Sooner or later, you will be asked to prepare a report. In addition to exhibiting the technical expertise and skills necessary to perform engineering field work, all engineers, including engineers-in-training, need to be able to produce concise and informative technical reports that are complete, accurate, properly formatted and comprehensible to their intended audiences. The Writing a Technical Report (for Engineers) Study Brief provides expert addvice and step-by-step guidance to help a new or inexperienced technical writer prepare, write, format and deliver an effective written report. With a how-to focus, this academic outline presents an easy-to-follow set of technical writing guidelines in one convenient guide. A brief introduction differentiates technical report writing from other styles of writing. An overview of the standard components of a formal technical report includes detailed descriptions of each integral part: proposal, abstract, outline, title, letter of transmittal, executive summary, acknowledgements, table of contents, nomenclature, list of figures, list of tables, introduction, literature review, methods/procedures, results/discussions, conclusion, recommendation, references, appendices and attachments. A quick review of the writing process breaks down what is involved in the prewriting, drafting, revising, proofreading, and editing tasks involved. Topics covered include: defining a technical report, planning a report, managing time needed to write, researching and compiling data, note taking, creating an outline, writing technical definitions and descriptions, and formatting the report. Guidelines for footnotes, citations, and references are provided. Helpful tips and methods to improve technical writing composition and style are emphasized.
