Report Writing and Structure Guide

Edmund Pickering
[email protected]

February 13, 2018

Document Version: 1.1

The latest version of the style guide can be found at https://goo.gl/hWqto2

or via email mailto:[email protected].

List of Contributors
Kinds thanks to the following contributors for providing their time, knowledge,
and experience in the production of this guide.

• Christopher From

• Edmund Pickering

• Mark McDougall

• Nathan Pember

• Sarah Barns

• Timothy Bodisco

i
Contents
1 Introduction: How to use this guide 1

2 The Basics 1
2.1 Report Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
2.2 Golden Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
2.3 Sections of a report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.3.1 Letter of Transmittal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.3.2 Cover Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.3.3 Executive Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.3.4 Table of Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2.3.5 List of Figures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2.3.6 List of Tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2.3.7 List of Equations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2.3.8 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2.3.9 Other Body Headings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.3.10 Conclusion (and Recommendations) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.3.11 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.3.12 Appendix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

3 Report Elements 5
3.1 Paragraph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
3.2 Figures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
3.3 Tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
3.4 Units and Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

4 Formatting 8
4.1 Text Alignment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
4.2 Section Numbering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
4.3 Page Numbering, Headers and Footers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
4.4 Citations and Intext Referencing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
4.5 Equations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

5 Word Tools for Speedy Typesetting 9

5.1 Styles & Automatic Heading Numbering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
5.2 Automatic Table of Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
5.3 Automatic Referencing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
5.4 Automatic Lists of Tables, Figures, Equations, etc . . . . . . . . . . . 11
5.5 Simple Equation Formatting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
5.6 Page Breaks, Section Breaks, etc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
5.7 Modifying Page Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

6 Guideline For Laboratory Reports 12

7 Assumptions and Errors 12

7.1 Discussion of Assumptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
7.2 Discussion of errors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

ii
8 Conclusion 13
asdf
Not all reports require a TOC. If you’re including one just to make your report longer, you may wish to
reconsider. In this document, its length potentially does not justify a TOC, however the large number of
section headings may.

iii
List of Figures
1 Band-pass filtered pressure signal at 2000 rpm, full load on neat diesel
fuel (this is a good figure, note the descriptive caption and easy to
interpret information) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
2 Pressure vs crank-angle (this is a poor figure, the caption isn’t descrip-
tive, scales and axes are hard to read, useless legend) . . . . . . . . . 7
3 Become familiar with and use automatic styling and section numbering 10
4 Automatic table of contents, citations, and captions . . . . . . . . . . 10
5 Centering an equation in Word using a table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
6 Page breaks, section breaks, etc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
7 Format page numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

List of Tables
1 Appropriately descriptive caption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
asdf
Not all reports will require a list of tables. If you just have one or two tables this maybe redundant, as in
this document.

iv
1 Introduction: How to use this guide
Report writing is a fundamental skill of the engineering profession. Engineers are
constantly required to record and distribute knowledge and findings from their work
- reports are one of the main tools for doing this. A good report will flow naturally
and lead the reader without unnecessary jumps and pauses in logic. Key to this is
having a logical structure and format, as well as avoiding any cues which will cause
the reader to pause and question your work.

This guide has been developed to aid in the development of high quality reports.
In this, the standard conventions for high quality reports will be detailed, such
as structure, formatting, and the use of figures, tables and other similar tools.
Furthermore, tips and trick for report writing in Word will be shared. To maximise
the quality of your reports, it is recommend you read this guide and understand its
content. If you have any further question, ask you tutor.

2 The Basics
2.1 Report Structure
The general flow of sectioning in a report is as follows: This is the
general report
• Front matter structure, you
can modify this
– Letter of Transmittal (optional)
to suit your
– Cover Page needs. You

– Executive Summary (optional) don’t need all

these sections.
– Table of Contents
Remember,
– List of Figures (optional) you’re the one

– List of Tables (optional) who knows

what you want
– List of Equations (optional)
to say, make

• Body an informed
decision on the
– Introduction appropriate

– Other body headings structure for

your work.
– Conclusion

• Back matter

– References
– Appendix (optional)

Depending on the length and context on the report, some of these headings can be
neglected (e.g. letter of transmittal, list of tables). As the author, it is up to you to
make intelligent decisions on how to best present your work.

1
2.2 Golden Rules
Above all else, these are the golden rules of report writing and formatting. Following
or breaking these rules will have large impacts on how your report is perceived, read,
and overall the grade it receives.
A cynical take
on report writ-
• Consistency: One of the most obvious signs of a report which hasn’t received ing is that the
the care and attention it deserves is a lack of consistency. This is immediately reader should
noticeable and commonly manifests as a change of heading format, table themes, be able to read
or figure styles. your report and
not have an
• Informative and concise: Don’t waffle, write want you want to say directly
original thought.
and without ambiguity. Your audience is reading your work to gain information;
You should tell
deliver that information as quickly and efficiently as possible (as engineers we
them exactly
care about efficiency). Think about how much pain it would cause your marker
what to think
if they are constantly faced with needlessly long sentences and paragraphs.
and when to

• Language: Third person, professional, correct, and don’t exaggerate. Avoid think it, giving

contradictions (these can commonly appear if you are sloppy with your lan- the required

guage). information and

no more. Every
– Don’t use complex words for the sake of using complex words. Aim for time the reader
simple, efficient and correct language. Don’t be a sesquipedalian (see, pauses to think,
this sentence isn’t wrong, but I doubt many of you know the meaning of it detracts from
sesquipedalian). the flow of the

– Only use words you understand and your reader will understand. If you’re report.

one to use a thesaurus to find fancy words, ensure you know the correct
meaning before using it.

• Audience: Consider your target audience. In many cases your target audience It is also com-

will be other engineers (or someone with basic engineering understanding). mon that your

In these cases you don’t need to define or explain concepts which would be work may be

common knowledge (e.g. what is a stress-strain diagram). Consider the types being read by

of wording and terms your target audience would be familiar with. Consider non-engineering

the familiarity your audience has of your report’s topic, for example if you’re professionals,

writing a report about a bridge design, ensure you detail the project first before in such cases

you detail your solution. (A good rule of thumb is to assume your audience modify your

is a fellow engineer with similar knowledge to yourself, but who isn’t familiar language and

with your project or work.) style to suit.

• Flow: Your report should flow and have a logical order. Information should
be presented as needed.

• One idea per paragraph: Each paragraph should consist of a single concise
idea or message. If you have multiple ideas in a paragraph you should consider
splitting the paragraph. Remember a paragraph should have at a minimum
three sentences (opening, body, closing (and linking to next paragraph)).

2
 • Text should always follow a heading: Never have a heading immediately
followed by a figure or tables. You should always have text which introduces the
section, figure, or table. The only caveat to this if a heading being immediately
followed by a subheading (and even in this case it can detract from your work).

2.3 Sections of a report

The many sections of a report are often misused. For clarification, common sections
of a report are discussed below.

2.3.1 Letter of Transmittal

A letter of transmittal is exactly as its name would suggest, a letter attached to the You probably

front of a report when it it being transmitted, as such these are rarely utilised in regularly utilise

university level reports. A letter of transmittal can very simple (just a few sentences) a letter or

and details what the receiver should do upon receipt of the document. A letter of transmittal.

transmittal can also be in the form of an email with the report attached. An example When you send

of a simple letter of transmittal is shown below. an email with

an attached
Dear Mr Smith, document, your
are effectively
As discussed, please find attached the draft version of our report on writing a letter
agricultural pesticide usage and its impact on sea turtle embryonic de- of transmittal.
velopment. Specifically can you peruse the section of pesticide run-off
(Section 2.3) and check for factual accuracy. Once you are happy with
this we will send the report up the chain.

Kind Regards,
Edmund Pickering

2.3.2 Cover Page

The key to a good title page in simplicity; as a bare minimum you should include a Ensure your

title and your name (and student number). Make life easier for your tutor however cover page de-

and include a title (and possibly subtitle), name, student number, subject, group tails are correct

number, group members, tutorial and tutor. You can, and are encouraged to, make (if you spell

your titles page ‘pretty,’ however ensure the aesthetic matches your report. your tutors
name incor-
rectly they will
2.3.3 Executive Summary
cry).
The executive summary is a summary of your entire report, it is intended to be read
in lieu of reading the report. One should be able to read the executive summary An abstract is

(without the report) and know the key details of the report. Not all reports require an used in scien-

executive summary, only those too long to be read in full (considering your audience). tific articles.

Think about your main report audience (potentially your boss) and what will be A report has

most important for them to know. Generally the executive summary should include an executive

a summary of the problem, methodology and solutions/conclusions. summary, a

scientific article
has an abstract.

3
 • The problem summary provides context to the section. Your reader may not
be familiar with your work or with the topic of the report, and as such needs
to be informed. Ensure to cover key problem information.

• In the methodology the general approach(s) taken should be detailed. Any key
techniques, considerations, or decisions should be included.

• The solution summarises the outcomes, results, or conclusions of the report.

You should also mention major limitations or errors of you solution.

2.3.4 Table of Contents

Include a table of contents if the length of your report justifies it. Ensure it is neat
and fits the aesthetic of the report. When using Word ensure all your bookmarks
match and are updated.

2.3.5 List of Figures

As like the table of contents, include as required and ensure it fits the aesthetic.

2.3.6 List of Tables

As like the table of contents, include as required and ensure it fits the aesthetic.

2.3.7 List of Equations

As like the table of contents, include as required and ensure it fits the aesthetic. List
of equations are less common but can sometimes be useful.

2.3.8 Introduction
As its name suggests an introduction should introduce the report, as a general rule
the introduction should start broad and become more specific as it progresses as you
narrow the scope and provide context to the later sections of the report. In general
an introduction should answer the following questions:

• What are you going to talk about in the report? The broad topic of the report.

• What are you trying to do with the report topic? The purpose/aim/direction
of the report.

• What specifically are you going to cover in the report? The scope of the report,
this should also include any limits to what you are going to cover.

• What is the necessary background information to understand the following

report content? This should be any relevant information to provide a clear
understand of later report content, it should include any relevant theories or
methodologies that will be applied.

4
After the introduction the reader should know exactly why the report was produced,
what the report will cover, what the report wont cover, as well as any relevant
background information. The reader should also have a broad understanding of how
the report will address its objective.

2.3.9 Other Body Headings

Any relevant subheadings of the report.

2.3.10 Conclusion (and Recommendations)

Conclusions can be awkward and hard to write. A good conclusion should bring There is noth-

the report to a close and tie up any loose ends. Generally in the conclusion you ing wrong with

should summaries your report; restate the purpose of the report, state any important starting a con-

information from the body, state any outcomes, results or final statements. Remember clusion with ’in

the conclusion is likely the last part of your report someone will read and as such conclusion.’ It

will sit in their memory, consider what you want the reader to think about when isn’t pretty, it

they put down your report. You may also change the title of this section to other can definitely

similar headings such as Recommendations, Summary, etc. be improved

upon, but if
you are really
2.3.11 References
struggling to
Your list of references should be at the start of your back matter; this should exist write your con-
on its own page. Note, this is a list of references, not a bibliography. A bibliography clusion it may
is a list of works from which your work derives (a bit like a list of further reading). A help.
list of references directly lists the sources of your work. Ensure your list of references
follows a standard acceptable format.

2.3.12 Appendix
The appendix should include any supporting content to the report. This would
include items such as full data sets, code or full sets of calculations. If information is
required in the report, but is not directly relevant, or is of a length/size which would
detract from the report body, it should be placed in the appendix. If content is to be
included in the appendix it must be referred to in the body of text and be relevant
to the section where it was referred. The standard formatting rules apply, including
captions on tables, figures and equations and a paragraph providing context to the
appendix (it isn’t sufficient to just dump data in the appendix, it must be formatted
like the rest of your report).

3 Report Elements
3.1 Paragraph
The purpose of a paragraph is to present a single set of ideas in a coherent section of
the report. The new paragraph signifies that one idea has been concluded and the
next has begun. The paragraph should present one main idea (the theme), followed

5
by examples of any smaller ideas the explain or prove the main idea of the paragraph.

The structure of a paragraph can be split into three general sections, the topic
sentence, supporting sentences and the concluding sentence. The topic sentence is
the first sentence of a paragraph and introduces the broad theme of the paragraph.
The supporting sentences then elaborate and explain the topic sentence further,
developing the theme presented in the topic sentence. The concluding sentence is
the last sentence of the paragraph and should concisely end the paragraph and allow
a transition to following paragraph as required.

3.2 Figures
Figures are of great significance in a report, they can provide context, succinctly In Word, al-
ways have fig-
present information, or provide detail too complex for sentences. Good use of figures ures ‘in line
will add greatly to your work, however their poor use will detract and make your with text’ this
will avoid any
work appear unprofessional. Before adding a figure to your report ask yourself what challenges with
benefit does it add. images ‘jump-
ing’ during
formatting.
The caption of a figure should appear below the figure and be appropriately You should
descriptive. Figures should be referenced in text. Figures should generally be centred never use the
and be in line with text (i.e. don’t use the the ‘wrap’ option in Word). Figure 1 ’magazine look’
below shows good application of these conventions while Figure 2 doesn’t. Figure 2 where your text
isn’t neat, it is poorly labelled, and it is complex to read. encircles your
figure.
When referring to a figure in text it often isn’t enough to just point to the figure,
you should tell the reader how they should use this figure. A good example of this
could be as follows. As is shown in Figure 1 the pressure fluctuations approximately
doubled between 364°and 368°.

Figure 1: Band-pass filtered pressure signal at 2000 rpm, full load on neat diesel fuel
(this is a good figure, note the descriptive caption and easy to interpret information)

6
Figure 2: Pressure vs crank-angle (this is a poor figure, the caption isn’t descriptive,
scales and axes are hard to read, useless legend)

3.3 Tables
Tables should be neatly presented and easy to read. The caption for a table Refer to figures

should appear above the table. Tables, like figures, should be appropriately and tables

referenced in text. Formatting of tables should be consistent with the rest of the works. prior to them
appearing in

Consider table 1 below, the table is neat, and its aesthetic matches with that of the text. It is good

document. The caption is located above the table and is appropriately descriptive. practise to
also tell the
reader what
Table 1: Appropriately descriptive caption they should be
Team P W D L F A Pts
looking for in
Manchester United 6 4 0 2 10 5 12 the figure or
Celtic 6 3 0 3 8 9 9 table.
Benfica 6 2 1 3 7 8 7
FC Copenhagen 6 2 1 3 5 8 7

3.4 Units and Numbers

When writing units and numbers the following conventions should be followed:

• Generally numbers less than 10 should be written as text. This can be applied
flexibly to ensure consistency in format and style.

• A space should be present between a number and unit (e.g. 10 mm → correct,

10mm → incorrect).

• Exceptions to the spacing rule are % and ° symbols (eg 10% or 10°C not 10 %
or 10 °C).

• Remember the golden rule of consistency.

7
4 Formatting
4.1 Text Alignment
As with this report, justified text is preferred. Left-align text is acceptable however
reduces the aesthetic.

4.2 Section Numbering

Dependent upon length, section headings in engineering reports should be numbered.
This makes referring to sections simple, and aids in the flow of a report. Headings
prior to the report body aren’t numbered (i.e. Executive Summary, Table of Contents,
List of Tables). Automatic section numbering can be easily implemented in Word
(see Section 5.1).

4.3 Page Numbering, Headers and Footers

The page number should be included in the footer of the report, left, right of
centre alignment are all fine. In high quality reports, any page number before the
introduction should be Roman numerals (e.g. i,ii, iii, iv, v) and the introduction will
start on page one.

4.4 Citations and Intext Referencing

As required, you don’t need to cite common knowledge, can choose any appropriate
standard, numbered methods such as IEEE are popular.

4.5 Equations
If an equation is used to calculate a parameter within your report (and is not a
common equation such as Newton’s second law), then it is absolutely necessary that
the equation is included in you report (and all equation variables are defined). Given
that maths is one of the main communication tools of engineers, it is important
the equations are neat and well defined. Generally in an engineering report it is
acceptable to define an equation within or separate to your text.

For short and simple equations it is acceptable to include the equation in-line with
text. This is generally used when an equation isn’t critical to the reader. Be warned
that when an equation is in-text it can be hard for the reader to find. As an example,
“The hydraulic diameter of a channel is calculated as DH = 4A/P where A and P
are the channel area and perimeter respectively.”

Alternatively, equation can be defined between paragraphs, in such cases equations

should be centred and numbered to the right. An example of this is shown below in
Equation 1 where x is the lateral dimension, y is the vertical displacement, E is the
Young’s modulus, I the second moment of area, t is time and µ is the mass per unit

8
area.

∂2 ∂ 2y ∂ 2y
 
EI 2 + µ 2 = 0 (1)
∂x2 ∂y ∂t

Alternatively, equations can also flow with the text such as in. For example, the
dyanimcs of a beam can be describe by

∂2 ∂ 2y ∂ 2y
 
EI 2 + µ 2 = 0 (2)
∂x2 ∂y ∂t

where x is the lateral dimension, y is the vertical displacement, E is the Young’s

modulus, I the 2nd moment of area, t is time and µ is the mass per unit area.

Finally, it is a preference that the terms of an equation are defined in the text.
However, as an alternative varaibles can be directly defined below the equation such
as in Equation 3 below.

∂2 ∂ 2y ∂ 2y
 
EI 2 + µ 2 = 0 (3)
∂x2 ∂y ∂t

where
x is the lateral dimension
y is the vertical displacement
E is the Young’s modulus
I the 2nd moment of area
t is time
µ is the mass per unit area

5 Word Tools for Speedy Typesetting

Word has many in-build tools which will dramatically speed up you report writing.
As a rule of thumb, if you are repeating any laborious manual task, there will be
an automatic tool. Learn to use these and be familiar with them. This section will
detail some of the more common tools as well as some useful tips.

5.1 Styles & Automatic Heading Numbering

Numbering your sections will add to a professional looking report. Generally, a short
report may not need to be numbered, but for most reports in engineering numbering

9
will be beneficial. When writing your report, become familiar with automatic styles
(Figure 3, A), utilising this you can change the properties of one styles, and have it
automatically updated through your document (right click → modify). Furthermore,
if you use automatic styling you can can utilise automatic numbering (Figure 3, B).

Figure 3: Become familiar with and use automatic styling and section numbering

5.2 Automatic Table of Contents

When you utilise automatic heading styles (Section 5.1) you can automatically insert
a table of contents (Figure 4, A).

Figure 4: Automatic table of contents, citations, and captions

5.3 Automatic Referencing

Word has an automatic citation tool (Figure 4, B), while it isn’t perfect, for most Use F9 to

reports it is adequate. Avoid making errors in referencing by utilising the automatic update a refer-

tool. Again, numbered styles (such as IEEE) are generally preferred in engineering, ence, to update

however any formal style is acceptable (unless specifically stipulated). If your all references

installation of Word does not include IEEE you can add it from http://bibword. first select

codeplex.com/releases/view/19764. all your text

(Crtl+A).

10
5.4 Automatic Lists of Tables, Figures, Equations, etc
You can automatically insert captions via the captions tool (Figure 4, C) or by right
clicking on a figure, table, equation, etc. Once you have inserted a caption you can
automatically insert a list of figures, tables, equations, etc.

5.5 Simple Equation Formatting

Generally equations should be numbered. In Word, the simplest way to number
equations is to place them in a three column table (with clear borders). This allows
for both the equation to be centred, and the numbering to be right-justified. An
example of this is shown in Figure 5.

Figure 5: Centering an equation in Word using a table

5.6 Page Breaks, Section Breaks, etc.

This is a small bugbear, but learn to use various breaks (Figure 6). If you are using
multiple returns/enters to go to a new page, you’re doing it wrong. These also
become extremely useful when you start to modify your page setup (e.g. adding
landscape pages, or modifying page numbering).

Figure 6: Page breaks, section breaks, etc

5.7 Modifying Page Numbers

If you seek to impresses, and you should, your front matter should be numbered with
Roman numerals while the body should be traditionally numbered. Place a section
break (new page) in before your introduction and then follow Figure 7 to change the
front matter to Roman numerals.

11
 Figure 7: Format page numbers

6 Guideline For Laboratory Reports

The layout for a laboratory report follows the basics design as detailed above, however
the sections in the body are more standardised. A commonly accepted structure is
as follows:

• Aim
• Introduction or Background
• Experimental Method
• Experimental Data
• Data Analysis
• Results
• Discussion
• Conclusion

7 Assumptions and Errors

Assumptions and errors are often an area poorly discussed in reports, as such this Don’t waste

becomes an area you can make your work stand out. It is important to recognise the time discussing

limitations of your work, failure to do so will cause an intelligent reader to question trivial assump-

what you’re hiding. When discussing errors and assumptions it isn’t enough to just tions and er-

list them, rather you should consider whether the assumption or error is significant rors.

and what impact it will have. Furthermore when discussing assumptions and errors
ensure what your discuss is meaningful, don’t was your time and your audiences
time by discussing trivial factors.

7.1 Discussion of Assumptions

When discussing assumptions it isn’t enough to just state the assumption, you should
justify why this assumption is valid, and the explore the impact of this assumption.
An example is shown below.

12
 • Describe the assumption: During modelling the influence of drag was neglected.

• Justify the assumption: Drag becomes insignificant at low velocities and small
drag coefficients (small areas), as such the impact of drag on a basketball is
likely low.

• Explore the impact: By neglecting drag a slight over estimate of distance will
occur.

7.2 Discussion of errors

When discussing errors follow the same basic process as with assumptions, during
which bear in mind the following points:

• Human error is not a source of error. Human error is a euphemism to say that
you messed up and you’re not good enough.

• Rounding error is not a significant source of error (except in complex computer

simulation). If you have significant rounding error you should fix this.

• Discuss the error, it’s cause, and it’s impact.

• Ensure the errors you discuss are relevant and significant

• Consider all aspects of your work.

• If possible, attempt to quantify errors.

8 Conclusion
Good report writing is a key skill of an engineer, you should constantly strive to Your conclu-

improve and develop your report writing. This guide details the standards and sion should be

conventions of high quality reports and provides various tips. It should always be an appropriate

noted that this is only a guide and you may wish to modify the structure and style length for your

to suit your needs. Above all else ensure your work is professional, concise, and work. There is

consistent. Ensure you follow the golden rules. nothing wrong

with a short
conclusion,
but ensure it
meets the re-
quirements of
a good conclu-
sion.

13