General

JOURNAL OF ENGINEERING RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT publishes original research papers in engineering and technology that promote the understanding of engineering sciences and give insight into engineering processes and/or practices. Papers published in the journal must be original and not previously published elsewhere. Copyright for original materials published in the journal transfers to The Faculty of Engineering, University of Uyo.

Prospective authors are invited to submit original manuscripts by using the submission link. Authors are advised to adhere strictly to the Author's Guide in order to ensure that their submissions are processed as fast as possible.

Purpose

To ensure consistency in presentation, manuscripts submitted to the JOURNAL OF ENGINEERING RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT must conform to strict structural and format specifications. A manuscript that does not conform may (but not always) be accepted for review; however, publication is impossible unless the manuscript is submitted in the required format. This document specifies the key elements of the acceptable format.

Presentation Medium

Manuscripts accepted for publication must be submitted in electronic form as a single file by e-mail or on CD-ROM. The acceptable software format is Microsoft Word (MS-Word) 2003 or later. Initial submission must include either the CD-ROM containing only the manuscript file or the paper(s) sent by e-mail.

Illustrations and Graphics

All drawings shall be prepared electronically with software compatible with the Microsoft Office suite (e.g. MS-PowerPoint) and integrated seamlessly into the MS-Word document. Photographs shall also be digitised into JPEG format and inserted into the document. Drawings and other graphic illustrations shall be labelled in italics underneath with the word “Figure” followed by a sequential number, a colon, and the title.

Example: Figure 1: A Typical Component Model.

Equations

Mathematical equations shall be constructed within the MS-Word document using the Microsoft Equation Editor included with the MS-Office suite. They shall be numbered sequentially (1, 2, 3, …) throughout the document, with the number placed in braces near the right margin. Sub-equations (i.e., parts of a main equation abbreviated for clarity) shall be numbered by appending lowercase letters (e.g., 2a, 2b, 2c) to the main equation number.

Tables

All tables shall be labelled at the top with the word “Table” followed by a sequential number (e.g., Table 1, Table 2, Table 3, etc.) and a title. Tables must be cited in the text and should present material not included elsewhere. Only standard abbreviations should be used; any unusual abbreviations must be defined in full initially, with the abbreviation provided in parentheses.

Layout

• Paper size: A4
• Margins: Left: 3cm, Right: 3cm, Top: 3cm, Bottom: 3cm
• Fonts:
  • Paper title: Arial 10pt, bold, all uppercase, page-centered
  • Author’s names: Arial 9pt, italics, page-centered
  • Section titles: Arial 10pt, bold, page-centered
  • Sub-section titles: Arial 10pt, bold, left-aligned
  • Abstract: Arial 10pt, italics, page-centered
  • First-page header: None
  • Other pages header: Arial 10pt, bold
  • First-page footer: Arial 10pt, regular
• Line spacing: Single

Content Structure

1. Paper Header: The title should be concise and ideally on one line. Immediately following the title, list the authors’ names (in the form of initials and last name, e.g. “Raphael S. Okon”) without prefixes (e.g., Prof., Dr., Engr.). The author affiliation should appear on a new line. Subsequent pages should include headers (with the paper title—only the first letter in uppercase—and the lead author’s name or “et al” if multiple authors) and footers (with the page number on the right and publication edition details on the left).
2. Abstract: A concise, non-critical summary of the paper’s purpose and results, not exceeding 150 words. The abstract should be in italics and indented 1cm from both sides of the main text.
3. Nomenclature: A list and definition of all symbols used in the manuscript.
4. Introduction: Background information that places the work in context, including the practical relevance of the subject and a summary of recent related work.
5. Critical Context: The section where the author presents original theoretical exposition, building on the introduction with new concepts. This section may have subsections (e.g., 4.1, 4.2) as needed.
6. Research: Describes the experimental or research work that validates the theories presented. In purely theoretical papers, this section should suggest methods for practical validation and propose directions for further work.
7. Conclusions: Clear, itemized statements summarizing the key findings and recommendations.
8. References: List references in order of citation using the following format: the authors’ last names and initials, the title of the paper or book (in italics), the publisher, the year of publication, and page numbers. At least 50% of references should be current (not older than 6 years) unless otherwise justified.

System of Units

Use standard scientific and laboratory units. If other units are adopted, include them in parentheses. Avoid ambiguous terms such as “billion” (which may differ regionally).

Submission for Review

Initially, four paper copies of a manuscript conforming to the above specifications must be submitted along with the non-refundable processing fee to:

The Editor in Chief
JOURNAL OF ENGINEERING RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT
FACULTY OF ENGINEERING,
UNIVERSITY OF UYO, UYO.

While several authors may contribute, only one corresponding author will be in contact with the Editor in Chief.

Final Submission

After review, the author will be notified of acceptance or rejection. If accepted subject to revisions, marked-up copies of the manuscript will be returned along with a letter of provisional acceptance. Only the requested modifications are allowed for the final submission.

Upon acceptance, the author must send two copies of the finalized manuscript (either via e-mail as an electronic file or on CD-ROM) along with the publication fee to the address above.

Processing and Publication Fees

The processing and publication fees are subject to periodic review. At the time of publication (Nov, 2011), the processing fee is Three Thousand Naira (₦3000.00) or Twenty-Five United States Dollars (USD25) equivalent. The publication fee depends on the number of pages of the article, with each page costing Six Hundred Naira (₦600.00).