Publication ethics statement

This document establishes the ethical principles governing the preparation and publication of scientific materials in the journal “Automatic Welding”.
The editorial board operates in accordance with international standards of publication ethics, encompassing principles of integrity, confidentiality, oversight of the publication process, and prevention of conflicts of interest.
The editorial team follows the recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), including the Publishing Ethics Resource Kit by Elsevier, and takes into account best practices of leading international publishers. Compliance with ethical standards by all participants in the publishing process ensures the protection of authors’ intellectual property rights, enhances the quality of the journal, and prevents the misuse of published materials.
This Statement is aligned with the journal’s policies and constitutes an integral part of the peer review process and the subsequent dissemination of scientific works.

Policy on conflicts of interest

A conflict of interest is defined as anything that hinders or may hinder a full, proper, and objective review and decision-making process regarding the publication of scientific articles or other materials. A conflict of interest is deemed to exist if individuals involved in the editorial process have personal or other relationships with one another that could potentially compromise them, hinder objectivity, or influence decisions related to publication. During the editorial process, conflicts of interest include relationships that may arise between the editor-in-chief, editorial board members, reviewers and authors.
When submitting an article, the author must inform the editorial board of all potential conflicts of interest. Once manuscripts are assigned for review, reviewers are asked to inform the editorial board of any conflicts of interest that may arise.
The author designated by the co-authors as responsible for correspondence with the editorial board (corresponding author) must declare any conflicts of interest on behalf of all authors.
A conflict of interest may also relate to employment, funding sources, personal financial interests, membership in relevant organizations, or other circumstances that could lead to bias and influence the decision-making of those responsible.
Reviewers must not review manuscripts in which they have a conflict of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships with any authors, companies, or institutions associated with the manuscript.
If the author is the editor-in-chief, he does not participate in the review of his or her own manuscript. The review is conducted according to the journal’s standard procedure. The selection and invitation of reviewers, as well as the final decision, are made by a member of the editorial board from an organization other than the editor-in-chief’s place of employment. This approach ensures adherence to the principles of transparency and impartiality. Accordingly, the article includes a conflict of interest statement in the following format: “The author is the editor-in-chief and therefore did not participate in the review or decision-making process regarding the publication of this article. The final decision on publication was made by editorial board member [Full Name].”
Any declarations of conflicts of interest made by authors, reviewers, or members of the editorial board are reviewed by the editor-in-chief. In the event of substantiated claims of a conflict of interest involving the editor-in-chief, such claims are reviewed with the participation of two members of the editorial board.
In other cases, the article includes a statement regarding the absence of a conflict of interest in the following format: “The author declares that there is no conflict of interest.”

Ethical Responsibilities of Authors

Authors bear full responsibility for the content of the submitted manuscript and must adhere to the following principles:

Present accurate and reliable research results. Any knowingly false or fabricated data are considered unethical and unacceptable.
Provide, upon request by the editorial board, access to raw data for verification purposes and retain such data for a reasonable period after publication.
Ensure the originality of the work. Any use of others’ materials or ideas must be properly cited with appropriate bibliographic references indicating authorship and sources. Plagiarism in any form (including unattributed quotations, paraphrasing, or appropriation of results) is unacceptable. Materials that constitute mere compilations without original interpretation are not accepted for publication.
Acknowledge responsibility for the novelty and validity of the presented results.
Recognize the contributions of all individuals who influenced the research, with proper citation of relevant sources. The use of information obtained through private communication is permitted only with written consent from its author.
Submit only original manuscripts that are not under consideration elsewhere and have not been previously published. Violation of this principle constitutes a serious breach of publication ethics. If previously published materials are used, the differences in the new study must be clearly indicated.
Ensure appropriate authorship: all co-authors must have made a significant contribution to the research. Individuals with partial contributions may be acknowledged. All authors must review and approve the final version of the manuscript and consent to its submission.
Promptly notify the editorial board of any errors discovered and cooperate in their correction or in providing evidence supporting the validity of the data.
Disclose any potentially hazardous aspects of the research (e.g., chemicals, equipment). For studies involving humans or animals, relevant ethical standards must be observed and official approvals obtained.
Indicate all sources of funding, including grants, employers, and patent-related information.
Disclose any conflicts of interest that may influence the results or their interpretation.

Ethical Principles for Reviewers

Reviewers conduct independent expert evaluation of submitted materials to assess their scientific quality and compliance with standards. They are required to:

Contribute to improving the quality of the manuscript and assist the editor in decision-making.
Decline the review if they lack sufficient expertise or time.
Refrain from reviewing their own work or related submissions.
Maintain confidentiality of the received materials.
Provide objective, well-reasoned assessments and avoid personal remarks.
Identify missing references and report similarities with previously published works.
Inform the editorial board of any suspicion of plagiarism or data falsification.
Evaluate the correctness and appropriateness of citations.
Not use information obtained during the review process for personal benefit.
Avoid participating in the review process in the presence of a conflict of interest.

Ethical Principles of the Editorial Board

The editorial board is responsible for publication decisions and adheres to the following principles:

Decisions are based on the scientific value and reliability of the material.
Absence of personal interest in the evaluation of manuscripts.
Compliance with journal policies and copyright legislation.
Impartial evaluation regardless of authors’ personal characteristics.
Ensuring confidentiality of the review process.
Prohibition of using unpublished materials for personal purposes.
Rejection of materials containing indications of plagiarism.
Ensuring open access to published articles while preserving authors’ rights.
Addressing complaints and correcting errors when necessary.
Protection of reviewers’ confidentiality.

Ethical Principles of the Publisher

The publisher ensures compliance with ethical standards in the publication process and:

Promotes adherence to ethical requirements by all participants.
Supports the editorial board in addressing ethical issues.
Facilitates the publication of corrections or retractions where necessary.
Provides mechanisms for withdrawal of materials in cases of violations.

Plagiarism Policy

The journal “Automatic Welding” considers only original articles that have not been previously published and are not under consideration elsewhere.
Manuscripts are screened using StrikePlagiarism or other software as determined by the Executive Editor. If more than 15% of borrowed text or any form of plagiarism (including self-plagiarism) is detected, the manuscript is returned to the authors for revision with the possibility of resubmission.