Problem Statement: IT Solutions: Raw DOCX to Publication-Ready Manuscript Automation

Background

In academic publishing, authors frequently submit raw .docx manuscripts without proper formatting. Editorial teams then spend considerable time manually converting these files into final, publication-ready documents, leading to delays, higher operational costs, and formatting inconsistencies.

The Challenge

Design an AI-driven software tool or application that converts an author’s unformatted DOCX manuscript into a fully formatted, publication-ready final copy using predefined journal or conference templates, with minimal or no manual intervention.

Key Requirements The solution should:

• Accept raw DOCX uploads
• Automatically format title, author details, abstract, headings, and paragraphs
• Correctly handle tables, figures, captions, and references
• Apply page layout rules (margins, headers/footers, page numbering)
• Export the final output as formatted DOCX (PDF optional)

Deliverables

Participants should submit:

• System workflow and architecture
• Formatting logic or template rules
• Prototype or wireframes (preferred)
• Sample before–after manuscript output

Goal: Reduce manual formatting effort and deliver fast, accurate, consistent, and scalable publication-ready manuscripts using AI-driven IT solutions.