The goal of the Florida Board of Professional Engineers in publishing its quarterly Connection newsletter is to report on FBPE, the Florida Engineers Management Corporation, and Board staff actions and activities. In addition, FBPE will accept and publish, at its sole discretion, articles from recognized professional and academic organizations wishing to disseminate industry-related information.

FBPE StylebookFBPE welcomes submissions of articles from recognized professional engineering associations or societies, and engineering colleges or universities on industry-related topics, events, or noteworthy accomplishments and achievements.

Articles submitted by recognized professional and academic organizations are to be specific to the engineering profession and its related industries. In addition, submitted articles are to:

  • Disseminate industry specific news, updates, or activities; or
  • Communicate events, noteworthy accomplishments, and/or achievements relating to the engineering profession.

Submitted articles are not to:

  • Contain interpretations, in any form, of Chapter 471, Florida Statutes, or Chapter 61G15, Florida Administrative Code.
  • Contain opinions on or offer any positions related to Chapter 471, F.S., or Chapter 61G15, F.A.C.
  • Promote a position or make a call to action on political or otherwise controversial topics. A recognized professional or academic organization may however, report on its particular position on an engineering-related issue and may cite the factual basis for its particular position.

FBPE prefers original work, but will consider reprints with proper permission from the original source. Please refer to the guidelines below for style, formatting, and graphics.

Since Connections is no longer printed and mailed, all articles are posted on the FBPE website and are accessible by the general public.

ARTICLE PREPARATION

A. General

The editorial staff prefers authors submit an abstract and outline first, so we can advise you if the content or length is likely to be a problem. Please email queries to publicinfo@fbpe.org.

The detailed abstract and outline should include not just the title, but what will be discussed in the article, what graphics (tables, figures, charts, photos, etc.) will be included, and the approximate length if available. Providing an abstract and outline will allow for an initial assessment by the editorial staff and eliminate any potential publication issues prior to a formal review. If, however, you have already written an article and you think it might be suitable for our publication, please submit it for review.

B. Format

All articles must adhere to the following guidelines. If not, authors will be notified to make the necessary corrections and resubmit before it undergoes the review process.

  • Articles are to be written in English, and submitted as an editable Microsoft Word document.
  • Articles are to be typed in 12-point Times New Roman typeface, and single-spaced. All formatting such as bold, italics, bullets, and paragraph indents are to be manually formatted as opposed to automatically formatted.
  • Articles should be between 500 and 1,500 words. Shorter articles can be accepted at the discretion of the newsletter editor.
  • Articles are to have page numbers in the bottom center of the footer area beginning with the first page as number 1.

C. Tables, Illustrations, Photographs, and Artwork

All tables, illustrations, photographs, and artwork that accompany and are part of submitted articles must adhere to the following guidelines. If not, authors will be notified to make the necessary corrections and resubmit before it undergoes the review process.

  • Tables, illustrations, photographs, and artwork must be your original work, or include written permission for publication from the copyright holder.
  • Figures or captions are required with all tables, illustrations, photographs, and artwork, and should be included in a separate document.
  • Tables should be organized and supplement the information provided in the article. They should be numbered in the order they are mentioned in the article and include the table title and footnotes.
  • All illustrations or photographs are to be submitted in a high-quality electronic format of at least 300 dpi for reproduction. Acceptable formats include jpg or tif.
  • Artwork such as drawings, charts, and graphs should be professional quality at a minimum. Acceptable formats include jpg or tif, or Adobe Illustrator files.

The editorial staff reserves the right to trim, crop, modify, or eliminate any table, illustration, photograph, or artwork that is submitted for any reason and at its sole discretion. If you do not have any photographs to submit with your article, the editorial staff at its sole discretion may include graphics it deems appropriate.

D. Editing

When you submit your article, it will be reviewed by the editorial staff, FBPE’s counsel, and its board members. The editorial staff reserves the right to edit spelling, grammar, style, formatting, content, and length for any reason and at its sole discretion. Articles will be edited to conform to the Associated Press Stylebook. The author will have an opportunity to review comments or answer questions that come out of the editing process, and provide to final approval.

All articles submitted by recognized professional or academic organizations and ultimately published will be followed by the following disclaimer:

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the contributing writer and their organization, and do not necessarily reflect the official policy, official position views, or opinions of the Florida Board of Professional Engineers. FBPE does not endorse any recommendation or opinion made by a third-party submitter and is not responsible for any use thereof.

Please note that because of deadline issues you will not see the typeset pages until the article is published.

ARTICLE SUBMISSION

A. Organization and Author Information

If the article is ultimately published, the name and logo of the organization will be listed along with the name and organizational title of the article’s author. Please include:

  • Name and address of the organization (including website address);
  • Organization’s contact person’s name, title, and contact information (including email);
  • Author’s name, position with organization, and contact information (including email).

B. Release of Copyright

By submission of the article, both the author and the organization warrant that they have full rights to any material, tables, illustrations, photographs, and artwork. Further, by submission of the article, the author and the organization that it is being submitted on behalf of waive and release any copyright and grant FBPE full authority to edit, alter, publish, and republish.

C. Transmission

All submissions should include:

All submissions should be sent via email to publicinfo@fbpe.org.