The Provision of NIHR Journals Library: Production Services

The University is seeking to engage a supplier with a strong track record of successfully delivering publishing production services within scholarly communications field. During 2022, the NIHR Journal Library (NJL) plans to transition to a new publishing model - a "threaded-publication" format. Instead of publishing a monograph the NJL will publish a series of shorter research articles during the course of the research, that will report on the different elements of the commissioned work - then threading the articles and a synopsis document together online to provide complete publication of the commissioned research.

To achieve this, the following activities summarise what is considered within scope of this procurement:

• Editorial and production management of NJL peer-reviewed and accepted manuscripts through to delivery of files that meet NJL publishing model and web platform specification
• To include copy-edit, artwork redraw, Typesetting XML-First, proofing, metadata management, Indexing.
• Journal development - there will be variations to the contract during the contracting period relating to an increase to the numbers of expected manuscripts
• The provision or management of the NJL website is excluded from the scope of this project.

Total and complete publication of research findings is part of the NIHR's commitment to the principles of open access and adding value to all stages of research, ensuring best use of public money to benefit the health and wealth of the nation.

The NIHR was the world's first health and care research funder to publish comprehensive accounts of its commissioned research within its own publicly and permanently available online journal series. The NIHR Journals Library currently comprises a suite of five open access peer-reviewed journals reporting results from a range of health and care research areas.

They are:

• Health Technology Assessment
• Efficacy and Mechanism Evaluation
• Health and Social Care Delivery Research
• Public Health Research
• Programme Grants for Applied Research

A sixth journal, Global Health Research, is in development and will be added to the suite of journals during the proposed contract term.