Technical Report Writing

Technical Report Writing Handout
Dr. Glynis Perkin, G.Perkin@lboro.ac.uk
Engineering Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (engCETL)

Contents
Technical Report Writing Handout.....................................................................1
1.Introduction.....................................................................................................2
1.1What is a Report?.....................................................................................................2
1.2Different Types of Reports........................................................................................3
1.2.1 Technical–background report...................................................................3
1.2.2 Instruction Leaflets and Manuals..............................................................3
1.2.3 Feasibility Report......................................................................................3
1.2.4 Primary Research Report.........................................................................4
1.2.5 Technical Specifications...........................................................................4
1.2.6 Proposals..................................................................................................4
1.2.7 Business Prospectus................................................................................4
2 Structure of the Report....................................................................................5
2.1 Draft Plan.....................................................................................................5
2.2 Headings......................................................................................................5
3 Layout, Presentation and Style of Writing......................................................9
3.1 Layout..........................................................................................................9
3.2 Presentation...............................................................................................10
3.3 Style of Writing...........................................................................................11
4. Plagiarism and Referencing.........................................................................13
4.1 Plagiarism..................................................................................................13
4.2 References.................................................................................................13
5. Spelling, Grammar and Punctuation............................................................15
5.1 Spelling......................................................................................................15
5.2 Grammar and Punctuation.........................................................................16
6. Writing Your Report.....................................................................................19
6.1 From Start to Finish...................................................................................19
6.2 What Is Expected.......................................................................................19
6.3 Possible Shortcomings..............................................................................20
6.4 Checking your Report................................................................................20
Exercises for the Technical Report Writing Workshop....................................22
References and Bibliography...........................................................................23
References.......................................................................................................23
Bibliography.....................................................................................................23
Credits 24
List of Illustrations
Figures
Figure 1: Example layout............................................................................................-11-
Figure 2: Checklist for your technical report...............................................................-23-

Please note that this resource is accompanied by a PowerPoint presentation and is part of five workshops
on Key Skills for Engineering Undergraduates.

© Loughborough University 2009. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 License.

The workshops are:
 Working in Groups – 90 - 120 minutes

 Oral Presentations – 90 - 120 minutes

 Sourcing Material and Writing a Literature Review – 90 - 120 minutes

 Preparing for Placement – 120 - 150 minutes.

Please note there is also an introductory document providing general instructions on the workshops.

1. Introduction

The intention of this handout is to provide you with enough information to produce a
high quality technical report. A technical report is not something that is only written by
engineers and computer scientists. It is a report that may be written about any field of
specialised knowledge. You may need to produce several small reports during the
course of your undergraduate study as part of group coursework assignments. A larger
report will be required to describe your final year project.

As engineers, many of you will have entered university with science based A Levels
such as mathematics and physics or through a science foundation programme. With
your science backgrounds you may not have been exposed, since GCSE, to any
significant form of written assessment. However, you will be writing about a topic or
subject that is based on areas that you have studied and about which you are
knowledgeable. This is less daunting than being asked to write an essay where you
may be required to write about any subject or topic that is decided upon by your
lecturer. Your technical report, especially if it is submitted as your final year dissertation,
will probably be the largest and hopefully most professional single piece of assessed
work that you have undertaken whilst at university.

A report is a form of communication and without the knowledge to produce a good
report you will be hampered in your endeavours to succeed in your future careers.
When you enter the world of work, whether you are self-employed or an employee it will
be necessary for you to communicate with colleagues and others in a clear, concise,
and professional manner. This is an important skill regardless of the means of
communication. For example, in addition to the inevitable report writing that will be
required, it will also be expected that you are professional in your telephone
conversations and face-to-face meetings with others.

1.1 What is a Report?

A report is a means of communication that has been written for a specific purpose and
is aimed at a specific audience. It is more structured than an essay and is presented in
a way that enables it to be read quickly. Structure and styles of writing will be discussed
in detail in sections 2 and 3 respectively.

In a novel, characters and places are described in detail to enable the reader to imagine
the setting. Then events that involve the characters are described. Gradually the scenes
are set and at the end we have the grand finale. For instance, in a crime novel it is

© Loughborough University 2009.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 License.

almost on the last page that the culprit is revealed. A book obviously contains a
structure, not only is it divided into chapters but the actions that are described build
upon earlier events. What is significant is that the structure becomes apparent as the
reader progresses
through the book. On the other hand in technical report the results are given at the
beginning followed by the explanation. This enables others to view the report and
decide if it is relevant to their own work or not. This will ultimately determine whether or
not others decide to read it.

1.2 Different Types of Reports

There are many different types of report each of which has a different format and
emphasis. For instance, there are laboratory reports, which generally describe an
experiment that has been undertaken. Under the umbrella term of Technical Reports
there are, for example, primary research reports, technical-background reports,
feasibility reports, proposals, and business plans. Regardless of the type of report
common sense should prevail and you need to adapt your writing to suit your potential
audience and the specified requirements.

The following descriptions of various forms of technical reports have been adapted from
an Online Technical Writing Course Guide (the online textbook for online technical
communication courses at Austin Community College and other institutions worldwide).

1.2.1 Technical–background report
This is the most frequently written type of technical report. It provides detail about a
particular topic, for example: the spread of Japanese Knotwood, mobile phone
technology or coastal erosion. A technical background report on coastal erosion would
not contain references to every mathematical paper that has been written on water
waves. What it would contain is enough information to enable a particular audience to
use the information for their own needs. For instance, if a group of engineers were
looking to build a sea defence they would need details of the time scale involved and
the force of the waves but not detailed pages of wave theory.

1.2.2 Instruction Leaflets and Manuals
These may take the form of a user manual for an appliance or a procedure to be
followed in particular circumstances, such as fire alarm procedures. They may be short
(in the form of a small insert included with a product) to large volumes with detailed
instructions for setting up production lines.

1.2.3 Feasibility Report
This report is the result of an investigation into a particular project or idea to determine
its feasibility. The report will detail findings such as whether the project is technically
possible and feasible (i.e., practical).


1.2.4 Primary Research Report
Primary research is the term used to describe experiments and surveys. In this type of
report you extend the laboratory report by explaining the background to the experiment,
your methodology and the facilities.

1.2.5 Technical Specifications
This report details a new product design and gives information appertaining to the
product construction, the materials used and the product itself including its functions,
features, operation, and potential market. A specification is not a flowing piece of
writing; it tends to be fragmented with lists and tables replacing sentences.

1.2.6 Proposals
Some proposals, such as a bid in the real world i.e., for the Millennium Dome or the
National Lottery are extremely lengthy. Nevertheless, as a student you may be asked to
write a short proposal as an assessed piece of coursework.

1.2.7 Business Prospectus
This form of report is a proposal that may detail plans for starting a business venture or
extending an already established business. It will contain information about the
proposed business and provide details about the market place, anticipated share of the
market, other established businesses who you may be competing with for a market
share, financial issues etc.


2 Structure of the Report

This section will look at the importance of producing a draft plan, and the most
commonly occurring headings used in a technical report. In addition to the headings that
are detailed here, you may wish to include a glossary of terms and a bibliography. A
bibliography lists work that you have not directly referred to in your report but have
consulted.

2.1 Draft Plan

Before you rush to put pen to paper or switch on your computer and start typing it will be
advantageous to spend some time writing a draft plan, with a provisional timetable, to
ensure that a realistic amount of time is scheduled for all the stages of your work. This
draft will also contain the main sections. It is by making brief notes of the content that
will be included in each section that you will develop your structure and your sub-
headings will then evolve. It is important to apportion adequate time for writing your
report. It is impossible to write a good report quickly. A report that has been written the
evening before it is due to be submitted will inevitably lack structure and contain many
typing errors. It is not possible to obtain a good mark without spending considerable
time on the report. You need to be aware that to write in a formal yet clear and coherent
manner is not only difficult but also time consuming. This is the part of your work that
will be marked – it needs to be grammatically correct and professional. You may find it
helpful to have a large folder available before you start. Any ideas you may have, any
papers you read or references you may wish to follow up should all be kept together for
possible future use.

There are also some areas that are often overlooked such as identifying your audience,
checking your terms of reference and investigating any departmental guidelines or
requirements that detail the format that your report is to take. It is important that you
determine your audience, for example, are you writing for your peer group, the general
public or an academic in your department. Once you have determined your audience
you will be able to write your report at a level that is suitable for your audience. Ensure
that you read and re-read your terms of reference; you need to be certain that you are
doing exactly what it is you have been asked to do. The next section will detail the
headings that need to be included in a technical report but these must be taken as a
guideline only.

2.2 Headings

The following is a guideline and details a recommended structure for a technical report.
However, as mentioned earlier, it is imperative that you check within your department
for specific requirements or recommendations. Each main section/ chapter should
contain an introduction or paragraph explaining


what will follow. A technical report should contain the headings described in subsections
2.2.1 - 2.2.9.

2.2.1 Title Page

The title should be as long as is required to accurately describe your work and inform a
potential reader of the content. Your name and ID number should be included and it is
likely that you will also need to include your module code, course and the date; this is in
addition to completing a departmental cover sheet that will accompany your report.

2.2.2 Summary or Abstract

This summarises the contents of your report. It should include the purpose of the report,
details of what you have done, how you did it, the main findings, the conclusions that
were reached and any recommendations that you make. The abstract must be concise
yet informative, its purpose is to enable a potential reader to decide if they want to read
the whole of your report i.e., is your work relevant and of interest to them. It should not
exceed one page or a given word count in length. You will write this after you have
completed the rest of your report. To write this summary/ abstract, it may be helpful if
you first summarise the main points you have made in each section before combining
them into as brief as possible piece of writing.

2.2.3 Contents List

This shows the structure of the report; it lists each section and sub-section in numerical
order. A list of illustrations (broken down into two sections, namely Tables and Figures)
must also be included. A figure is a graph or an illustration whereas a table is exactly
what its title says. The references are considered to be part of your report and the item
heading 'References' is listed in the contents. The last item in the contents list is the
appendices. Page numbers for each section, table etc., must be included.

2.2.4 Introduction

This section provides an introduction to your work; it should also include your terms of
reference (or brief) and a general background to the subject area of the report with
references made to others who have worked in the area. This enables you to show that
you have read about your subject and are aware of current work in your particular field.
The introduction should detail not only the background to your research but also put into
context why your work is useful and the particular problem that is to be addressed. The
introduction is also the place for you to signpost your work, i.e., explain what you intend
to do, how you will do it and how your report will be structured.


2.2.5 Main Body of the Report

The main body of your report is likely to contain a methodology, results or findings and a
discussion.

Methodology
This section explains how you carried out your work. For example it will detail the
particular research methods you used, why you used a particular method (justification)
and how you analysed your findings.

Results or Findings
This section is where findings are presented, as concisely and clearly as possible, with
little discussion or analysis. Graphs, charts or diagrams may help your audience to
focus on the results you are presenting. These illustrations may be interspersed
throughout the text at convenient points or placed at the end of the main body of the
report. It is important that this section is well structured to enable your readers to follow
through your work. One word of warning - avoid complicated statistics unless you are
competent in this area. It is possible to produce an excellent report without recourse to
statistical analysis. Your results and findings may well be split into several sections each
of which may contain subsections. Guidance on layouts is given in section 3.1.

Discussion
This section discusses the results you have obtained and reported. For example, were
the results as anticipated or were they unexpected? You can now analyse your data
and interpret your results. For instance, was the technology you used of a high enough
specification to enable your results to be of a particular accuracy? If there are any
unexpected results or discrepancies you should suggest reasons why these have
occurred. Were there any time or funding constraints? If so you should mention this in
your discussion – this ensures that those who read your report are aware of any
shortcomings there may be. It will also remind you not to make any exaggerated claims
about your findings. It is important that you present a realistic interpretation of your
results, link them to what you were aiming to discover and if appropriate compare these
findings to those of others. This is an opportunity to refer back to what you said in your
introduction. Remember to refer back to your original brief, it is important that you either
show that you have done what was required or explain the reasons for inconclusive or
unusual results.

2.2.6 Conclusion and Recommendations

In your conclusion you will need to explain how your findings address the task or
objective that you were posed. Your conclusion should not contain mention of any
results that have not already been presented; the aim is to draw out possible
implications from your findings and to present them clearly and succinctly. Point out
what you have achieved. You may also make recommendations for future work; this is
particularly useful if your own results were inconclusive. For example, you could
suggest that your work is repeated with more sensitive equipment, over a longer time
scale or with more funding.

2.2.7 References

The References section is the final part of your report that is included in the word or
page count if one has been given. In the introduction a particular experiment or result


may have been referred to with the name of the author, date of publication and page
number included. In the references section information (in a prescribed format) must be
listed. This will ensure that anyone who reads your report and wants to see the material
you have cited will have enough information to be able to find it. Included in the
references are all the sources of information that you have referred to in your report.
There are different referencing conventions and these are discussed in section 4.2. To
avoid being accused of plagiarism it is imperative that work of others is accurately cited.

2.2.8 Acknowledgements

This is where you acknowledge any help and support you have received whether from
your supervisor, colleagues or external bodies. For instance, you may have been
loaned a piece of equipment, you may have received technical support or financial help.
There are two schools of thought on where the acknowledgements should be placed.
They may be included after the title page or after the references.

2.2.9 Appendices

The appendices appear at the end of your report and are where you place supporting
information such as memos and questionnaires. This ensures that your actual report
contains the most relevant material but the opportunity to view all the material is
available for those who want to avail themselves of it (this is likely to be your lecturer).
You may have more than one appendix and these may be labelled in an alphabetic or
numeric system (but not a combination of both), for example Appendix 1, Appendix 2 or
Appendix A, Appendix B. A title describing the contents of each appendix must also be
included. It must be possible to understand the report without recourse to the
appendices. The appendices should not contain any material that has not been
previously mentioned in your report.

Example 1: in your methodology you could discuss the questions that are to be posed
then mention that the questionnaire may be viewed in Appendix A.

Example 2: you could mention, for instance, that the manager of SupaSlik was
contacted and permission was sought to view the manufacturing process and then
continue by writing that a copy of the memo may be viewed in Appendix B.

The appendices are not included in the allowed word or page count. However, they
must be listed on the contents page and be of the same high standard as your report.


3 Layout, Presentation and Style of Writing

To facilitate ease of reading it is imperative that your report is well laid out in a
structured and well-organised manner. There are many different recommendations and
suggestions for the layout of a report, including that of a personalised approach, see, for
example, van Emden and Easteal, 1997. The most important issue is that you check
with your department, supervisor or lecturer for any specific requirements regarding
margin width, line spacing and choice of font. It is important that you are consistent with
your layout throughout the whole of your report.

3.1 Layout

It is usual to break down your contents into sections and subsections of up to three
levels. This enables someone reading your report to go directly to a section or sub-
section that is of particular interest to them. Figure 1 shows an example layout.

1. Inventory of Electrical Equipment

First level headings are used for your main sections i.e., the introduction,
the results, the conclusion. Each of these headings (it may help to think of
them as chapters) should be on a new page, centred and presented in bold
font of a larger size than the font you are using for your report. If you are
using 12pt font for your report then this heading could be in 16pt. There
should be a double line space before the first line of text is typed and the
text should not be indented.

1.1 Computer Equipment

Second level headings are used for your first subsection and should be left
aligned and presented in bold italic font. If you are using 12pt font for your
report then this heading could be in 14pt. There should be a single line
space before the first line of text is typed and the text should not be
indented.

1.1.1 Computers in Laboratories
Third level headings are used for your second sub-section and should be
left aligned and presented in bold font. If you are using 12pt font for your
report then this heading could be1: Example layout
Figure in 13pt.The text should be typed
immediately below this heading and not indented.
Tables may be numbered consecutively throughout the report or within each main
section, where, in this case, Table 3.3 would refer to the third table in section 3. It is
customary to centre the table number and its description and place this above the table.
All tables must be given an appropriate and meaningful title.

Figures may be numbered consecutively throughout the report or within each main
section. For instance, Figure 7 would refer to the seventh figure in the report. It is now
customary to centre the figure number and its description and place this below the
figure. All figures must be given an appropriate and meaningful title. In the case of


graphs it is important to label your axes, state the units you are using and apply a
sensible scale to ensure that intermediate values can easily be determined.

Each table and figure should have at least one cross-reference to it in the text. For
instance, an example showing the organisation of headings may be viewed in Figure 1.
It is customary to refer to the table or figure by its given number rather than ‘the table
below/ overleaf shows …’

The tables may be presented in the text at a convenient position for both layout and
viewing in relationship to the text that they relate to or they may be placed at the end of
the report. It is more convenient for your readers if they are placed close to the relevant
text.

Equations should be consecutively numbered or numbered within each section and
referred to in the text. For example, when numbering within sections, the third equation
in section 4 would be referred to as equation 4.3. Lengthy mathematical derivation or
mathematical proof should be placed in the appendices. However, it is appropriate to
include an equation that has been used to determine your results. For example, the
vorticity of the fluid was determined using equation 4.3.

Bullet points (if not over used) are useful as they clearly convey important points to
those reading your report.

Another aspect that must not be overlooked is the size of the margins. If your report is
to be bound then it is imperative that the left hand margin is large enough to allow for
binding.

3.2 Presentation

Sans-serif font such as Arial is generally used for text in memos, emails, lecture notes
and examination papers, however, equations and Greek characters are presented in
Times Roman. It may be a departmental requirement that your report should use a
particular font. It is for you, as an individual (or a group), to establish the font that may
be used. If in doubt use a sans–serif font. It is also important to determine the size of
font that is to be used and the line spacing that is required. If there are not any
specifications it is suggested that you use 12pt font with single line spacing. Text should
also


be left aligned. Avoid overuse of bold, underlining, italics and variations in font.
Following these recommendations will ensure that your report is easy to read.

It is also important that numbers less than 11 are presented in words; where sentences
commence with a number this should be presented as a word or words (see sample
sentences below).

a) Twelve different results were obtained from 36 tests undertaken on three machines.

b) Using three machines there were 36 tests undertaken, which produced 12 different
results.

However, there are exceptions to this, for example, when referring to figures and tables,
i.e., "… this information may be viewed in Figure 3".

It is important that you are consistent with your representation of information. For
example, fractions may be shown as:

2
3/5, , or ½
5

but do not use all three representations in your writing. It is advisable to use 3/5 or ½ in
your writing to prevent uneven line spacing.
2
Whereas is more likely to be used in equations.
5

The Système International (SI) units should be used, with large and small numbers
given in standard index form, i.e., 5 x 103 N.

Ensure that the first time you use an abbreviation or acronym the full description is give.
For example, within Higher Education (HE) it is expected that undergraduates become
highly autonomous learners. If many abbreviations or technical terms are used it will be
helpful to future readers of your report if you include a Glossary. The use of
capitalisation should also be consistent, for example, Engineering or engineering.

Another area that needs attention is the variations that exist between American and
English spelling i.e., color and colour.

3.3 Style of Writing

Current practice in scientific literature is to use the third person. This means that you
would not write, ‘I/ we have verified that all the results are included in the report’.
Instead you would write, ‘It has been verified that all the results are included in the
report’. ‘We will show that the experiment has produced some interesting results’ should
be written, 'It will be shown that the experiment has


produced some interesting results’. This can sound contrived and pompous;
nevertheless, it is the accepted style of writing for reports. It is important that you
determine what rules or guidelines (if any) have been made regarding any reports that
you undertake.

In addition to using the third person you may write in the active or passive voice. This
provides opportunity for you to place emphasis on the appropriate part of the sentence
as demonstrated in the following sentences.

Passive: The first steam locomotive was designed by George Stephenson.
Here the emphasis is on the first steam locomotive (the result or a fact).

Active: George Stephenson designed the first steam locomotive.
Here the emphasis is on George Stephenson (the person or thing who did it).

Passive: The accuracy of measurements has been improved by new laboratory
equipment.

Active: New laboratory equipment has improved the accuracy of measurements.


4. Plagiarism and Referencing

It is important to reference the work of others accurately in your writing to avoid being
accused of plagiarism. If you are found to have plagiarised the work of others you may
be subjected to disciplinary procedures by your University. At the end of your report it is
essential to include a list referencing the work of others that you have cited in your
report and/ or work that you have consulted in order to produce your report.

4.1 Plagiarism

Plagiarism is using the work of others and, by failing to reference it, passing it off as
your own work. This is unacceptable behaviour and may be subject to disciplinary
procedures. For more details see Plagiarism at Loughborough University.

To avoid plagiarism you must comply with the following:

1. If you copy material exactly, enclose it in quotation marks or indent it and
reference it in your text.

2. If you summarise or paraphrase material you must still reference the source in
your text.

The names and details of the author(s) work you have used MUST be included in your
writing AND in your references section.

Your supervisor or lecturer will be familiar with publications relating to specific areas of
engineering and will be likely to recognise any plagiarised writing. Furthermore, there
are some extremely good plagiarism checkers available on the internet, which are able
to check, in seconds, if your work is original or not.

Copying the work of other students is also plagiarism although this is often referred to
as collusion.

4.2 References

This section will concentrate on the importance of referencing, and the mistakes that are
most frequently made rather than specific details of referencing. There exist several
different referencing systems; the most common are the Harvard system and the
numerical system. Citation at Loughborough University provides detailed information
and examples.

It is important to note that not only will different departments have different preferences
but within departments individual lecturers may also have


preferences relating to, for example: punctuation and capitalisation. Irrespective of the
system adopted it is important that you are consistent and follow the layout exactly. This
means taking care where every full stop or comma is required and where italics should
be used. When referencing journal articles, the title of the journal is in italics whereas
when referencing a book, it is the title of the book that is presented in italics.

Your references should provide adequate information to enable someone reading your
report to obtain copies of your referenced material if they wish to do so. It is therefore
imperative that your referencing is accurate, for example, surnames need to be spelled
correctly, authors need to be listed in the correct order and page numbers must be
given when applicable. All the work of others whether referred to, paraphrased from or
quoted from must be included in your references; this applies to both published and
unpublished work, for example, PhD theses or private communications.

Never include 'second hand' references as if you had read them yourself. This means
that if you are reading a journal paper or textbook and the author, say Bloggs, includes
a quotation or paraphrases a conclusion or opinion from another author, say Smith, you
must not use this secondary source as if you had read the original. You must either
obtain Smith's original material to ensure that the work has been correctly interpreted,
quoted from and referenced or, in your own report, write Bloggs, citing the work of
Smith, explains... Try to keep referencing from websites, other than legitimate and high
quality ones such as Government reports, to a minimum. Material on websites does not
undergo peer review or any form of quality control to ensure that it is accurate. Anyone
can publish anything; material may subsequently be changed or removed.


5. Spelling, Grammar and Punctuation

In order for your report to be deemed a professional piece of writing it must be
grammatically correct, free from spelling mistakes and well punctuated. Inevitably, there
will be typing mistakes that remain undetected; however, it is not realistic for your report
to be littered with mistakes. If this is the case it suggests that you did not bother to
proofread your report, which is unacceptable.

5.1 Spelling

Spell checkers on computers are extremely helpful but not infallible, especially with
typing errors. Consider the words now and not in the following two sentences:

The results are now presented in detail.
The results are not presented in detail.

These two sentences have very different meanings and a spell checker would not find
anything wrong with either of them.

Some frequently misspelt words are listed below:

accessible personnel
benefited possession
gauge receive
liaison recommend
necessary relevant
occasion sincerely

In addition to misspelt words there are words with similar spellings but different
meanings that are frequently confused. For example:

compliment and complement
lose and loose
personnel and personal
principal and principle
stationary and stationery
where and were

And words that sound the same but have different meanings such as:

band and banned
for and four
sight, site and cite
their and there


to, too and two
whether, weather and wether (a castrated ram).

A sensible idea is to have a dictionary nearby. It is also advisable not to use the auto
correct feature as unrecognised technical words and proper names may be altered to
words that are known to 'Word'.

5.2 Grammar and Punctuation

There are many grammatical pitfalls for the uninitiated or unwary. Here we will look at
errors that occur frequently. It is pertinent to mention that, like the spell checker, the
grammatical checks in word processing packages are not infallible.

Common errors involve changing tense part way through a sentence when there has
not been a change in the time frame for the actions that are taking place
Incorrect - The machine contains many components that worked in unison. Correct -
The machine contains many components that work in unison.

However, the following sentence is correct as the students are currently enjoying a
facility, which they have already built.
Correct - The students are enjoying their new union bar which they built themselves.

Care also needs to be taken with pronouns (words such as he/she/it, they, them, this) to
ensure that it is clear as to what or whom the pronoun is referring to. Consider the
following sentences:

After modifications the machine was more difficult to set up but fewer bottlenecks
occurred, productivity increased and material wastage became negligible. This played
an important role in the current financial status of the company.

It is not clear what the word this refers to – is it the reduction in waste material or the
productivity increase? The sentences should be revised to remove this ambiguity.

After modifications the machine was more difficult to set up but fewer bottlenecks
occurred, productivity increased and material wastage became negligible. These
modifications played an important role in the current financial status of the company.

Another trap that the unwary may fall into is that of splitting infinitives. The following are
examples of the infinitive form of verbs:

To go
To run
To talk


When using the infinitive form of a verb, the two words ‘to’ and the ‘verb’ must not be
separated. A classic example of a split infinitive is that used in Star Trek, ‘to boldly go
…’ Remember that your report is not an episode of Star Trek and will be marked by
your lecturer.

Apostrophes demonstrating missing letters are not suitable for use in a report unless
you are citing work that contains such words. For instance, haven’t should be written as
have not, it’s should be written as it is, which will also help you to avoid incorrect usage
of its and it's. It is the use of apostrophes demonstrating possession where care needs
to be taken. For example, Professor Blagg has had two years of experience in dealing
with his student’s difficulties.

In the above sentence, student’s implies that the Professor has only dealt with the
difficulties of one student. Whereas students’ would imply that he has dealt with the
difficulties of more than one student.

The correct usage of it's and its is as follows: It's unfortunate that the laboratory had its
computers stolen last night.

Punctuation can radically alter the meaning of a sentence so it is essential that commas
are placed in the correct position.

Consider the following:

a) The buffet offered a wide variety of sandwiches. I had ham and mustard, peanut
butter, jam and beef.

b) The buffet offered a wide variety of sandwiches. I had ham and mustard, peanut
butter, jam, and beef.

Example a) suggests that there was a sandwich consisting of jam and beef whereas it is
clear from the second example that these were different sandwiches.

c) On Monday we walked, skied and drank mulled wine.

d) On Monday we walked, skied, and drank mulled wine.

Example c) implies that we drank mulled wine while we were actually skiing.

The semicolon (;) and the colon (:) are different punctuation marks which are not
interchangeable. A semicolon may be used to link two closely related sentences
whereas a colon may be used to show that a list or example follows. The following
sentences demonstrate correct usage of the semicolon and the colon.

Technical report writing is an important skill to develop; it will be used during
undergraduate studies and undoubtedly be required after graduation.


For this workshop you will receive the following materials: Technical Report Writing
Handout (Perkin, 2007), Writing Reports study advice sheet (Loughborough University,
2004) and a suggested reading list.

Care must be taken not to write fragments, i.e., incomplete sentences that do not tell the
reader anything. However, long sentences are not only difficult to comprehend they are
also more difficult to write correctly. It is long sentences that most frequently contain
incorrect use of pronouns, tense changes and punctuation errors. Too many very short
sentences may result in stilted text that does not flow. It is best to aim for medium length
sentences interspersed with occasional short sentences to add impact to what you are
telling the reader.

Avoid using unnecessary words that do not add to the meaning of the sentence and too
many long or unusual words. The report must, of course, include the technical words
that are associated with your subject and it must read as if it has been written by an
educated person. Nevertheless, if your readers need frequent recourse to a dictionary
they are likely to cease reading your report. Above all, your report is a serious piece of
academic writing and as such should use good English, it is not acceptable to use
jargon or introduce humorous anecdotes.

The singular and plural forms of Latin words often present difficulties. In particular, the
Latin word data which is plural (the singular is datum) often causes controversy as,
through popular usage, it is now acknowledged as a singular collective noun.
Historically, the correct use of data would have been, The data are... . Nowadays it is
often written as, The data is ... . If in doubt it is preferable to use the historically correct
form - your lecturer may be a keen Latin scholar.


6. Writing Your Report

This section includes a suggested schedule for producing your report and a checklist for
you to complete.

6.1 From Start to Finish

1. Carefully read the terms of reference relating to your proposed work. It is vital
that you comply with what has been requested.
2. Write a draft plan including provisional times and deadlines.
3. Search for published work that is closely related to your task, make notes and
use some form of filing system (manual or electronic) to keep track of references.
4. Write your methodology.

After completing your research or experiment write up your results and conclusions. It
will be helpful if you build up your contents page and references as you write your
report. Next write the introduction and background. Finally write the abstract or
summary and remember to include material for the appendices.

Once you have completed your report it is suggested that, if possible, you concentrate
on other work for a day or two before re-reading your work. This should help you to be
constructive in your revisions. You need to check that you have actually done what was
required, that your report is well structured, has a logical progression and does not
present any unjustified conclusions.

After addressing these issues you must proof read it carefully to check for spelling
mistakes, grammatical mistakes and typing errors. If possible ask someone else who
does not have in-depth knowledge of your work to read it. This person may notice
mistakes that you have not spotted, for example, abbreviations that have been used
without first giving the full wording. Finally look at it critically and ensure that it is well
laid out and written at an appropriate technical level for the intended audience. Make
your corrections and then you must proof read it again. The more times you are able to
proof read your report the better it will be.

6.2 What Is Expected

It is important that you keep in mind that this is a piece of marked work and your
lecturer/ supervisor will have a marking scheme in place. The following are some areas,
where marks may be lost or gained, that your supervisor is likely to be looking at.
• That you have done all that was required
• That you understand what you have done
• That it is your own work


• That it is well structured and well laid out
• That it is well written
• That it is free from spelling, grammatical and punctuation errors
• That tables and figures are signposted in the text
• That tables and figures are labelled and of good quality
• That you give evidence of background reading
• That any appendices are referred to in the text
• That it follows any guidelines you were given
• That the claims in your conclusion are not exaggerated
• That any shortcomings of your experiment/ research are mentioned

6.3 Possible Shortcomings

The most common shortcomings arise from hastily written reports that have not been
proofread and are consequently of a low standard. Other mistakes include missing out a
section such as the abstract, failing to number the pages and drawing conclusions that
are not justified from the reported evidence. It is also possible that if your report is not
well written it may contain ambiguities, contradictions and/ or unclear sentences, your
findings could then be misinterpreted by others who subsequently read it.

6.4 Checking your Report

A checklist (see Figure 2) is included to help you to focus on all that is required and
assist you in your production of an excellent technical report. It is suggested that you
keep this by your side and tick off each point as you complete it.


Checklist for your Technical Report

□ Detailed plan and timetable completed

□ My work addresses the question that was posed

□ Draft report written

□ Any departmental guidelines have been adhered to

□ Required sections have not been omitted

□ Numbering of sections is consistent

□ Pages are numbered

□ The report follows a logical progression

□ The report is pleasing to the eye

□ Tables, figures and appendices are referred to in the text

□ Tables, figures and appendices are meaningfully labelled

□ The report is written in the required style

□ The report is written at an appropriate technical level

□ Spelling, grammar and punctuation is correct

□ Any shortcomings are mentioned

□ The conclusion is based on the findings

□ All cited material has been accurately referenced

Would you show your report to a prospective employer?

Figure 2: Checklist for your technical report


Exercises for the Technical Report Writing Workshop

Task 1
Handout a short publication with the abstract removed. Ask the students to write an
abstract for the paper.

One publication that has been well received by students is the Watson and Crick DNA
paper.

Watson, J.D. & Crick, F.H.C. (1953) A structure for Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid. Nature
171 pp737-738

Task 2
Ask the students what they understand plagiarism to mean

Task 3
Produce a handout of sentences containing spelling and grammatical errors and ask the
students to rewrite them correctly.

Useful examples may be found in the following textbooks.

Van Emden, J (1990) A Handbook of Writing For Engineers. The Macmillan Press Ltd.,
London, UK.

Van Emden, J. & Easteal, J. (1993) Report Writing. McGraw-Hill, Berkshire, UK.


References and Bibliography

References

Citation at Loughborough University. http://learn.lboro.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=3606
[accessed on 16/04/10].

Online Technical Writing Course Guide (the online textbook for online technical
communication courses at Austin Community College and other institutions worldwide).
The guide may be viewed at http://www.io.com/~hcexres/textbook/ [accessed on
11/01/07]

Plagiarism at Loughborough University. http://learn.lboro.ac.uk/course/view.php?
id=3606 [accessed on 16/04/10].

Van Emden, J., & Easteal, J. (1997) Technical Report Writing. The Institute of Electrical
Engineers, Stevenage, UK.

Bibliography

Pears, R. & Shields, G. (2005) Cite them right: The essential guide to referencing and
plagiarism. Pear Tree Books, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.

Shelton, J.H. (1994) Handbook for Technical Writing. NTC Business Books, Illinois,
USA.

Van Emden, J. (1990) A Handbook of Writing For Engineers. Palgrave, Hampshire, UK.
The Macmillan Press Ltd., Hampshire, UK.

Van Emden, J. (2001) Effective Communication for Science and Technology. Palgrave,
Hampshire, UK.

Van Emden, J., & Easteal, J. (1993) Report Writing. McGraw-Hill, Berkshire, UK.


Credits
This resource was created by Glynis Perkin, Loughborough University and released as
an open educational resource through the Open Engineering Resources project of the
HE Academy Engineering Subject Centre. The Open Engineering Resources project
was funded by HEFCE and part of the JISC/HE Academy UKOER programme.

© Loughborough University 2009


The name of Loughborough University and the logo are the name and registered marks of Loughborough
University. To the fullest extent permitted by law Loughborough University reserves all its rights in its
name and marks which may not be used except with its written permission.

The JISC logo is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-No
Derivative Works 2.0 UK: England & Wales Licence. All reproductions must comply with the terms of that
licence.

The HEA logo is owned by the Higher Education Academy Limited may be freely distributed and copied
for educational purposes only, provided that appropriate acknowledgement is given to the Higher
Education Academy as the copyright holder and original publisher.


Technical Report Writing

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