Editorial

As 2015 has drawn to a close and 2016 begins, we are fortunate to look back at a successful year and to look forward to an exciting 2016. First and foremost, we thank all the authors for their excellent contributions to the journal. As you can see from Fig. 1a, Materials and Structures has fortunately seen a remarkable increase in the number of submissions to the journal. This dramatic increase in papers sends a clear message that publication in Materials and Structures is valued by the profession. We know that Materials and Structures is a premier forum to exchange information internationally and this can be seen in papers from over 45 countries being accepted (with papers from over 70 countries being submitted) during the last year. This international exchange is intrinsic to the fabric of RILEM and is vital to bring the best information from recent research around the world into construction materials practice by practicing engineers in a wide range of countries. In addition, information in Materials and Structures is being increasingly used by the research community. Figure 1b illustrates the impact factor, a measure of how the papers are referenced, which is increasing at a steady, healthy, sustainable rate. The online version of Materials and Structures currently reaches approximately 8500 institutions with over 200,000 downloads providing authors with an excellent opportunity for their work to be seen by the community. Springer also offers Table of Contents (ToC) alerts to inform readers of the contents of the journal when new issues of the journal are online and this service reaches nearly 2000 participants.

Fig. 1

a The number of papers submitted to materials and structures and b the impact factor

The editorial board also wishes to thank the reviewers for their commitment to providing timely, high-quality reviews. The journal has maintained an acceptance rate of between 25 and 35 % for the last 5 years which speaks to the high level of selectivity. While the increase in journal popularity has been very positive, this has increased the workload of the reviewers and we have been fortunate to have a great community of reviewers that have stepped up to provide these reviews while remaining dedicated to the high quality and success of the journal. The editorial board has also worked hard to institute new policies and practices to decrease the time from submission to final decision. The time for the first review has been cut in half over the last 5 years (Fig. 2) and the average time used by authors for revisions has also been cut in half. Both of these practices have helped the journal move papers from submitted to online first status much faster. To decrease the time from acceptance to publication in the journal the last year has seen both a major increase in the number of pages published annually (from approximately 2000 to 4000 annual pages) and the implementation of a paper length policy (<8000 words and 15 tables and figures). Materials and Structures has also been fortunate to have exceptional special issues on masonry, asphalt/bitumen, and geopolymers. We want to thank our Luigia Binda, Manfred Partl and John Provis who served as guest editors for their hard work and vision to bring these special issues to the readers.

Fig. 2

Average time under first review

While it is important to reflect on measures of how Materials and Structures journal is performing, it is also important to look toward the future. The editorial board is committed to continual improvement. During RILEM week in Australia the editorial team made several recommendations to the Bureau that have been approved and will be implemented during the coming years.

• First, in an effort to reduce the time from acceptance to publication even further it has been suggested that the journal would transition to an online-only version. This will aide with moving papers to publication much faster.

• Second, to aide with the increasing journal size and to free up the RILEM Secretariat for other new initiatives journal management will be sub-contracted for the coming years. This provides a great new opportunity for RILEM to take on strategic new initiatives.

• Finally, as editor in chief I have decided to not seek a second mandate. I want to personally thank all of the authors, reviewers, editorial board members, secretariat staff, springer staff, previous editors, TC chairs and bureau for all their help throughout the last 5 years. We are pleased to announce that Pietro Lura of Empa has been named editor in chief for Material and Structures. Dr. Lura has provided exceptional service to RILEM as deputy editor in chief of Materials and Structures and will surely provide excellent leadership for this new journal.

Materials and Structures continues to strive to publish papers on high quality research pertaining to civil engineering materials and structures. Materials and Structures will continue to strive to include papers that report on results from hypothesis driven, high level scientific research to provide the platform for the exchange of ideas between international research that can lead to improved understanding while truly having a global impact.

Sincerely

Jason Weiss

Outgoing Editor in Chief

Pietro Lura

Incoming Editor in Chief