Journal of Materials and Engineering

We promote integrity in research publication and adhere to the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).
The publication of an article in a peer-reviewed journal is an essential building block in the development of a coherent and respected network of knowledge. It is a direct reflection of the quality of the work of the authors and the institutions that support them. Peer-reviewed articles support and embody the scientific method. It is therefore essential to establish clear standards of ethical behavior for all parties involved in the publication process: authors, editors, reviewers, publishers, and the academic community.

Editors' Responsibilities

• To act in a balanced, objective, and fair manner while carrying out their expected duties, without discrimination on grounds of gender, sexual orientation, religious or political beliefs, ethnic or geographical origin of the authors.
• To handle submissions for sponsored supplements or special issues in the same way as other submissions, so that articles are considered and accepted solely on their academic merit and without commercial influence.
• To adopt and follow reasonable procedures in the event of complaints of an ethical or conflict nature, in accordance with established journal policies and procedures. Authors should be given a reasonable opportunity to respond to any complaints. All manuscripts are checked for plagiarism using specialized software (iThenticate). All complaints should be investigated regardless of when the original publication was approved. Documentation associated with any such complaints should be retained.

Reviewers' Responsibilities

• To contribute to the decision-making process, and to assist in improving the quality of the published paper by reviewing the manuscript objectively, in a timely manner.
• To maintain the confidentiality of any information supplied by the editor or author. Not to retain or copy the manuscript.
• To alert the editor to any published or submitted content that is substantially similar to that under review.
• To be aware of any potential conflicts of interest (financial, institutional, collaborative or other relationships between the reviewer and author) and to alert the editor to these, if necessary, withdrawing their services for that manuscript.

Authors' Responsibilities

• To maintain accurate records of data associated with their submitted manuscript, and to supply or provide access to these data, on reasonable request. Where appropriate and permitted by the employer or funding body and others who might have an interest, to deposit data in a suitable repository or storage location, for sharing and further use by others.
• To confirm that the manuscript as submitted is not under consideration or accepted for publication elsewhere. Where portions of the content overlap with published or submitted content, to acknowledge and cite those sources. Additionally, to provide the editor with a copy of any submitted manuscript that might contain overlapping or closely related content.
• To confirm that all the work in the submitted manuscript is original and to acknowledge and cite content reproduced from other sources. To obtain permission to reproduce any content from other sources.
• If the work involves chemicals, procedures or equipment that have any unusual hazards inherent in their use, the author must clearly identify these in the manuscript. If the work involves the use of animal or human subjects, the author should ensure that the manuscript contains a statement that all procedures were performed in compliance with relevant laws and institutional guidelines and that they have been approved by the appropriate institutional committee(s). Authors should include a statement in the manuscript that informed consent was obtained for experimentation with human subjects. The privacy rights of human subjects must always be observed.
• To declare any potential conflicts of interest (e.g. where the author has a competing interest (real or apparent) that could be considered or viewed as exerting an undue influence on his or her duties at any stage during the publication process).
• To notify promptly the journal editor or publisher if a significant error in their publication is identified. To cooperate with the editor and publisher to publish an erratum, addendum, corrigendum notice, or to retract the paper, where this is deemed necessary.
• Manuscripts that are found to have been published elsewhere, or to be under review elsewhere, will be subject to duplicate submission or publication sanctions. If authors have used their own previously published work, or work that is currently under review, as the basis for a submitted manuscript, they must properly cite the previous work and clearly indicate how the submitted manuscript provides novel contributions beyond the earlier publication.
• Submitted manuscripts that are found to include citations whose primary purpose is to increase the number of citations to a given author's work, or to articles published in a particular journal, will incur citation manipulation sanctions.
• Submitted manuscripts that are found to have either fabricated or falsified experimental results, including the manipulation of images, will incur data fabrication and falsification sanctions.
• Redundant publications involve the inappropriate division of study outcomes into several articles.
• In the event that there are documented violations of any of the above-mentioned policies, appropriate actions will be taken, including rejection of the infringing manuscript, rejection of other submitted manuscripts, and restriction on future submissions for a defined period.
• If an article has been accepted for publication, each author must sign a copyright agreement form and send the signed form, in electronic format, to the Editor, together with the final version of the article.

Authorship Criteria

• All authors must have made substantial contributions to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the reported study.
• All authors must approve the final version of the manuscript and agree to its submission.
• All authors must take public responsibility for appropriate portions of the content.

Data Availability Statement

• Authors are encouraged to make the data supporting the findings of their study available in a public repository, where possible.
• Authors must include a Data Availability Statement in their manuscript indicating where and how the data can be accessed, or clearly explain why the data cannot be shared.

Conflict of Interest

• All authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose any potential conflicts of interest that could influence the evaluation or publication of a manuscript.
• All sources of funding and any relevant financial or non-financial conflicts of interest must be clearly disclosed in the manuscript.

Plagiarism Policy

The journal has zero tolerance for plagiarism. This includes self-plagiarism and redundant publication. All submitted manuscripts are screened using plagiarism detection software (e.g. iThenticate). Manuscripts with unacceptable similarity levels will be rejected.

Corrections and Retractions

The journal follows COPE guidelines for corrections, retractions, and expressions of concern.

Publisher Responsibilities

• We are committed to ensuring that advertising, reprints, or other commercial revenue has no impact or influence on editorial decisions. In addition, we will assist in communication with other journals and/or publishers where this is useful to editors. Finally, we are working closely with other publishers and industry associations to establish standards for best practices on ethical matters, errors, and retractions, and are prepared to provide specialized legal review and counsel if necessary.
• To digitally archive journal content in the National Library of Serbia.

Procedures for Handling Unethical Behaviour

Identification of unethical behaviour:

• Misconduct and unethical behaviour may be identified and brought to the attention of the editor and publisher at any time, by anyone.
• Misconduct and unethical behaviour may include, but need not be limited to, examples as outlined above.
• Whoever informs the editor or publisher of such conduct should provide sufficient information and evidence in order for an investigation to be initiated. All allegations should be taken seriously and treated in the same way, until a successful decision or conclusion is reached.

Investigation:

• An initial decision should be taken by the editor, who should consult with or seek advice from the publisher, if appropriate.
• Evidence should be gathered, while avoiding spreading any allegations beyond those who need to know.

Minor breaches:

• Minor misconduct might be dealt with without the need to consult more widely. In any event, the author should be given the opportunity to respond to any allegations.

Serious breaches:

Serious misconduct might require that the employers of the accused be notified. The editor, in consultation with the publisher as appropriate, should make the decision whether or not to involve the employers, either by examining the available evidence themselves or by further consultation with a limited number of experts. The following outcomes (in increasing order of severity) may be applied separately or in conjunction:
• Informing or educating the author or reviewer where there appears to be a misunderstanding or misapplication of acceptable standards.
• A more strongly worded letter to the author or reviewer covering the misconduct and as a warning to future behaviour.
• Publication of a formal notice detailing the misconduct.
• Publication of an editorial detailing the misconduct.
• A formal letter to the head of the author's or reviewer's department or funding agency.
• Formal retraction or withdrawal of a publication from the journal, in conjunction with informing the head of the author or reviewer's department, abstracting and indexing services and the readership of the publication.
• Imposition of a formal embargo on contributions from an individual for a defined period.
• Reporting the case and outcome to a professional organisation or higher authority for further investigation and action.