Peer Review Process

EDITORIAL POLICY

Peer Review Process

The Journal of Infrastructural in Civil Engineering (JICE) manages submissions through the editorial workflow of Open Journal Systems (OJS) 3. Since February 2026, JICE has applied a double-blind peer review process, in which authors' and reviewers' identities are concealed from each other during manuscript evaluation. Editors oversee the review process and retain responsibility for editorial decisions.

1. Submission and Initial Editorial Screening
Authors submit their manuscripts through the JICE online submission system. The assigned editor checks the manuscript's relevance to the journal's focus and scope, compliance with author guidelines, originality, and basic methodological quality. Submissions that are unsuitable or do not meet essential requirements may be declined before external peer review.
2. Reviewer Assignment
Manuscripts that pass editorial screening proceed to the OJS Review stage. The editor assigns one or two qualified reviewers with expertise relevant to the manuscript. Reviewers are invited through OJS and may accept or decline the assignment. They are expected to disclose potential conflicts of interest and maintain the confidentiality of review materials.
3. Double-Blind Peer Review
Reviewers assess the manuscript's originality, methodological rigor, technical accuracy, quality of analysis, clarity, relevance, and contribution to the field. Review files must not disclose author identities, and reviewers must remove identifying information from any annotated documents. Reviewers submit their assessments and recommendations through OJS. Their recommendations inform, but do not determine, the editorial decision.
4. Author Revision and Further Review
When revisions are required, the editor communicates the relevant reviewer comments to the corresponding author through OJS. Authors submit a revised manuscript and a point-by-point response explaining how the comments have been addressed. Minor revisions may be evaluated by the editor, while substantial revisions may be referred to reviewers in a further review round.
5. Editorial Decision
The editor evaluates the reviewers' reports, the manuscript, and any author revisions before recording and communicating the editorial decision through OJS. Depending on the assessment, the submission may be accepted, returned for revisions, resubmitted for another review round, or declined. Reviewers provide recommendations; the final decision rests with the editorial team.
6. Copyediting and Production
Accepted manuscripts proceed to the OJS Copyediting stage for editorial preparation and then to Production for layout, proof preparation, and publication scheduling. Acceptance following peer review does not mean that the article has already been published.
Confidentiality and editorial responsibility. JICE manages reviewer assignments, review reports, revisions, and decisions through its OJS editorial workflow. Editors are responsible for safeguarding reviewer anonymity and verifying that files shared for double-blind review do not reveal author identities. For manuscript preparation requirements, see the Author Guidelines.