Editorial Guidelines

NDT is the source of practical information on improving discrete product manufacturing processes. It delivers information readers can use to initiate, implement, manage and reinforce quality on the shop floor and companywide. NDT magazine reports, documents and supports advances in quality-related technology and techniques. The information NDT magazine brings its readers comes from the industry itself — manufacturers and users of test, inspection, and measurement equipment, publishers and users of associated software, and providers and users of services such as training and standards registration.

Editorial material is always welcome in the following areas:

Feature Articles: These can be staff-written or contributed, and generally fall into one of the following categories: tutorial, how-to, technology and/or methods use, trends and developments. Specific guidelines for these follow.

Case Studies: Staff-written or contributed, these shorter articles are "problem-solving" in nature. While they may come from suppliers, these articles are always written from the user's perspective, the problem they had and the solution that was developed. Specific guidelines follow.

New Product Releases: Information about new products are published in NDT magazine's New Product department. Our goal here is to inform our readers about new equipment, tools, supplies, training tools, software, etc., they might use in quality and process control. Photos generally enhance new product announcements, and we publish as many photos as space permits. Photos should be sharp, glossy prints (either black & white or color) or color transparencies (35 mm preferred). We prefer that product releases be mailed instead of faxed. We do not return photos.

Industry News: Developments that affect businesses, people, technologies, and markets for quality and process control in manufacturing will be used on NDT magazine's Web site, NDT Online. News includes information about standards and regulations, companies, personnel, trade shows, mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, major contracts and strategic alliances. News can be sent via fax, e-mail or first-class mail. Please include specific, substantive data, including dates, contact names, locations, and a phone number.

Association News: This news section appears each month in NDT magazine. It includes information about association activity such as membership, conferences, alliances, committees, etc. News can be sent via fax, e-mail or first-class mail. Please include specific, substantive data including dates, contact names, locations and a phone number.

Calendar of Events: This section includes events that are international, national, local or regional. Suppliers can send us notification of training that they are sponsoring. To ensure prompt coverage, calendar announcements should be received 3 months or more prior to the event. Please include dates, locations, fees, and a contact name, address, phone number, fax number and Web address.

All submissions may be sent to:
NDT Magazine
1050 IL Route 83, Suite 200
Bensenville, IL 60106-1096
Or, fax it to us at (630) 227-0204.
Or, email it, in a Microsoft Word (PC format) document, to
campbellg@bnpmedia.com.

(please see individual sections below, for guidelines on submitting final manuscripts, photos, etc.)

Case Studies: The format is straightforward. A manufacturer has a problem, and it gets solved using a supplier's product or service. The manufacturer must be willing to be named, and the article describes both the solution and the benefits. The story does not need to be exclusive to NDT magazine. Here are some other points to remember:

• Name the end-product being manufactured.
• Describe the manufacturing problem, and how the supplier's product was applied to solve the problem.
• Discuss any unusual aspects of equipment installation or operation.
• It is acceptable to describe why one technology was chosen over another.
• It is not acceptable to extol the virtues or superiority of the supplier's product or to discuss why a competitor's product was not selected for the application.
• Include details of the results that were obtained. For example, numerical data describing improved quality, reduced manufacturing cost, or increased output.
• Someone from the user company should be quoted directly in the story, describing the problem, the solution, and the benefits.

About 2 pages typed, double-spaced (300 to 500 words) typically serves to tell the story. The editors will edit for style and length.

Photos of the equipment in use are necessary for the article, and we prefer having several from which to choose. Photos should be in color, and either glossy prints or transparencies (35mm preferred) are fine. We do not return photos.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Authors may not review their article once it has been sent to us in its final form. The only exception to this is if the article has been significantly edited so that we would ask an author to review it for TECHNICAL ACCURACY only. We do not permit review of articles for accuracy of quotes, grammar, style, etc.

Staff-Written Features: The editors regularly report on methods, technology, trends, and developments in various equipment, software, training, manufacturing process, and compliance/standards areas. The editors involved typically seek technical information, commentary and opinions from end-users, vendors, or both, depending on the objective of the specific article. If you have information to contribute to a staff-written feature article, please contact the Editor at NDT magazine (see "Submission Contacts" section).

Information for staff-written articles is needed at least 3 months prior to publication.

Contributed Features: If you are interested in writing a feature article for NDT magazine, send your idea in the form of an abstract or outline to NDT magazine (see "Submission Contacts" section).

Explain specifically what you plan to cover in the manuscript. If you have an original, exclusive manuscript already written, please send it for review. The outline or manuscript will be reviewed and you will be contacted concerning the material's fit with NDT magazine's editorial plans.

Here are some our fundamental requirements for a contributed feature article:

• The article must be an impartial, unbiased discussion of advances in technology, developments in methods, and other topics applicable to the subject.
• It can be written as a "how-to," a tutorial, a technology and/or methods use, or as a trends and developments piece.
• The article must be noncommercial.
• It is appropriate to explain technology and how it is used.
• It is not acceptable to extol the virtues of one company and its products.
• The feature must be exclusive to NDT magazine.
• Articles submitted to other publications at the same time as NDT will automatically be rejected.
• Articles that have appeared in other publications will automatically be rejected.
• We cannot accept an article without reading the final manuscript, seeing the accompanying photos and artwork.
• The author must sign a copyright agreement with NDT magazine.

The package with your final manuscript should contain a hard copy version of the manuscript, a version of the manuscript on a disk in Microsoft Word (PC format) or ASCII format and accompanying graphics, such as tables, charts, graphs, drawings or photographs (see section on "Photographs" for electronic image submissions). We do not return photos.

Send the package to:

Editor
NDT Magazine
1050 IL Route 83, Suite 200
Bensenville, IL 60106-1096

Allow enough preparation time. Editors work 4 to 5 months in advance of the publication date.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Authors may not review their article once it has been sent to us in its final form. The only exception to this is if the article has been significantly edited so that we would ask an author to review it for TECHNICAL ACCURACY only. We do not permit review of articles for accuracy of quotes, grammar, style, etc.

NDT magazine's editors and artists work from color transparencies and prints, black-and-white photos, line drawings, pencil sketches, blueprints, and printouts or tracings from various kinds of recorders and plotters.

Bar charts, diagrams, sketches, and other line art should be drawn accurately and clearly, but do not need to be suitable for reproduction as submitted. Freehand is acceptable, if it is legible and clearly illustrates the concepts being described. To fit the space available, it is necessary for NDT magazine's art staff to redraw submitted line art to prepare for publication. We prefer charts and diagrams to be submitted as a hard copy printout. If submitted electronically, they can be submitted in Adobe Illustrator or PowerPoint.

We can accept graphics electronically. Artwork (i.e., charts, diagrams, graphs) will be redrawn to NDT magazine's style and format.

Images should be high quality, sharp focus, and of commercial contrast levels (not prescreened). Images should be color transparencies, slides, prints, or negatives.

For images beyond a product shot, aim for high-impact photography, perhaps from an unusual angle, with good lighting. People, if included, should be actively engaged with the application. Added typographic elements are almost always cropped out of the final image. Logos are rarely used. We do not return photos or other original images.

Digital Submissions: Digital images should be PhotoShop-compliant TIFF or EPS formats, at 300 dpi resolution for grayscale and four-color images, at the approximate size it could appear in the magazine. They should be in CMYK mode, rather than in RGB mode.

Digital line art should be scanned at 1,000 to 1,200 dpi. Digital illustrations should be in Adobe Illustrator ESP or Freehand EPS format, with all text converted to outlines.

Do not compress files in any transfer medium. E-mailing a file is acceptable. Files may also be submitted on 3-1/2 inch floppy disks, writeable CDs, ZipCartridge, and Photo-CD disks. These will not be returned. Do not send low-resolution JPEG files or Internet-quality images.

Please send a color printout with any digital image.

Do not write on photos or other artwork. Also, do not crop, crease, or fold photos and/or artwork, as they could be damaged.

Please describe what is occurring in each image. This should be done on a separate sheet and tape it carefully to the back of the photo or illustration. Too much information is better than too little.

DO get right to the point. Both our editors and our readers will appreciate the time you save them.

DO familiarize yourself with NDT magazine before contacting us.

DO be prepared to transfer the copyright on your feature article manuscript to NDT magazine. We require copyright ownership of all feature articles.

DO submit all materials typed (or computer printed) and double spaced (except cover letters). Use only one side of the paper. Manuscript text also may be submitted on 3-1/2 inch disk, in MS Word or ASCII text format.

DO keep a copy of everything you send us.

DO make sure that we have the name, address, and phone number for yourself or any other person we should contact regarding your submittal.

DO make sure everything you send has a date on it.

DON'T submit your material or idea to any other publication at the same time (except for general news releases). NDT magazine requires all feature articles and Training Trends to be exclusive to us.

DON'T ask to review your material before it goes to print. The only exception we make for this is if a significant edit has been done to an article and we want to verify TECHNICAL ACCURACY only.

DON'T be in a hurry to see your material published in NDT magazine. The editors work far in advance on feature articles. Other materials are normally published as space is available on a first-in, first-out basis.

DON'T call to ask if we received your press release.