Technical writing. General information

In engineering, one of the major forms of communication is the technical report. This is the conventional format for reporting the results of your research, investigations, and design projects. At university, reports are read by lecturers and tutors in order to assess your mastery of the subjects and your ability to apply your knowledge to a practical task. In the workplace, they will be read by managers, clients, and the construction engineers responsible for building from your designs.

The ability to produce a clear, concise, and professionally presented report is therefore a skill you will need to develop in order to succeed both at university and in your future career.

While reports vary in the type of information they present (for example, original research, the results of an investigative study, or the solution to a design problem), all share similar features are based on a similar structure. In writing a full-length engineering report, you should start with a report outline, then proceed to a rough draft. The outline defines the organization of the report, and the rough draft serves to avoid omissions. Once the content is established, the rough draft is refined for clarity and conciseness. After proofreading and correction of minor mistakes, the finished product is produced.