Ethics Policy

A primary hub for users seeking access to the policies governing publishing ethics and scholarly communication within the Light: Advanced Manufacturing(LAM) journal. The journal's ethics policy is rooted in the guidelines and standards established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). These policies encompass a range of topics, including authorship and contributorship, duplicate publication, plagiarism and fabrication, competing interests, bioethics, confidentiality, and pre-publicity. All relevant parties and individuals of LAM are expected to adhere to these foundational principles, upholding academic integrity and ethical standards.

Authorship and Contributorship

Authorship are critical aspects of academic and research publications, outlining who is responsible for the work and to what extent each contributor has contributed to the research project or manuscript. LAM Authors are required to meet the following criteria:

● Each author is anticipated to have contributed to the manuscript. This might include data collection, analysis, drafting and revision of the manuscript, software design, experiment design, or other significant aspects of the work.

● All authors are expected to agree with the submission, any modified version, the order of the author list, and author contribution statements.

● Every author is required to ensure the accuracy and integrity of every aspect of the work.

● Approval from all authors is required for any alterations to the author list after submission, including changes in author order or the addition or removal of authors.

The corresponding author is tasked with overseeing all communication between the journal and fellow co-authors, both before and following publication. Additionally, the corresponding author is accountable for submitting a statement encompassing the submission agreement, potential competing interests, and originality on behalf of all paper authors. 

Upon submission, the corresponding author must provide written consent from the authors of cited unpublished material and clearly identify any previously published content in the manuscript, including figures. Written permission from the original authors and/or publishers is required for the reuse of such material. Following acceptance, the corresponding author is accountable for the precision of all proof content, including co-authors' names, addresses, and affiliations. Post-publication, the corresponding author serves as the contact for inquiries and must keep co-authors informed of any issues related to the published paper, ensuring timely resolution. Authors are obliged to promptly notify the journal of any identified aspects requiring correction.

Consortia authorship

Consortia authorship involves acknowledging all members of a consortium as individual authors. When a consortium is identified as a group of authors, each member is recognized as an author and must be explicitly listed as such in the published article.

Author contribution statements

Light: Advanced Manufacturing promotes transparency through the publication of author contribution statements. Manuscripts must include a statement of responsibility, with corresponding authors limited to three. Additionally, Light: Advanced Manufacturing permits the designation of up to three co-authors as having contributed equally or jointly supervised the work. Further details on equal contributions are encouraged in author contribution statements.

Author identification

To enhance transparency and clear attribution of scholarly contributions, Light: Advanced Manufacturing encourages all authors of published papers to include their Open Researcher and Contributor Identifier (ORCID) iD.

Contributorship refers to the recognition of individuals who have made various contributions to a research project or academic work, even if they do not meet the traditional criteria for authorship. Contributors may have played roles in data collection, analysis, drafting specific sections of the manuscript, providing critical feedback, or contributing in other meaningful ways to the overall project. The idea behind contributorship is to recognize and give credit to individuals who have made valuable contributions to the research, even if they haven't been involved in all aspects of the work. 

● Contributors are encouraged by Light: Advanced Manufacturing to be acknowledged in the acknowledgments section of a research paper or project rather than being listed as authors.

● Contributors should be informed about how their contributions will be acknowledged by the authors and should have the opportunity to provide input.

● Contributors should adhere to ethical standards in research, including disclosure of conflicts of interest and ensuring the integrity of the work.

If disagreements or disputes arise regarding authorship and contributorship, editors at Light: Advanced Manufacturing are unable to investigate or adjudicate such matters before or after publication. Authors unable to resolve these issues internally should refer them to the appropriate institutional authority.

Duplicate publication

Material submitted to Light: Advanced Manufacturing must be original and not published or under consideration elsewhere. If any part of the submission has appeared or will appear elsewhere, details must be specified in the cover letter, and the editors will assess its suitability. Light: Advanced Manufacturing supports prior publication on recognized preprint servers for community review before formal journal submission. If reusing figures from elsewhere, authors must provide permission documentation.

Authors are advised to seek guidance from the handling editor in case of doubt.  

Plagiarism and fabrication

Plagiarism involves the unauthorized use or reproduction of someone else's work, ideas, or intellectual property without proper attribution. As outlined by the Office of Research Integrity (ORI), “plagiarism is considered to include both the theft or misappropriation of intellectual property and the substantial unattributed textual copying of another's work. It does not include authorship or credit disputes”. When incorporating text from other sources, including paraphrasing or summarizing an author's prior work, it is essential to provide proper attribution and citation. This is crucial to prevent giving a misleading impression of the original contribution to the reader.

As a CrossRef member, Light: Advanced Manufacturing employs iThenticate—Similarity Check tools to screen manuscripts for text overlap before the peer-review process. Editors evaluate each case on its merits. In instances of post-publication plagiarism, corrective actions, such as corrections or retractions, are considered based on the severity, context within the article, and impact on the overall integrity of the study.

Discussion of unpublished work

Manuscripts undergo review with the expectation that proper credit is given to unpublished data and necessary permissions are obtained. For licensed data, authors must affirm compliance with data licensing agreements during submission. Referees are urged to identify and report any potential misuse of unpublished data or other sources to the editor during the review process.

Discussion of published work

When referencing the published work of others, authors must accurately acknowledge both intellectual contributions and technical developments, providing proper citations for each.

Competing interests

Competing interests, also known as conflicts of interest, refer to situations in which individuals or entities have competing professional, financial, or personal interests that could compromise their professional judgment, objectivity, or integrity in the context of research. Competing interests encompass both financial and non-financial factors that could influence the objectivity and integrity of a publication, affecting data presentation, analysis, and interpretation.

To ensure transparency and enable readers to assess potential bias, Light: Advanced Manufacturing mandates authors to disclose any financial or non-financial competing interests related to the described work. The corresponding author is tasked with submitting a statement on behalf of all co-authors.

Financial competing interests

Financial competing interests can arise from financial relationships such as employment, funding, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership, grants, or other financial benefits related to the publication of the research.

Diversified mutual funds or investment trusts are not considered competing financial interests.

Non-financial competing interests

Non-financial competing interests may include personal or professional relationships that could bias judgment or perception. Authors and referees of Light: Advanced Manufacturing are encouraged to disclose non-financial competing interests that could influence the publication process. Examples include unpaid roles such as membership in governmental or non-governmental organizations, advocacy or lobbying groups, advisory positions in commercial organizations, writing or consulting for educational companies, and serving as an expert witness.

For authors

Authors must disclose competing interests in the cover letter during submission, with the corresponding author responsible for providing the declaration on behalf of all authors. Additionally, regardless of the peer review model, all authors must include a statement about competing interests at the end of the published article. Authors bound by confidentiality agreements may state their limitations, replacing itemized disclosures. Monetary values of financial interests are not required.

For referees

Light: Advanced Manufacturing invites peer-reviewers to recuse themselves in the presence of significant conflicts of interest, financial or otherwise. While financial interests do not inherently undermine article conclusions or disqualify reviewers, we request reviewers to disclose any relevant interests, including financial ones, for consideration by editors in evaluating recommendations.

For editors

Light: Advanced Manufacturing editors and editorial staff must disclose any interests, financial or otherwise, that could influence or be perceived to influence their editorial practices. Non-disclosure is considered a disciplinary offense.

For publisher

The Light: Advanced Manufacturing publisher, Light Publishing Group, upholds editorial independence, ensuring decisions and content remain free from compromise by commercial or financial interests. We disclose any arrangements with advertising clients or sponsors to prevent any perception of compromise.

Bioethics policy

Bioethics policy encompasses ethical considerations and guidelines for the responsible conduct and reporting of research in scientific publications, particularly in the fields of biology, medicine, and related disciplines. 

Research involving vertebrates or cephalopods requires prior approval from the authors' Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) or equivalent ethics committee, adhering to national and international guidelines. Human participant research must be approved by the authors' Institutional Review Board (IRB) or equivalent ethics committee, following the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki. Authors must provide, upon request, an IRB or ethics committee approval statement. Subjects should be properly informed and provide written consent. If verbal consent is used or not obtained, the reason must be explained, with approval from the IRB or ethics committee.  

Confidentiality and pre-publicity

Confidentiality

Participants in the editorial and peer review process, including editors, authors, and reviewers, must maintain confidentiality. The peer review process is conducted anonymously unless declared otherwise. Reviewers seeking external advice must consult with the editor, ensuring confidentiality and disclosing colleagues' names. All correspondence, reports, and confidential material must not be published or disclosed without written consent. Light: Advanced Manufacturing retains the right to contact funders, regulatory bodies, journals, and authors' institutions in cases of suspected research or publishing misconduct.

Pre-publicity

Light: Advanced Manufacturing authors are prohibited from discussing contributions with the media until the publication date, and advertising content beforehand may result in rejection. Exceptions exist in the week before publication, provided authors and representatives clearly indicate to journalists that information must not be publicized until the journal's press embargo expires. Embargo dates are communicated to authors upon article acceptance.

While presenting at scientific meetings is encouraged, authors must note the press embargo and refrain from media discussions. Abstracts can be published in conference proceedings, and preprints can be shared with colleagues but not with the media.

Contributions for Light: Advanced Manufacturing can be posted on recognized preprint servers (like arXiv) or collaborative platforms such as wikis or the author's blog. Authors must specify the website and URL in the cover letter during submission, and the paper's content should not be promoted to the media due to its presence on the website or preprint server.

Citations

All articles must appropriately cite relevant literature to support their claims. Inappropriate citation practices, such as excessive self-citation or coordinated efforts to collectively self-cite, gratuitous citation of articles from the submitting journal, and other forms of citation manipulation, are unacceptable. Such manipulation will lead to article rejection and may be reported to authors' institutions. Authors should report any attempts by peer reviewers or editors to encourage such practices to the publisher.

Corrections and retractions

Light: Advanced Manufacturing may occasionally publish corrections or retractions to maintain the academic record's integrity. These will be presented through bidirectionally linked Correction or Retraction notes describing alterations to the original article. The original article remains public, and subsequent notes are widely indexed. In cases of rights infringement or defamation, material may be removed.

Authors, readers, or organizations detecting errors or ethics issues in a published article are urged to contact the journal via the website's provided contact details. Editors will consider all reports, seeking expert advice as needed to determine the appropriate course of action.

Corrections

At the discretion of the Editor(s), changes to published articles that impact interpretation and conclusion but do not fully invalidate the article will be corrected through the publication of a bidirectionally linked Correction, indexed to the original article.

Retractions

In rare instances where an article's interpretation or conclusion is substantially compromised, retraction may be required, adhering to COPE guidelines. Retraction notices are bidirectionally linked and indexed to the original article, which is marked as retracted, and its title is modified with the prefix "Retracted article:".

Editorial Expressions of Concern

When an Editor becomes aware of serious concerns regarding the interpretation or conclusion of a published article, they may choose to publish a statement alerting the readership. Scenarios in which Editorial Expressions of Concern may be published include prolonged investigations of very complex cases and when the concerns may have a significant and immediate impact on public health or public policy. An Editorial Expression of Concern may be superseded by a subsequent Correction or Retraction, but will remain part of the permanent published record.

Removal of published content

In exceptional circumstances, Light: Advanced Manufacturing has the right to temporarily or permanently remove an article or other content from its online platforms. This action may be prompted by concerns of defamation, infringement of intellectual property rights, violation of privacy, unlawfulness, or a court or government order necessitating removal. Immediate and serious risks to health may also warrant removal.

Appeals and complaints

Appeal against a rejection

To appeal the rejection of a manuscript, contact the Editorial Office following the instructions on the journal website. Appeals are considered but may take 1-2 weeks. Only one appeal is allowed per manuscript. Final decisions rest with the handling Editorial Board Member or the Editor.

Appeals are generally considered if there's a demonstrated error in the decision-making process, additional important data can be provided, or bias in the process is evident. Submit a formal appeal letter to the journal's editorial office, including the manuscript tracking number in the subject line.

If successful, authors will be instructed to submit a revised paper and response for further peer review.

Complaints