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Engineering Studies

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About Engineering Reports

Engineering reports are technical reports that provide information to guide decision making.

To be useful and effective they should be:

• written in plain English, clear, and concise
• factual
• accurate
• objective and without emotive statements
• a complete picture of the situation
• clearly directed towards the aims and objectives set
• provide background research
• provide recommendations.

In engineering industries, considerable thought is often given to the design and presentation of reports and their professional appearance (depending on the audience for which they are written). Engineering reports can be written by individuals or by teams.

Some engineering reports are written for a specific purpose and specific readers. Some are confidential, and therefore not in general circulation, while others are public reports.

Engineering reports usually provide a:

• permanent record of findings
• coherent discussion of alternatives
• cost analysis
• logical presentation of conclusions
• detailed list of recommendations
• proposal of the course of action best indicated by the study.

Engineering reports are not usually found in public libraries or on the Internet. Because they deal with the day to day business of the organisation, they are often kept within the company that produced them or for whom they were produced. They can sometimes be obtained by asking the companies themselves. However, other engineering reports are prepared for government organisations. These reports may deal with issues of concern to us all such as the environmental impact of proposed roads or public transport. These reports can be obtained through the relevant government organisation.

What do engineering reports look like?

There is no one style for all reports. However, there are some common procedures that writers follow so that readers can easily find the information they need.

All reports should use:

• clear and precise language
• simple present tense
• paragraphs that begin with a topic sentence (paragraph preview) and other sentences that elaborate on this topic sentence.

All reports have at least two or three sections:

1. Introduction
   
   This section can classify and clarify the thing being described or discussed. It should locate it in time and space so that readers have enough background to understand what is being discussed. It also previews what is to follow.
   
   
2. Description or supporting evidence
   
   These sections set out the factual information of the report. They may also contain graphics, tables, mathematical calculations, graphs and photos. It may be grouped under headings and subheadings.
   
   
3. Conclusions and recommendations (if appropriate)
   
   This section is used for summing up or giving advice, opinion, deduction and recommendations to the reader.

Engineering reports, and other technical reports that are more than about three pages long, usually expand these three sections to include the following sections.

1. Title page
2. Acknowledgments
3. Table of contents
4. List of figures, illustrations, tables
5. Glossary of terms and/or List of symbols
6. Summary (Executive summary)
7. Body
   Introduction
   Sections of the report eg.
   • Method of research
   • Results
   • Discussion
8. Conclusions
9. Recommendations (if any)
10. References/Bibliography
11. Appendices (if needed)
12. Index

Most engineering reports will follow a similar pattern of headings. However, some may be different. The possible reasons are:

• the report might only be short (one to three) pages
• the purpose of the report may not match the headings above
• the report has used clear descriptive headings to make reading it easier
• the headings use different words but basically cover the same sections
• the report is poorly written
• the client may have asked for a differently structured report.

When you read an engineering report it is important to consider:

• Why it has been written.
• Who wrote it.
• Who it was written for.
• When it was written. Is it current? Is it still relevant?
• How well it was written (the quality of the report may reflect the quality of the research).
• What recommendations does it give?

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