The Publications Division of the American Chemical Society (ACS) has launched the ACS Publishing Center, a unified manuscript submission platform powered by ChronosHub that is now available across all ACS journals. It is designed to streamline author workflows and improve efficiency during the publishing process.This system consolidates author workflows into one clear interface, allowing researchers to easily upload manuscripts, review extracted metadata, and engage with their submission throughout the entire editorial process. Automated workflows reduce redundant data entry and administrative burden, helping authors and editorial teams move submissions forward more efficiently, and 86% of authors rated the submission process as easy or very easy.
"The implementation of the ACS Publishing Center across our journal portfolio is a significant step in our service to the global scientific community," says Sarah Tegen, Senior Vice President and Chief Publishing Officer of ACS Publications. "We've created an intuitive submission experience that ensures authors can focus on the pursuit of scientific discoveries that improve all lives rather than on navigating complex systems."
The ACS Publishing Center was developed in partnership with ChronosHub, an independent ACS subsidiary that builds connective infrastructure for modern publishing workflows, and it demonstrates how scalable, interoperable systems can support a more efficient publishing experience across a large journal portfolio. Through ChronosHub, this infrastructure offers value not only for ACS Publications, but also for other publishers, institutions, and funders seeking flexible tools that connect across the scholarly publishing ecosystem.
"Together with ACS, we set out to give every author a better submission process while also raising the quality of submissions journals receive. This rollout delivers on that promise," says Christian Grubak, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of ChronosHub. "It's the same commitment behind our recent partnership with Aries Systems , and points to where the industry needs to go: a thriving ecosystem of tools that integrate with each other rather than lock publishers into rigid ways of working."
In recognition of the promise of this system, ChronosHub won a 2026 Excellence in Publishing, Information Technology & Communications (EPIC) Award from the Society for Scholarly Publishing (SSP) for the development of the ACS Publishing Center.
This milestone reflects ACS Publications' ongoing commitment to modernizing scholarly publishing infrastructure, improving efficiency for authors and partners, and supporting a more connected global research ecosystem.
