Submissions

Author Guidelines

Please prepare your manuscript before submission using the following guidelines, and click on this link to download the article template:

Article Format

Article files should be provided in Microsoft Word format. We currently do not accept other formats, such as LaTeX or PDF files.

Article Length

Articles should be between 10-15 pages, including references. A maximum of 4 pages long appendices are allowed.

Article Categories

Authors must categorize their paper as part of the article information. The category which most closely describes their paper should be selected from the list below:

• Research paper. This category covers papers which report on any type of research undertaken by the authors. The research may involve the construction or testing of a model or framework, action research, testing of data, market research or surveys, empirical, scientific or laboratory research.
• Technical paper. Describes and evaluates technical products, processes or services. 
• Conceptual paper. These papers will not be based on research but will develop hypotheses. The papers are likely to be discursive and will cover philosophical discussions and comparative studies of others' work and thinking.
• Case study. Case studies describe actual interventions or experiences within organizations. They may well be subjective and will not generally report on research. A description of a legal case or a hypothetical case study used as a teaching exercise would also fit into this category. 
• Literature review. It is expected that all types of paper cite any relevant literature so this category should only be used if the main purpose of the paper is to annotate and/or critique the literature in a particular subject area. It may be a selective bibliography providing advice on information sources or it may be comprehensive in that the paper's aim is to cover the main contributors to the development of a topic and explore their different views. 
• General review. This category covers those papers which provide an overview or historical examination of some concept, technique or phenomenon. The papers are likely to be more descriptive or instructional than discursive.

Article Title

A title of 10 (ten) words maximum should be provided.

Author Details

All contributing authors' names should be added, and their names arranged in the correct order for publication. A correct email address should be supplied only by the first author. The full name of each author must be present in the exact format they should appear for publication, including or exclude any middle names or initials as required The affiliation of each contributing author should be correct on their individual author name.

Abstract Structure

Authors must supply a structured abstract in their submission, which includes:

• Purpose
• Design/ methodology/ approach
• Findings
• Research limitations/ implications 
• Practical implications
• Social implications 
• Originality/ value

A maximum of 250 words in total excluding keywords.

Keywords

Authors should provide appropriate and short keywords that encapsulate the principal topics of the paper. The maximum number of keywords are 5 (five) words.

Article Organization

Body of articles should be organized (at least) into the structure as follow:

• Introduction
• Method 
• Result
• Discussion/conclusion 

Headings

Headings must be concise, with a clear indication of the distinction between the hierarchy of headings. The format is provided in the article's template.

Notes/ Endnotes

Notes or Endnotes should be used only if absolutely necessary and must be identified in the text by consecutive numbers, enclosed in square brackets and listed at the end of the article.

Figures

All Figures (charts, diagrams, line drawings, web pages/ screenshots, and photographic images) should be submitted in electronic form. All Figures should be of high quality, legible and numbered consecutively with Arabic numerals. Graphics may be supplied in color to facilitate their appearance on the online database. Figures created in MS Word, MS PowerPoint, MS Excel should be supplied in their native formats. Electronic figures created in other applications should be copied from the origination software and pasted into MS Word template document. Photographic images should be inserted in the main body of the article and of high quality.

Tables

Tables should be typed and included in the main body of the article. The position of tables should be inserted in the text as close to the point of reference as possible. Ensure that any superscripts or asterisks are shown next to the relevant items and have corresponding explanations displayed as footnotes to the table, figure or plate.

Authors who wish to include these items should save them together in the MS Word file to be uploaded with the submission. If they are to be included, a brief professional biography of 100 words maximum should be supplied for each named author.

Authors must declare all sources of external research funding in their article and a statement to this effect should appear in the Acknowledgements section.

References

METAL prefers articles which refer mainly to journal articles, research reports, and conference proceedings, rather than rely heavily on textbooks or handbooks to demonstrate articles' novelty in the subject discussed. The use of Mendeley as a tool in referencing is encouraged. References should be carefully checked for completeness, accuracy, and consistency.

Author(s) should cite publications in the text following the IEEE style. At the end of the paper, a reference list in alphabetical order should be supplied as follows:

For books: 
Surname, Initials (year), Title of Book, Publisher, Place of publication.

For book chapters: 
Surname, Initials (year), "Chapter title", Editor's Surname, Initials, Title of Book, Publisher, Place of publication, pages. 

For journals:
Surname, Initials (year), "Title of article", Journal Name, volume issue, pages, DOI link.

For published conference proceedings: 
Surname, Initials (year of publication), "Title of paper", in Surname, Initials (Ed.), Title of published proceeding which may include place and date(s) held, Publisher, Place of publication, Page numbers, DOI link.

For unpublished conference proceedings: 
Surname, Initials (year), "Title of paper", paper presented at Name of Conference, date of the conference, place of conference, available at: URL if freely available on the internet (accessed date).

For working papers: 
Surname, Initials (year), "Title of article", working paper [number if available], Institution or organization, Place of the organization, date.

For encyclopedia entries (with no author or editor): 
The title of Encyclopedia (year) "Title of entry", volume, edition, Title of Encyclopedia, Publisher, Place of publication, pages. (For authored entries please refer to book chapter guidelines above)

For newspaper articles (authored): 
Surname, Initials (year), "Article title", Newspaper, date, pages.

For newspaper articles (non-authored):
Newspaper (year), "Article title", date, pages. For archival or other unpublished sources Surname, Initials, (year), "Title of the document", Unpublished Manuscript, collection name, inventory record, the name of the archive, location of the archive.

For electronic sources: 
If available online, the full URL should be supplied at the end of the reference, as well as a date that the resource was accessed. Standalone URLs, i.e. without an author or date, should be included either within parentheses within the main text, or preferably set as a note (roman numeral within square brackets within text followed by the full URL address at the end of the paper).