ME 195 A
How to Write a Professional
Technical Report
Dr. Raghu Agarwal
ME 195A Presentation: How to Write a
Professional Technical Report
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Contents
• Overview
• The Report and its Basic Structure
• Miscellaneous
ME 195A Presentation: How to Write a
Professional Technical Report
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Overview
• What is the purpose of writing a technical
report?
To communicate information gained in the process of completing
a project, which follows a logical sequence
• Should it be written in first person, second
person or third person narrative?
Always use a third person narrative
ME 195A Presentation: How to Write a
Professional Technical Report
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The Report & Its Structure
Organized in the following sequence:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Title Page
Executive Summary/Abstract
Introduction
Theory
Design
Sample Calculations
Results and Discussion
Conclusions
Appendices
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Professional Technical Report
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1. Title Page
Title Page: Includes
•
•
•
•
•
•
Project Title
Authors’ Name
Course name, number, and section
Instructor’s name
Date
University and department affiliation
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Professional Technical Report
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Title Page (continued)
Project Title:
The Project title should be short, meaningful, and indicative of the
project contents
Good Title:
Design of a Hydraulic jack
Bad Titles:
• The lifter
• Car Assist
• Magic Jack
ME 195A Presentation: How to Write a
Professional Technical Report
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2. Executive Summary/Abstract
• Include either an Executive summary or an Abstract (check
with your professor for the preference)
• Executive summary is an extended version of Abstract,
generally used when writing project reports
• Use of Abstract is common in research papers
• Both give reader the summary of why, how, and conclusions
of the results
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Professional Technical Report
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Executive Summary/Abstract
(continued)
Executive summary/Abstract is always written
last, after the project has been completed
Abstract:
–
–
–
–
One paragraph, less than half-page length
Single-line spacing
Third person narrative
Describes the why, how, and conclusions of the results
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Professional Technical Report
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Executive Summary/Abstract
(continued)
Executive Summary
– Maximum length is one to two pages
– Describes the Why (the need, objective), how
– (methodology), and conclusion of the outcome (results,
functionality, etc.)
– Written in third person narrative
– Has an easily readable format (line spacing and fonts)
– Intended to give a descriptive overview of the project
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Professional Technical Report
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Executive Summary/Abstract
(continued)
Abstract or executive summary shouldn’t
include:
• General information
• Why you are carrying out the project
• Reference to diagrams or references.
ME 195A Presentation: How to Write a
Professional Technical Report
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3. Introduction
• Define the work carried out in the project
• Define the objective of the project
• Include description of the problem and reasons for the work
being done
• Give sufficient background information of the problem
• Must answer the question: Why was this project done? What
is the specific purpose of the study?
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Professional Technical Report
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4. Theory
• Described the theory being used: Formulae, equations,
hypotheses, etc.
• Provide references of the original source
• Include only the necessary and sufficient mathematics in the
text, rest in the Appendix
• The theory section ascertains that your project is not ‘Jerryrigged, it is based on the advanced engineering concepts
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Professional Technical Report
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5. Design
This section will depend on the type of project
being done. For design projects:
– Give a detailed list of engineering specifications
– Description of preliminary design and the steps leading to
the final design
– Reasons for the selection of parts, material, processes, etc.
– Governing theories, formulae, equations, etc.
– In the appendix, provide:
• A compete list of Bill of Materials
• Detailed parts-drawings and vendor catalog
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Professional Technical Report
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6. Sample Calculations
• Sample calculations are part of the Results section
• They are based on mathematical relations mentioned in the
Theory section
• If the calculations are repetitive and large numbers, include
only one sample calculation in this section, the rest should be
included in the Appendix
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Professional Technical Report
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7. Results and Discussion
• Results should be analyzed, interpreted, and stated clearly
• Use figures and tables that are fully labeled
• Any deficiency, errors, or poor results should be discussed and
explained how they affect the objective
• Numerical data should be included in graphs or tables
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Professional Technical Report
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Results and Discussion (continued)
This section should answer:
– What do the results clearly indicate?
– What was the final outcome?
– What is the significance of the results?
– Are the results fully discussed and conclusions drawn
based on the knowledge gained?
– How did error or deficiencies occur?
– Did any of the errors or deficiencies affect the conclusion
of the project?
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Professional Technical Report
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8. Conclusion
Summarize the significance of the results:
• Answer any questions raised in the introduction regarding the
objective and the purpose of the project
• Explain the significance of the project
• Avoid discussion of new information not already mentioned in
the report
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Professional Technical Report
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9. Appendices
Include the useful information that was too lengthy to
include in the main body
• Sample calculations
• Raw data
• Detailed drawings
• Bill of Materials
• Vendor brochure
Any item included in the Appendix must be referenced in the report.
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Professional Technical Report
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Check List
1.
Do the paragraph within a section flow in a logical manner?
2.
Do the ideas in each section flow from general to specific, big picture to
small
3.
Does the report shows readers how the project was carried out?
4.
Are the tables, figures, and diagrams fully interpreted and understandable?
5.
Are the tables, figures, and diagrams appropriately labeled and referred to
within the text?
6.
Is the report written in third person narrative?
7.
Is the writing clear and thoroughly revised for spellings, syntax, and
grammar?
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Professional Technical Report
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Miscellaneous
• Use Numerals & not words:
– If the number is larger than nine (double digits: 10, 11, 12, etc.)
– When the number is connected to units of measure: 3 lbs, 2 sqft, etc.
– Decimal and fractional numbers: 1.5, 2.7, etc.
– A combination of numerals and words for very large numbers
(especially in money): The Light Rail System will cost over $6
billion
ME 195A Presentation: How to Write a
Professional Technical Report
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Miscellaneous
When to spell out the numbers:
– A number less than 10 (single digit)
– A number in the beginning of a sentence:
• Fifty million dollars is a large amount.
When single and multi digit numbers appear in a sentence:
•
We have two labs with 6 computers in one and 20 in the other.
Round numbers:
–
About a thousand units have been ordered
To avoid confusion:
–
We ordered eleven 8 foot pipes
ME 195A Presentation: How to Write a
Professional Technical Report
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References
• Journal articles
• Books
• Web sites
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Professional Technical Report
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References
References
A journal paper that you have cited in the text:
Babuška, Ivo; Banerjee, Uday; Osborn, John E. (June 2004). "Generalized
Finite Element Methods: Main Ideas, Results, and Perspective". International
Journal of Computational Methods 1 (1): 67–103
Referencing a book you have used:
Reddy, J.N. (2005). An Introduction to the Finite Element Method (Third ed.).
McGraw-Hill. ISBN 9780071267618
Referencing a web site:
Finite Element Methods. Retrieved from Wikipedia 10/15/2014:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finite_element_method
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Professional Technical Report
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