captions should accompany each figure/table as well as appear in list form at the end of the document.

Spelling should follow the Concise English Dictionary, using the first option where alternatives are given.

Initial capital letters are only used for proper names (professions when expressed as generalities e.g. surveyors, engineers, architects, etc. do not have a capital letter).

There should be a single space (not a double space) between sentences.

5.2 Synopses

Research, Feature and Project focus and Technical articles should contain a synopsis (max. 150 words).

The synopsis should be written on the assumption that the reader has some knowledge of the subject but may not have specific expertise in that area.

5.3 Symbols

The use of symbols and abbreviations should follow the recommendations of BS 5775 - Specification for quantities, units and symbols.

If it is necessary to introduce a symbol not given in BS 5775, it should be clearly defined and satisfy the principles set out in that standard.

Abbreviations of units should always be given in the singular (e.g. 5mm not mms).

5.4 Mathematics

Mathematical formulae should be carefully checked for accuracy.

Non-essential derivations should be omitted, and extended development of mathematical formulae should be confined to appendices.

Authors should ensure that there is clear distinction between the numerals 0 (zero) and 1 (one) and the letters O (oh) and lower-case l (el).

Where simple fractions are given, the solidus (/) should be used instead of a horizontal line, e.g. a/b, with care being taken to insert parentheses where necessary to avoid ambiguity, e.g. 1/(a+b).

Each equation should be numbered and positioned so as to make it distinct from the main body text.

If it is necessary to make repeated reference to a complicated expression, it should be represented by a single symbol, defined clearly at the point of introduction.

5.5 Numerical results

For values less than 1, a ‘0’ should be inserted before the decimal point (e.g. ‘0.25’ not ‘.25’).

Numerical values involving a large number of zeros should be abbreviated.

Observations of continuous variables are usually expressed with one estimated digit.

The publication of all individual calculations is often unnecessary. It is usually sufficient to describe the procedure and methods used and to give the final result.

Experimental results are often more effectively presented by quoting averages, the number of replicate readings, and an indication of their variability - preferably by quoting the standard deviation, coefficient of variation or confidence limit.

All measurements should be given in SI units.

5.6 References

References should be comprehensive and include the most recent published work.

They should be listed in the order they occur in the text (not in author/alphabetical sequence) and identified through the use of superscript numerals.

If references are used, a separate reference list must be provided.

Depending on the type of reference, they should be formatted as follows:

For reference to an article published in an academic journal:

Author/s (surname followed by initials)
Article title
Publication title
Volume/issue number
Date of part (or part no.)
Year of publication
Page range

Example: Nethercot, D. A.: Semi-rigid joint action and the design of non-sway composite frames, Engineering Structures, 17/8, 1995, pp. 554-567

For reference to an article published in a book:

Author/s (surname followed by initials)
Book title
Edition (if second or later edition)
Place of publication
Publisher
Year of publication
Page range

Example: Hillerborg, A.: Strip methods design handbook, 2nd ed. London, E & F N Spon, 1996, pp 13-14

For articles published at a symposium/as proceedings of a conference etc.:

Author/s (surname followed by initials)
Article title
Title of symposium/conference
Symposium/conference location
Symposium/conference date
Publisher (if appropriate)
Page range

Example: Lilliestone, D. and Jolly, C. K.: Concrete-filled fibre reinforced plastic circular columns, Conf. Composite Construction, Innsbruck, Austria, 16-18 September, 1997, p 26-34.