Editor’s Note

This note marks the beginning of the 16th year of publication for the Journal of Composites for Construction. In the first issue of each year, I present recent statistics and developments for the Journal and acknowledge the individuals who have helped to ensure the success of the Journal.

The average time between submission of manuscripts to the Journal and first decision is about 3 months, and the time between submission and final decision is about 7 months. The typical time period elapsed between submission and publication is about 15 months. The paper acceptance rate in 2010—the last full year for which data are available at the time of this writing—was 58%. The 2- and 5-year impact factors for the Journal in 2010 are 1.172 and 1.518, respectively.

Papers appearing in the Journal have traditionally been categorized into five general topics as follows:

Table 1 shows the breakdown of the papers published in the five general topics. Although repair and strengthening continue to dominate submissions, authors should be aware that the editor encourages papers from all five topics. The Journal published 94 technical papers, technical notes, and case studies in Vol. 15, which is a slight increase from Vol. 14.

In closing, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the many people who help in assuring the continuing quality of the Journal. First, the distinguished members of the editorial board of the Journal are acknowledged for their tireless reviewing work. Every paper submitted to the Journal is reviewed by at least one board member. Board members are appointed by the editor for 2-year renewable terms. In addition to providing timely reviews of exceptionally high quality, board members provide valuable input to the editor on the directions and policies of the Journal. Second, I thank the many reviewers who are not on the board but provide equally important critiques of manuscripts. I try to keep the number of reviews by nonmembers of the board to no more than one or two manuscripts per year. Reviewers are listed by name in the last issue of each year. Additional persons who are interested in reviewing papers for this journal are encouraged to notify me and provide their contact information and technical area of interest. Finally, I thank Ms. Renee Lindenberg at Penn State, who assists me in the management of the Journal and ensures that deadlines are met, and the journals department staff at ASCE Headquarters for their expert handling of all manuscripts and valuable advice on many editorial matters.