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Architecture, Structures and Construction - Special Issue Guidelines for Guest Editors

Preparing a Proposal
Guest Editors (GE) should contact the Publishing Editor, Nathalie Jacobs (nathalie.jacobs@springer.com (this opens in a new tab)), with their proposal idea to ensure it is relevant and there is space in the Publication Schedule for the Special issue. To submit your proposal, please use the Special Issue Information form (this opens in a new tab).

If there are several Guest Editors involved in a Special Issue, one Guest Editor will be required to act as the “Lead” Guest Editor. The Lead Guest Editor will receive the submissions to their account in SNAPP (Springer Nature Article Processing Platform), our new peer review platform replacing the previous system, Editorial Manager.

We require our Guest Editors to familiarise themselves with the editorial and publication policies of the journal and our Springer Nature Code of Conduct before they undertake their TC. You can find links to these below:

Submission Guidelines: https://www.springer.com/journal/44150/submission-guidelines (this opens in a new tab)  (this opens in a new tab) 
Code of Conduct: https://www.springernature.com/gp/editors/code-of-conduct-journals (this opens in a new tab)


Peer Review Procedure

Submission
Guest Editors of a Special Issue can access SNAPP via a Springer Nature account. The Lead Guest Editor will be responsible for assigning manuscripts to other Guest Editors. The Guest Editors will handle all aspects of the review and editorial decisions and should do this in an efficient and timely manner.

It is the Guest Editors' role to identify and invite authors to submit papers for the Special Issue, and submissions are expected to be of the highest quality in terms of science and presentation. They should also ensure that all papers submitted conform to the editorial and publication policies of the journal (see “Submission Guidelines” link above). 

Authors should submit via the online submission site (this opens in a new tab). During submission authors will be asked if they are submitting to a Special Issue. Instructions for Authors can be found at https://www.springer.com/journal/44150/submission-guidelines (this opens in a new tab)

Authors are encouraged to submit high-quality work that has neither appeared in, nor is under consideration by other journals. All papers must be peer reviewed by at least two specialists in the field. 

For all submissions, this Journal adheres to the standard Peer Review Policy, Process and Guidance (this opens in a new tab) as outlined by Springer under Editorial Policies (this opens in a new tab) in the Information for Journal Authors (this opens in a new tab) web page.

Please note: the Special Issue should contain at least 10 papers. 

Conference Papers
If a Special Issue is to be offered as a follow-up to a conference or a workshop, GEs are responsible for ensuring that the contents of the manuscripts submitted to the Special Issue differ from the conference papers (we expect roughly 40% new content). Any potential copyright and self-plagiarism issues have to be avoided in advance. Extended papers to be published on the TC can contain a specific note referencing the conference paper and providing information about the extended content.

Archived/Preprint Versions of Papers
Springer journals encourage posting of preprints of primary research manuscripts on preprint servers, authors’ or institutional websites, and open communications between researchers whether on community preprint servers or preprint commenting platforms. Preprints are defined as an author’s version of a research manuscript prior to formal peer review at a journal, which is deposited on a public server (as described in Preprints for the life sciences. Science 352, 899–901; 2016 (this opens in a new tab)); preprints may be posted at any time during the peer review process. Posting of preprints is not considered prior publication and will not jeopardize consideration at Springer journals. More information can be found here: https://www.springer.com/gp/open-access/preprint-sharing/16718886 (this opens in a new tab).

Authorship Change Request Form
We generally do not permit authorship changes after submission, and certainly not after acceptance of a manuscript. If there are exceptional circumstances warranting a change to the authorship in a paper submitted to a Special Issue, then authors can make this request and the form will be sent to the Editorial Office for review. If the change is approved, we will alert the relevant Guest Editors.

Submissions by Guest Editors
We permit Guests Editors to publish a paper in their own Special Issue, this must be agreed with the Editors-in-Chief in advance. 

Reviewer Citation Recommendations
We welcome reviewers guiding authors on expanding their literature review, however if a reviewer asks authors to cite their own papers, this should be investigated as this could be a breach of our publishing ethics in the form of “citation manipulation” – please reach out to the Publishing Editor for support in this.
 

Publication
Guest Editors are welcome to submit a Preface/Editorial for the Special Issue once all papers are accepted, and can liaise with the Editors-in-Chief and Publishing Editor regarding the requirements for this.

Once the papers have been accepted by the Editors-in-Chief, they are then transmitted to the publisher’s production department. Proofs will be available online for the Guest Editors to review and approve before online publication.

Please note that colour figures and images are reproduced free of charge in electronic form. There is a page charge for colour in print and for Open Access: please visit the journal homepage for more information.

When the Special Issue appears in print, the title and names of the Guest Editors will appear on the cover and the contents page.
 

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