RESEARCH/ TECHNICAL REPORT

TECHNICAL REPORT

 also called scientific report

 a document written by a researcher detailing the process, progress, and results of a research
 aims to convey given information to a specific audience about a technical subject for the
realization of a desired objective
 submitted to a sponsor

CHARACTERISTICS of Technical Report

 usually not peer-reviewed

 Impersonal format
 requires well-thought out explanations of complex ideas and procedures
 does not use first-person point of view
 not opinion-oriented
 expresses technical concepts through the use of step-by-step processes
 scientific and technical vocabularies as well as graphic aids are used to communicate hard-
core facts
 must be presented in conventional report forms
 usually written about projects, products or services

CONTENT

o clear and straight forward

o language is very direct and straight to the point
o very detailed and informative
o very structured
o objective
o uses illustrations
o presented consistently

FOCUS

o The purpose of technical report is to presents data and analysis on a specified topic in a clear,
highly-organized, and effective manner.
o To provide specific information and convey the information in a logical order.
o Should focus on your findings, conclusions, methodology and/or recommendations, and allow
the report itself to present the data.

TYPES of Technical Report

Feasibility Report – tells whether a project is feasible, or it is practical and technologically

possible
Background Report – intends to provide background details with two essential infrastructures:
definition and classification
Business Plans - are proposals for starting a new business, a formal statement of the business
goals and the plan for achieving them.
Technical Specifications – a document that defines a set of requirements that a product must
meet or exceed is usually present descriptive and operational information
Policies and Procedures for Organizations – designed to influence and determine all major
decision and actions, and all activities take place within the boundaries set by them
Recommendation Report - compares several options against a set of requirement as a way to
find one specific action to recommend
Research Report - consists of data, conclusion, methodology and background on the problem
to make reader can easily understand the purpose and results of research.

TITLE PAGE - reports for assessment, where the word length has been specified
SUMMARY - tells the reader very briefly what the main points and findings of the paper are
INTRODUCTION - supposed to highlight the main aims of the paper to the reader and lets the
reader understand the purpose of you writing the report
LITERATURE REVIEW - tells the reader what other researchers have discovered about the
paper’s topic or tells the reader about other research that is relevant to the topic
METHODOLOGY (Experimental / Methods / Procedures) - the goal is to summarize the WHAT,
HOW, and WHY behind your specific experiment
RESULTS (Results and Discussion) - the most important section of the report for most readers -the
use of tables, graphs, and figures is especially enlightening here, as are explanations of how
data were derived
CONCLUSION - assesses how one's research findings relate to what the community of scholars
knew already
REFERENCES - list of all the materials that you have used and quoted in your research
BIBLIOGRAPHY - other published sources of material, including websites, not referred to in the
text but useful for background or further reading.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT - list of people who helped you research or prepare the report, including
your proofreaders.
APPENDICES - other materials to put across your points in the report such as graphs or diagrams
but are not necessarily required in the report
To inform
Technical reports are used to communicate information to customers, colleagues and managers.

- This information assists in decision making: for example, in the purchase of equipment, or
finding solutions to technical problems.
- Reassure recipients that you are making progress, that the project is going smoothly, and that
it will be completed by the expected date.
- Provide their recipients with a brief look at some of the findings or some of the work of the
project.
- Give the recipients a chance to evaluate your work on the project and to request changes.
- Give you a chance to discuss problems in the project and thus to forewarn recipients.
- Force you to establish a work schedule so that you'll complete the project on time. It gives the
writer a motivation to work more and produce results more efficiently.

To persuade
- To draw theory and real world situations together, and to present the information in a
structured and accessible format.

Steps in writing a technical report

Points to keep in mind before writing a Technical Report:

- It is essential to pay attention to the requirements of the agency who requested the report.
- Technical reports are all about the details.
- Whether you continue with an academic career or work for an organization, knowing how to
put together a good technical report is a valuable skill.

Know who your audience is

Knowing your audience is critical to writing a good technical document – or any written
material, for that matter.

Decide who your primary audience is. Understand who your secondary audiences are.

Organization of a technical report

A technical report involves an enormous amount of detail in:

- The data (text, tables, and figures)

- The discussion
- The formatting of the material

Style formatting

Create your own ‘style sheet’

• As you begin to write, keep track of terms you use so that you are consistent.
• Note when you first use an acronym.
• If the journal or proceedings does not have instructions for headers, captions, or tables, create
in your style sheet the format you plan to use.
• A customized style sheet is especially valuable for creating reports to agencies – you can
create a consistent and professional look to the documents you submit.
Proper citations and references

Why is proper citation and referencing important?

- Ethics in publishing is just as important when submitting a technical report to a government
funding agency as when submitting a paper for publication.
- The difference is in the consequences for:

• Poor research • Faulty data • Plagiarism • Authorship (publications or code)

Proper use of tables and figures

Appendices

Appendices can contain:

• Acronym list
• Raw data upon which the report is based
• Consultant reports that feed into your report
• Resumes
• Vendor quotes

Table of Contents, List of Figures, and List of Tables

Your readers use these to find information throughout your report!

- Check that the right information is there

- Check that all figures and tables are listed

Refining your work and knowing when to stop

After writing, put the document away for a couple of days.

Print it out, and use a pen to mark your work up. (Yes, annotate your own work.)

Make a checklist and go through the report several times for:

• Flow of thought
• In-text citations and references
• Grammar and punctuation
• Equations, figures, and tables
• Conformance to the style guide

 Based on author's original research On a specific topic

 Does not use colloquial words
 A technical report has a clear structure - the most important feature of an academic text is
that they are organized in a specific way.
 A technical report has an introduction, method and materials, result, and discussions.
 A Technical report has an aim, and aim is the very backbone of the Academic text in the
sciences.
 REFERENCES
Tamu.libguides.com. (2019). Research Guides: Technical Reports: What is a Technical report?. [online] Available
at: https://tamu.libguides.com/c.php?g=604517&p=4189873 [Accessed Jul. 2019].

Anon, (2019). [online] Available at:

https://www.academia.edu/23211349/CHARACTERISTICS_OF_EFFECTIVE_TECHNICAL_REPORTS
[Accessed Jul. 2019].

Tu-chemnitz.de. (2019). Technical Reports. [online] Available at: https://www.tu-

chemnitz.de/phil/english/sections/linguist/independent/kursmaterialien/TechComm/acchtml/techreps.
html [Accessed Jun. 2019].

REPORT, T. (2019). TYPES OF TECHNICAL REPORT. [online] MindMeister. Available at:

https://www.mindmeister.com/1044911745/types-of-technical-report [Accessed Jun. 2019].

Anon, (2019). [online] Available at: https://guides.libraries.psu.edu/techreports

https://www.aresearchguide.com/writing-a-technical-report.html [Accessed Jul. 2019].

YourDictionary. (2019). Characteristics of Technical Writing. [online] Available at:

https://grammar.yourdictionary.com/style-and-usage/characteristics-of-technical-writing.html
[Accessed Jul. 2019].

Aboutcivil.org. (2019). Qualities of a Good Technical Report | Clarity, Accuracy, Comprehensiveness. [online]
Available at: https://www.aboutcivil.org/characteristics-of-technical-report-writing.html [Accessed Jul.
2019].

AS Writing Solutions - Technical Writer Blog. (2019). What are the characteristics of technical writing?. [online]
Available at: https://aashitashekhar.wordpress.com/2010/04/16/what-are-the-characteristics-of-
technical-writing/ [Accessed Jul. 2019].

M.wikihow.com. (2019). Simple Ways to Write a Technical Report (with Pictures) - wikiHow. [online] Available at:
https://m.wikihow.com/Write-a-Technical-Report?amp=1 [Accessed Jul. 2019].

The Function of Technical Reports. (2019). Retrieved from https://unilearning.uow.edu.au/report/3a.html

Sussex.ac.uk. (2019). Guide to Technical Report Writing : Study guides : ... : School of Engineering and
Informatics : Schools and services : University of Sussex. [online] Available at:
http://www.sussex.ac.uk/ei/internal/forstudents/engineeringdesign/studyguides/techreportwriting?fbcli
d=IwAR0RqC82IM9pwQnZeHxD0CvnjrUhBjbL37VHx4fr7Z1RY-4akHo5bMbrq-c#2 [Accessed Jun. 2019].

(2019). Retrieved from https://www.unlv.edu/sites/default/files/page_files/27/Engineering-

PreparingTechnicalReport-Spring16.pdf

(2019). Retrieved from https://www.nde-ed.org/GeneralResources/Report/TechReport.html

Purpose and Uses of Technical Reports. (2019). Retrieved from https://www.aboutcivil.org/purpose-of-technical-

writing.html

The Structure of Academic Texts | Karolinska Institutet Universitetsbiblioteket. (2019). Retrieved from
https://kib.ki.se/en/write-cite/academic-writing/structure-academic-texts
MULTIPLE CHOICE

1. ____ is a document written by a researcher detailing the results of a project.

A. Academic Journal
B. Research report
C. Thesis
D. Research journal
ANSWER: B

2. The main focus of technical report are __ and ____.

A. Introduction and references
B. Bibliography and conclusion
C. Summary and Title
D. Methodology and Results.
ANSWER: D

3. It summarize the WHAT, HOW and WHY behind your specific experiment.
A. Introduction
B. Results
C. Methodology
D. References
ANSWER: C

4. It is a list of people who helped you research or prepare the report, including your proofreaders.
A. Appendices
B. Conclusion
C. Acknowledgement
A. Results
ANSWER: C

5. ___ is an included in technical report sections when needed.

A. Result
B. Table of contents
C. Title
D. Methodology
ANSWER: B

TRUE OR FALSE

1. Technical or research report are usually peer-reviewed and suitable for target audience. ANSWER: FALSE

2. Under the parts and structure of technical report, the most important section of the report is conclusion.
ANSWER: FALSE

3. Technical report should be opinionated. ANSWER: FALSE

4. Recommendations report is an example of technical report. ANSWER: TRUE

5. An important consideration when preparing technical report is the audience and purpose of the report.
ANSWER: TRUE