First, email a short outline or abstract (summary paragraph) to Editor-in-Chief Ellen Parson at [email protected], explaining your topic, how it is a good fit for our readers, and what technical expert will be writing the piece (include a very short bio). This person should preferably be an engineer or technical person, not someone in a marketing, PR, product manager, or sales role. Once the editor has reviewed your outline, you will be contacted with feedback and notification as to whether your article will be accepted or not. If the editor agrees to proceed, you will be given deadlines and specific next steps via email. Content accepted for publication may appear in EC&M print, online at ecmweb.com, in various EC&M e-newsletters, and/or in custom e-books.
Note: Per corporate policy, we do require all authors (or a company representative) to sign our author agreement form before content is published in print or online for the protection of both parties.
Target Audience
EC&M magazine is the technical authority for 125,500+ electrical professionals who design, construct, and maintain electrical systems for all types of businesses and industries, including consulting electrical engineers in private practice; electrical contractors with in-house engineers, designers, estimators, project managers, field superintendents and general foremen; electrical inspectors; plant facility electrical maintenance personnel working in industrial plants and/or commercial and industrial facilities; and equipment-repair personnel (testing and apparatus maintenance companies). We focus on low- (600V and below) and medium-voltage (above 600V to 35kV) systems, equipment, and feeders. Our coverage begins where the electric utility service ends. Thus, articles in the electric utility transmission and distribution field are not a good fit (please pitch those topics to our sister publication T&D World).
Topics/Areas of Interest
- Lighting and control
- Motors and controllers
- Testing and maintenance
- National Electrical Code
- Power distribution
- Safety and training
- Voice/data/video
- Installation methods
- Intelligent building
- How-to articles on technical electrical topics
- Best practices
- Emergency and standby power
- Security and life safety
- Energy management
- Renewables
- Electric vehicle charging infrastructure
- Power quality
- Electrical design
- Evolving technologies/developments
- Codes and standards
- Market and construction trends
- Business management
Content Types
In-depth technical feature article: This is EC&M’s preferred content type, which discusses a technical electrical topic in detail (e.g., grounding and bonding, troubleshooting motors, arc flash, power quality). Although we do accept contributions from manufacturers, the piece must be completely vendor-neutral and non-promotional. Once your outline is approved, please prepare a 1,200- to 2000-word article on the topic. Authors are also encouraged to submit graphics for consideration to accompany the text. This should include at least one or more high-resolution photos (prefer action shots… people interacting with electrical equipment, including troubleshooting, installation, maintenance… not product shots), electrical schematics/diagrams, charts, graphs, tables, and/or sidebars. Example:
https://www.ecmweb.com/basics/bonding-grounding/article/21247240/the-basics-of-grounding-bonding-electrical-systems
Department/thought leadership piece: Prepare a 500- to 1,500-word article on a pressing issue in the electrical industry. This could be related to a “how to” process, industry pain point, electrical basics, theory or misconception, industry trends, best practices, and shorter technical articles that look at a specific aspect of the design, installation or maintenance of electrical equipment.
Example:
https://www.ecmweb.com/safety/fire-security/article/21181694/fires-caused-by-poor-connections
Photo Gallery/Slide Show: Collect 8-12 images that tell a technical electrical story, include a short intro (about 200 words) and a caption for each photo. Horizontal images at least 1,000 pixels wide are optimal.
Example:
https://www.ecmweb.com/maintenance-repair-operations/media-gallery/20902080/13-preventable-busway-failures-you-never-want-to-see
News: These traditional news stories should run about 500 to 750 words. To be considered, they must be non-promotional.
Example:
https://www.ecmweb.com/safety/article/21244556/schneider-electric-recalls-14-million-electrical-panels
New Product: For a product to be considered for publication in our “New Product Showcase,” “Editor’s Choice: Top Product Picks,” or other product sections, please submit a 50- to 200-word press release (description of the product), high-resolution photos of the product, and a link to the company or product website. The product must be new to the market, and photos must be 150 dpi or better and in a .png or .jpg format. If applicable, please specify what category the product is intended for (e.g., personal protective equipment, boxes & enclosures, test & measurement). All product materials should be emailed to Associate Editor Michael Morris at [email protected].
Example:
https://www.ecmweb.com/product-sourcing-supply/media-gallery/21249021/editors-choice-top-product-picks-for-august-2022
Video/podcast: If you are a subject matter expert who has an idea for video content or a podcast topic, please contact Ellen Parson directly at [email protected] for further guidelines.
Video examples:
Tech Talk
https://www.ecmweb.com/design/article/21249931/ecm-tech-talk-video-episode-15-ev-opportunities-installation-and-maintenance
Moving Violations
https://www.ecmweb.com/members/videos/moving-violations/article/21249896/moving-violations-video-no-270-uf-wiring-concerns
EC&M Asks Example to come
Podcast examples:
EC&M On Air
https://www.ecmweb.com/top-40-electrical-design-firms-landing-page/article/21248907/ecm-on-air-podcast-episode-15-talking-trends-with-the-2022-top-40-executives
Code Conversations
https://www.ecmweb.com/members/podcasts/code-conversations/article/21248209/code-conversations-podcast-episode-11-why-section-42230-has-a-wide-range-of-interpretations
Whitepaper: We accept traditional whitepapers that could be repurposed for the magazine; these may already be on your site or in your files. Some technical whitepapers that have no promotional slant may be able to be edited into a feature article. However, most whitepapers will fall into the “sponsored category” option. Fee-based sponsored content is always an option for promotional material. If interested, email Executive Vice President Mike Hellmann at [email protected].
Conference presentation: Many technical presentations given by subject matter experts at industry seminars and events are the perfect candidates for future magazine articles or online content. If you have a presentation you think could be repurposed in print or online, please send the PowerPoint slides to Ellen Parson at [email protected] for review and feedback.
Newsletter content: Not all content is best suited for print. We welcome contributions from subject matter experts for all of our industry e-newsletters, including:
- ElectricalZone (weekly): Offering late-breaking news items from around the industry, exclusive business/technical feature articles, and previews of upcoming industry shows and events.
- CodeWatch (weekly): Delivering information about the National Electrical Code. Bolstered by material from three of the most well-respected Code experts in the business.
- Illumination Insider (bimonthly): Tracking the research, development, design, installation and operation trends of all types of lighting and control products.
- PQ Newsbeat (monthly): Targeting engineers, commercial and industrial facility personnel, and electric utility managers concerned about the quality, stability and availability of their buildings’ power supplies.
- MRO Insider (monthly): Delivering practical maintenance, repair and operations guidance, the items in this newsletter challenge readers to improve their skill set.
- E-Train (monthly): Bringing readers the latest information on industry-specific training for the electrical professional.
- Safety Matters (bimonthly): Educating the market on the electrical safety front.
- Facilities Focus (bimonthly): Delivering critical know-how on solutions, products and best practices for managing facilities and buildings efficiently. Topics covered include energy management, security, mechanical systems, lighting, IAQ and design considerations.
Contact Ellen Parson at [email protected] if you’re interested in contributing to one or more of our e-newsletters.
Editorial Webinars: We are always looking for subject matter experts to provide technical content for our highly attended webinars. Please pitch webinar ideas to Ellen Parson at [email protected] for review and feedback.
Example:
https://www.ecmweb.com/members/webinars/webinar/21241250/grounding-bonding-basics-for-electrical-systems
General Considerations
- Include at least one photo (preferably more) with each article submission. Horizontal images at least 1,000 pixels wide are optimal. Do not send photos of unsafe acts. Ensure people in the photos are wearing the proper PPE as required for whatever job they are performing in the photo. Also include separate captions with each image, detailing the electrical scope or work, action, lesson learned. All graphics will be referenced in the main text (e.g., See Figure 1).
- Please submit your article in Microsoft Word format. It’s fine to embed photos, drawings, tables, or graphics into that Word file for reference. However, we will need the original high-res graphics files emailed as separate images (.png or .jpg) to use in print.
- All content must be vendor-neutral and non-promotional. New product releases are obviously the exception. However, avoid commercial language and claims in product descriptions that cannot be substantiated such as “best in class,” “better than,” “unprecedented,” etc.
- If you provide a photo, diagram, or illustration that’s the property of someone else (e.g., from a textbook or a manufacturer’s literature), you must include a letter of permission from the owner.
- Don’t worry about deadlines. We are constantly looking for good material. For reference, our print deadlines are the first of the previous month (e.g., March 1 deadline for the April issue).
- Articles/columns are accepted or rejected at the sole discretion of our editor in charge of contributors. If your article is accepted, you will be required to sign an author agreement form.
- Contributed copy is subject to editing by the editor, who has the final say. That said, the editor will work with the author to reach a mutually agreeable final version as well as ensure the author can accuracy check all technical information contained in the final edited version.
- If the author is new to EC&M, please include a headshot (dimensions at least 300x300 pixels and 72 dpi) and an author bio. If the byline is shared, send photos and bios for both authors.
- Please clearly state where any outside facts in the article come from (statistics, surveys, industry trends, technical citations), either within the article or through a hyperlink in the text. Attribution should be the original source, not a secondary source that mentions the statistic. We also do not include footnotes or citations in our feature articles as an academic paper would. So, if desired, please incorporate that type of information into the main body text of the article (e.g., “According to this study by this organization on this date titled this…”).
- EC&M editors must balance many factors in determining how much material will appear for any given article as well as when and where the content will be slotted (print, online, newsletters, etc.). An accepted article may take weeks or months to appear for a variety of reasons so please be patient.