R&D JOURNAL

Thank you for your interest shown in the Research and Development (R&D) Journal of The South African Institution of Mechanical Engineering (SAIMechE).  The R&D Journal (ISSN 0257-9669 (print until 2008); ISSN 2309-8988 (online)) is a peer reviewed engineering science journal, the first issue of which was published during 1985. The Journal is presently fully accredited as a subsidised research journal with the South African State Department of Higher Education and is listed in the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ).

In line with international trends to increase the visibility and accessibility of mechanical engineering research, the SAIMechE Council, in consultation with the Editorial Advisory Board, has decided to publish SAIMechE's R&D Journal as an open-access internet edition from 2009 onwards.

All future editions of the R&D Journal will be published in PDF format on this website and will be available for public viewing and free download. Notification of new papers will be publicised in "TORQUE" (e-newsletter for members of SAIMechE) as well as the SA Mechanical Engineer and the homepage of this website.

The decision to publish the R&D Journal electronically is aimed at broadening the exposure of South African mechanical engineering research. It is envisaged that free access to the journal will increase readership, both locally and internationally. All electronic editions from Volume 25 onwards (2009 issue) will remain available on the website for future reference. We hope that you will continue to read and enjoy the Institution’s publications in the way that suits you best.

Please note that the file size of some papers may be over 2 Mb to download, especially the past papers.

History of the R&D Journal
The R&D Journal is a peer reviewed engineering science journal, the first issue of which was published during 1985. The Journal is presently fully accredited as a subsidised research journal with the South African State Department of Higher Education. 

The journal covers the full spectrum of South African mechanical engineering research, both academic and industrial and is supported by South African leading academics and has one of its aims to promote such research and its proponents in a constructive manner. 

Contact details for the R&D Journal can be found under the 'Contacts - R&D Journal tab, or click here.

R&D File Library:

How to use this file library:

• Please select the volume or year of the paper you are looking for;
• Scroll to find the specific paper;
• Click on the 'more' link to view the full title, abstract and authors. To download the paper, click on the download button.
• If you are not sure of the title of the paper you are searching for, try the ‘community search’ button on the top left corner of this page. Enter a keyword then select search. If the keyword you use is in the abstract, all papers that contain this keyword will show in the results of your search.