The activity of PH “Akademperiodyka”, which has grown into Specialized Printery of Scientific Journals of NAS of Ukraine, is aimed at informing, including early, of national and international public about the status and achievements of Ukrainian science. First of all, this is the preparation and issue of general academic journals “Bulletin of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine”, “Reports of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine”, “Science and Innovation”, “Space Science and Technologies” and implementation of the Support Program for Journals of NAS of Ukraine, which now covers a third of journals, the founders of which includes NAS of Ukraine. The second are of activity of “Akademperiodyka” is the publication of scientific, popular scientific and educational literature. At the same time, the Publishing House as a scientific institution is the basic organization of the Scientific Publishing Council of NAS of Ukraine and the Academy’s polygraphic base for the development of which the Presidium of NAS of Ukraine makes considerable efforts.
Indeed, in 1964, by the decision of policymakers the Ukrainian Academy has been deprived of its own printing capacity. The printing house was transferred to the State Committee of the Council of Ministers of the Ukrainian SSR for Publishing, Printing and Book Trade. Especially negative consequences of this decision the Academy felt after the collapse of the USSR. Science then was financed on a residual principle, which is why scientific periodicals found themselves on the brink of extinction. Then, on April 21, 1995, in order to create the necessary conditions for the circulation of scientific journals on the initiative of the SPC of NAS of Ukraine the Presidium of NAS of Ukraine has decided to organize a printery of scientific journals.
The birth of the Printery happened during the hard times of transition. Due to lack of funding the Academy had to virtually suspend the publication of books, journals and collections of scientific papers.
The Scientific Publishing Council of NAS of Ukraine chaired by Academician V.V. Nemoshkalenko performed extensive works developing the concept of preservation and support of scientific literature, especially periodicals. The idea of creating a printery of scientific journals proved very timely and promising. The National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine won the grant of the International Science Foundation (Soros Foundation) – these funds were used to purchase the first printing equipment. But it was not enough to start production of journals. Some significantly worn equipment was fortunately purchased for next to nothing, then restored and put into operation. It works even now. The difficult stage of equipping the Printery and adjustment process of publishing production took just over a year took. To a great extent the formation of the Printery happened due to the enthusiasm and hard work of its first director L.F. Kurtenko.
The next step was the decision on creation within the Printery of scientific journals of the Presidium of NAS of Ukraine of an editorial and publishing division, which includes the journal editorials of “Bulletin of NAS of Ukraine” and “Reports of NAS of Ukraine” to consolidate editorial, publishing and printing processes of their publication.
After four years the specialized Printery was carrying out editorial preparation and publication of 14 periodicals of NAS of Ukraine, had modern printing and computer equipment and was ready for a significant expansion of publishing activity, actually going beyond the printing station.
So came about the reasons for reorganization of the Specialized Printery of Scientific Journals in a scientific establishment – Publishing House “Akademperiodyka” of NAS of Ukraine. Accordingly the main tasks of the new institution are expanding: not only publication, printing and distribution of scientific journals of NAS of Ukraine and their electronic versions, but also the provision of printing services to editorials of academic periodicals, methodical and consultative advice on all matters relating to the practice of releasing scientific publishing products.
In 2011, “Akademperiodyka” together with scientific institutions has produced 40 sets of scientific periodicals and full color general academic popular science journal “Svitogliad”. The Publisher has mastered color printing and production of books in hard and soft cover.
Today, the Publishing House is charged with, in addition to annual program of support for journals of NAS of Ukraine, the implementation of several academic book publishing projects: “Ukrainian Scientific Book in a Foreign Language” and “Science for All”. Also, “Akademperiodyka” produces reference books of the Scientific Publishing Council of NAS of Ukraine: catalogs of books and periodicals, the series “Science of Ukraine in the Global Information Space” and publication of general academic series “Bibliography of Scientists of Ukraine”. An important achievement of “Akademperiodyka” is the commemorative bilingual (Ukrainian and Russian) publication “M.V. Keldysh and Ukrainian Science. To the 100th Anniversary of the Scientist” and “B.E. Paton: 50 Years at the Head of the Academy.”
Evidence of high quality of “Akademperiodyka” products is the awards and honors received by book publication at competitions and exhibitions in Ukraine and abroad. So, the winner of the mentioned International Competition “Scientific Book” of the International Association of Academies of Sciences in 2010 was a set of books by O.K. Supronyuk “Literal Environment of Early Gogol” and “N.V. Gogol and His Entourage in the Nizhyn Gymnasium”.
In 2011 in the same competition laureate diplomas were received for publications “M.V. Keldysh and Ukrainian Science. To the 100th Anniversary of the Scientist” (nomination “Cooperation”) and “Devonian Conodonts of the Southwestern Margin of the East European Platform” (author – D.M. Drygant, nomination “Natural Sciences”).
In 2012 the laureate diploma of this competition in the “Natural Science” nomination were awarded to the Publishing House Akademperiodyka for books “Life in Hydrosphere” and the winner diploma and the highest award – a crystal book for the publication “B.E. Paton: 50 Years at the Head of the Academy (Nomination “Grand Prix”).
Today, the Publishing House “Akademperiodyka” of NAS of Ukraine has a fundamental task – to become a powerful printing base of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine to fully meet the publishing needs of all the institutions of the Academy, including – to ensure efficient polygraphic making of products prepared by the publisher “scientific opinion”.
In order to create in the Academy a full publishing cycle the Presidium of NAS of Ukraine gave PH “Akademperiodyka” a five story engineering laboratory building with a total area of almost 8000 m2. Overhaul and refurbishment of it into a publishing and printing complex has begun. Along the way the issue of renewal of the printing machinery is being solved. These steps should lead to a significant improvement of the quality of the scientific literature and to increase the role of academic publishers in its release.
The current lack of facilities and equipment makes it impossible to significantly increase the volume of published products, so for now PH “Akademperiodyka” is making significant efforts for conducting research and advisory activities. In order to study the publishing activity of the NAS of Ukraine in-depth within the Publishing House as a basic institution of SPC of NAS of Ukraine a group of scientific and methodological support for publishing has been created, which monitors periodical and book publications of the Academy, prepares recommendations for improving the system of academic publishing, analyzes the state of the legal framework and more.
In particular, “Akademperiodyka” from 2009 has launched annual scientific and practical conferences “Scientific Periodicals: Tradition and Innovation”. These events attract great interest of publishing practitioners not only from the Academy, but also from universities and research institutions of departmental subordination.