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The purpose of this paper is to look at two particular aspects of open access megajournals, a new type of scholarly journals. Such journals only review for scientific soundness and leave the judgment of scientific impact to the readers. The two leading journals currently each publish more than 20,000 articles per year. The publishing speed of such journals and acceptance rates of such journals are the topics of the study.

Submission, acceptance and publication dates for a sample of articles in 12 megajournals were manually extracted from the articles. Information about acceptance rates was obtained using web searches of journal home pages, editorials, blogs, etc.

The time from submission to publication varies a lot, with engineering megajournals publishing much more rapidly. But on average it takes almost half a year to get published, particularly in the high-volume biomedical journals. As some of the journals have grown in publication volume, the average review time has increased by almost two months. Acceptance rates have slightly decreased over the past five years, and are now in the range of 50–55 percent.

This is the first empirical study of how long it takes to get published in megajournals and it highlights a clear increase of around two months in publishing. Currently, the review process in the biomedical megajournals takes as long as in regular more selective journals in the same fields. Possible explanations could be increasing difficulties in finding willing and motivated reviewers and in a higher share of submissions from developing countries.

The purpose of this paper is to look at third party journal portals, which facilitate the low-cost publishing of open access journals. Portals have become very important enablers for converting journals published by scholarly societies and universities to open access, in particular in the social sciences and humanities.

Portals were identified using a combination of methods including a literature search, interviews with experts, a key word web search and by analyzing web addresses and publishers in data from the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ).

In total, 21 portals fitting our definition were identified. Together these published more than 6,000 journals. They contribute around 10 percent of the journals indexed in the DOAJ, and the content is very highly skewed to certain countries, in particular Latin America and Asia.

While there have been earlier case study reports about individual portals, especially SciElo, this is probably the first systematic study of this phenomenon as a whole.

The scientific publishing process has during the past few years undergone considerable changes. The socio‐economic structures have, however, not changed much, and many academics and librarians view the current situation as highly unsatisfactory. This has triggered a number of initiatives to set up e‐print repositories and electronic peer reviewed journals, which usually offer the full text for free on the Web. Serious in‐depth research studying the way the scholarly communication system is affected by the Internet is needed. In this article a formal process model of the scientific publishing process is presented (the Scientific Publication Life‐Cycle Model). The model has been developed in particular to provide a basis for studying the cost implications of different business models. It describes the life‐cycle of the single publication, in particular the refereed journal article, from the research leading to it and writing it, to being read by other researchers years later or used as a catalyst for practical implementation. Conclusions are drawn about the usefulness of the modelling methodology for this particular purpose as well as of future uses of the model itself. In addition to providing a basis for cost studies the model could function as a road map for different types of open access initiatives.

The purpose of this paper is to describe a bibliometric study of journal articles in Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI) related to open access journals. Publication trends from 1993 to 2016, core journals, prolific authors and article citation frequencies were examined to provide librarians and scholars with a basic reference of relevant resources.

Among articles published in journals which have been listed in SSCI during 1993-2016, titles were searched for the term “open access journal”. The data were evaluated in response to five research questions concerning topics including publication trends from 1993 to 2016, core journals, prolific authors and article citation frequencies.

In total, 115 articles on open access journals were authored by 215 individuals from 1993 to 2016. The 115 articles analyzed were cited 842 times in 57 journals.

This paper describes a bibliometric study on open access journal publication, which has rarely been performed within the specific context of document supply issues. It provides a foundation for further research on titles as well as resources for librarians and scholars.

A model of the information and material activities that comprise the overall construction process is presented, using the structured analysis and design technique (SADT) activity modelling methodology. The basic model is refined into a number of generic information handling activities such as the creation of new information, information search and retrieval, information distribution and person‐to‐person communication. The viewpoint could be described as that of information logistics. The model is then combined with a more traditional building process model, consisting of key phases such as design and construction. The resulting two‐dimensional matrix can be used for positioning different types of generic IT‐tools or construction‐specific applications. The model can thus provide a starting point for a discussion of the application of information and communication technology in construction and for measuring its impact on the overall process and its related cost.

The aim of this paper is to study the use of internet‐based document management systems in a project‐based industry (construction).

The paper is based on a number of empirical studies in which the author has been involved, conducted over a long period in Sweden and Finland.

The central problems in putting electronic document management (EDM) systems into practical use are not technical, but relate to psychological and management issues. Issues discussed in the paper include very complex metadata and folder structures, the use of parallel paper distribution even after EDM has been introduced, the difficulty of measuring the benefits of system introduction and the split of users into document uploaders and downloaders.

The paper provides useful advice on factors to consider for project teams planning the use of EDM systems in their projects. It summarises the results of a number of studies which have used a variety of research techniques.

The paper has the purpose of demonstrating that (business) process modelling can be used to portray facilities management as a hierarchical set of activities which combine to satisfy the business needs of the client organisation. The paper aims to show, through a top‐down approach, how service provision must be set in a wide context if its role in fulfilling those needs is to be successful. The question of whether or not to outsource services is given particular prominence. A secondary purpose is to show how best practice and attempts to improve current practice can benefit from the modelling approach.

Business process (IDEF0) modelling is used to portray the facilities management process from the perspective of the client organisation.

Service provision must be set in a wide context if decisions and their outcomes are to be consistent with the delivery of best value and customer satisfaction. The model of the facilities management process presented in the paper shows, for instance, where and how the decision to outsource or retain services in‐house fits into the total picture. The transparency afforded by the model and the procedures that can be derived from it will enable clients to reach a competent decision and not one based on incomplete consideration. Furthermore, clients are able pursue a policy of continual improvement and with that practices that can be regarded as “best” in their context. As a template of current best practice, the model is also the context for evaluating the worth of new insights and novel practices.

The model is limited to a top‐down approach to the facilities management process; as such, it does not consider very detailed issues.

There exists no authoritative model of the facilities management process from the client's perspective. The issue of context has not received adequate treatment in the literature.

The role of information middlemen, or infomediaries, in the construction sector in producing and delivering value for their customers is explored. Today, virtually all major participants in construction use and produce their data in some kind of digital form. The same is true of infomediaries, who provide them with digital information services. The emergence of the Internet has radically changed the boundary conditions for enterprising infomediaries, creating new business opportunities in the networked value chains that have evolved and threatening the existence of those infomediaries who fail to re‐engineer their operations. The construction sector is often described as a value chain that produces buildings. The construction value chain also produces information and this aspect is often overlooked. The paper presents, through the medium of an IDEF0 model, parts of the construction value chain relevant to the pursuit of customer value. The focus of the model is not on the physical building, but on the production of information and of product information in particular. The viewpoint is that of the infomediary and is based on the case of a national enterprise. The model is used to explore in detail how value is aggregated, how it is delivered and received. It compares the creation of product information by manufacturers with that of infomediaries and proposes transaction cost theory as a tool for the analysis. Overall, the findings indicate that the model needs to be extended to several customer groups downstream and upstream in the value chain. It also reveals a need for a deeper understanding of the concept of customer value. The paper concludes that the model has proved useful in gaining a deeper understanding of customer needs among information providers as well as users. The model has been validated through action research which has helped to strengthen existing strategies and led to new insights. It has also had an impact on existing and proposed services of the enterprise being studied.

The purpose of this paper is to consider the changes that have taken place in Interlending & Document Supply over the past 12 years.

Research of the past 48 literature reviews published in Interlending & Document Supply.

Over the past 12 years, Interlending & Document Supply has declined dramatically in much of the world, although less so in the US. It is likely to increase in the developing world but not as much as to compensate for the decline elsewhere.

This is the only study that has been made of the changes in document supply in this century.