Engineering Studies

Home > Engineering Studies > Engineering Reports > Engineering Reports

Engineering Reports

Report Heading	Description
Title page	Appropriate title: An accurate and complete but concise description of the contents of the report. Author(s) Date Restriction statement: This defines the circulation and describes the confidentiality level of the report. Back
Acknowledgments	Thanking the people who helped you or made important contributions. Back
Table of contents	This section is needed in reports that are more than three pages so the reader can find things easily. Text page numbering should use Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3...).
List of figures, illustrations, tables	This section is needed if you use a number of tables figures and illustrations. You should use a numbering system and keep it consistent throughout the document. All illustrations, tables, graphs, charts, diagrams should be presented at the appropriate point in the report. Each one should be given a Figure number and descriptive title or caption. Tables and graphs usually have the title above the figure, illustrations usually have their title or caption below. Back
Glossary of terms and/or List of symbols	Used only if necessary, e.g. if there are a lot of technical terms used if technical terms are likely to be unfamiliar to the reader/s. Back
Summary (Executive summary)	This section presents the key issues and facts of the report in a concise form: purpose main findings conclusions prioritised recommendations no illustrations or examples. It is usually written last even though it appears at the front of the report. This part is very important as it will be read by most readers. Many readers will only read this part so they need to get all the facts. For long reports in government and industry, the summary is an entire volume. Back
1. Introduction These three sections form the 'Body' of the report.	This section contains: background needed to be able to understand the information in the report reasons for the report a literature search outlining other reports in similar fields a clear statement of the aim of the report and why it has been requested an overall view of the content and scope of the report specialist terms should be defined here so there is no confusion about meaning throughout the report. Back
2.Sections of the report e.g. Method of research Results Discussion.	Use clear descriptive subheadings here as well as the headings given. Method: This section gives a clear description of the research method to give other researchers enough data to be able to replicate your study or understand where and how your data was obtained. (n.b. The word methodology means 'the study of methods' and should not be used in place of the word method in your writing.) Results: This section presents the relevant data in a clear and orderly manner. Format and organise it so that readers can easily understand it and check for accuracy. You should also say what all the data means. Graphs, tables and models can be used. Extensive calculations or tables of results that are interesting and relevant, but not essential to the main arguments, should be put in the Appendix and referred to here. Discussion: Engineers use their professional expertise to extract meaning from the data presented: Discuss how the laboratory data compares with theoretical predictions. Contrast Australian results with overseas studies. Explain limitations of equipment or constraints of financial and other resources. Admit possible flaws in the method used but show how you compensated by additional checks. Keep opinion quite distinct from fact. Be careful about making inferences. Back
3.Conclusions	This section opens with a brief summary of the report and then draws conclusions from the data presented. No new material should be introduced in this section. Check whether your readers draw the same conclusions before they read any more. This is a good test of how well the report is written. Back
Recommendations (if any)	These are clear unambiguous statements of the action that should result from the report. These statements often form the basis for motions to be debated at business meetings. Recommendations may be in priority order or suggest alternatives. Back
References / Bibliography	Most reports require that you read some relevant literature as background to your own work. This section allows readers to know where they can find the original work that supported your report. All books that you use to form your basic ideas should be cited as references. Additional books, newspaper articles, journals, and sales pamphlets that could be of interest should be included in a bibliography or annotated bibliography. These might also be added to the Appendix. You can also list the names of those you interviewed in the course of your investigations. Back
Appendices (if needed)	Extensive calculations or results, raw data, maps or diagrams, pamphlets or brochures that may be interesting to the reader but are not necessary to the main discussions in the report should be placed in this section. Appendices should be clearly titled and labelled (e.g. Appendix A, Results of Experiment 1). Appendices should also be cited at an appropriate point in the main report (e.g. See Appendix A). Back
Index	Index is required only if the report is particularly large. Back

Back