STANDARDS FOR TECHNICAL REPORTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS Section I: Introduction. Section 1. 2. 3. Section 1. 2. 3. . ). '. Section 1. 2. 3. . ). II: Standards Common to all Technical Reports. General. Specifics. Organization. III: !od" of Report for #esign or $nal"sis %ro&lems. Introduction. $ssumptions. General $pproach. Results and #iscussion. Conclusions. Recommendations. I*: !od" of Report for +a&orator" ,-ercises. Introduction. Theor". ,-perimental %rocedures. Results and #iscussion. Conclusions. 1 2 2 2

' ' ' ' ( ( ( . . . . . / 10 11 12 13 14 15 16

$ppendi- $: Sample Title %age $ppendi- !: Sample Ta&le of Contents $ppendi- C: Sample +ist of Ta&les $ppendi- #: Sample +ist of 0igures $ppendi- ,: Sample +ist of S"m&ols $ppendi- 0: Sample 0igures $ppendi- G: Sample Ta&le

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SECTION I: INTRODUCTION 1an" of the courses in the School of ,ngineering 2ill re3uire "ou to su&mit "our solution to anal"sis pro&lems4 design pro&lems4 and la&orator" e-ercises using a formal 2ritten report. These reports are similar to those "ou 2ill encounter as a "oung engineer and are intended to de5elop "our a&ilit" to effecti5el" communicate the results of "our 2or6 to others. The purpose of this document is to set the standards for 2ritten 2or6 su&mitted in the School of ,ngineering. 7riting a complete4 formal technical report can &e time consuming. 8our professor ma" specif" that onl" sections of the report are to &e done for a certain re3uirement. In man" cases "our professor 2ill issue supplemental guidance to modif"4 moderate4 and9or tailor the prescri&ed format for a specific pro&lem. If "ou ha5e an" 3uestions pertaining to the format for a particular re3uirement4 see your professor.

SECTION II: STANDARDS COMMON TO ALL TECHNICAL REPORTS 1. GENERAL. Technical engineering reports are formal presentations of anal"sis solutions4 design solutions or test results. To &e useful4 the report must clearl" and concisel" communicate the results of "our 2or6. The technical report should not contain superfluous or unsupporta&le material. ,ach 2ord should &e essential and used in a clear and understanda&le manner. :ualit"4 not 3uantit"4 is the 6e" to a successful report. Since technical reports often ser5e the needs of &oth technical personnel and upper le5el management4 the" should &e carefull" organized to stri6e a &alance &et2een technical accurac" and completeness on one hand4 and reada&ilit" and conciseness on the other. This &alance is usuall" &est achie5ed &" ma6ing the main &od" of the report a complete4 "et concise4 o5er5ie2 of the pro&lem and its solutions; relegating most of the supporting data and pertinent detail to supporting appendices. <o2e5er4 THE BODY OF THE REPORT MU T T!"D !#O"E$ i.e.4 it is the controlling document 2hich ties together the entire report and directs the reader to an" other part of the report. $n orderl" num&ering or lettering s"stem for sections or paragraphs enhances the organization and permits eas" reference to material throughout the report. %aragraphs 2 and 3 &elo2 contain guidance for all formal technical reports for anal"sis pro&lems4 design pro&lems4 and la&orator" e-ercises. 2. SPECIFICS. a. Technical Reports 2ill &e su&mitted in a hard&oard theme &inder. The name=s> of the author=s> 2ill &e on the front of the &inder. &. $ll narrati5e portions of each su&mission 2ill &e prepared using a commercial 2ord processing s"stem and printed on standard ..)? - 11.@ paper. $ll machine or manual printing must &e clearl" legi&le. c. 7riting 2ill &e on one side onl" and 2ill &e dou&leAspaced. d. Se3uentiall" num&er all pages. Start the Title %age 2ith page i =Roman Bumerals> and start the Introduction 2ith page 1 =$ra&ic Bumerals>. e. $ minimum +,0T margin of l.)? must &e o&ser5ed on all pages to ensure reada&ilit" of the report after it is &ound. $ll other margins 2ill &e at least OB, inch. This includes figures4 ta&les4 and computer printouts. f. ,3uations found in the main report 2ill &e num&ered se3uentiall" for eas" reference. The" ma" &e hand2ritten. g. Sample calculations and supporting mathematical deri5ation9calculations are normall" located in appendices. Such calculations ma" &e hand2ritten in pencil. In actual practice4 pencil 2or6 is often photocopied to a5oid unauthorized tampering 2ith the final legal document.

h. $ll o5ersize pages 2ill &e cut to ..)? - 11? or folded neatl" to that dimension. $s an e-ception4 o5ersized pages ma" &e grouped together in a special &inder capa&le of holding o5ersized pages. In all cases4 pages 2ill &e attached so that the" ma" &e read 2ithout disassem&ling the report and should not face into the &inding nor &e o&scured &" the &inding. i. In general4 pages 2ill &e oriented 5erticall". If a page is presented so that it must &e turned /C degrees to &e read4 it 2ill &e placed in the &inder 2ith the top of the page at the &inding so that the reader 2ill ha5e to turn the report cloc62ise to read the page. D. Ese figures and ta&les to communicate information more clearl". %hene&er a figure or ta'le is used in a report it must 'e discussed in the report(s 'od). Such discussion should specificall" point out to the reader the main points illustrated. #o not 5aguel" refer to a figure and e-pect the reader to do the interpretation. $ll figures and ta&les 2ill ha5e complete descripti5e titles that distinguish them from all other figures or ta&les. Titles to computer generated figures ma" &e added neatl" &" hand in in64 t"ped directl" onto the figures4 or cut and pasted into the correct location. =1> Figu !". 0igures consist of dra2ings and or graphs supporting the &od" of the report. #escripti5e titles for figures appear at the !OTTO1 of the figure. 0igures 2ill &e num&ered se3uentiall"4 independentl" of ta&le num&ering. See $ppendi- 0 for a sample of a properl" la&eled figure. =a> D #$i%g". #ra2ings 2ill &e titled as ?0igures?. #ra2ings must &e done neatl". If done &" hand4 the" 2ill &e done 2ith a sharp pencil using a straightedge4 compass4 or 0rench Cur5e. $lternati5el"4 the use of computer generated graphics is highl" encouraged. #ra2ings are normall" done to scale. The scale should &e noted and critical dimensions should &e la&eled. If it is impractical to prepare dra2ings to scale4 this fact should &e clearl" noted &" 2riting ?BOT TO SC$+,? near the dra2ing. =&> G #&'". Graphs 2ill &e titled as ?0igures?. The a-es of the graph 2ill &e completel" la&eled4 to include units. The scale 2ill &e clearl" sho2n along each a-is. If more than one cur5e is sho2n4 a legend is re3uired that clearl" differentiates one cur5e from another. +a&eling 6e" points on a cur5e is highl" recommended to ma6e discussion of the graph clear. =2> T#()!". #escripti5e titles for ta&les appear at the TO% of the ta&le. Ta&les 2ill &e num&ered se3uentiall"4 independentl" of figure num&ering. Column headings for ta&les should include appropriate units. See $ppendi- G for a sample ta&le.

6. Sample calculations are re3uired in almost all instances to document or 5erif" results. The" are especiall" important in 5erif"ing computer generated results 2ith representati5e data from the pro&lem. 3. O g#%i*#+i,%. The follo2ing pages or sections appear in a complete Technical Report for anal"sis pro&lems4 design pro&lems4 and la&orator" e-ercises. a. Ti+)! P#g!. $ sample title page is found in $ppendi- $. &. A("+ #-+. The a&stract is a one page summar" of the entire report to include the conclusion. It should ans2er the ?2h"4 ho24 and ho2 2ellF? 3uestions a&out the report. This is usuall" the 5er" last section of the report to &e 2ritten. The a&stract must &e 2ritten as a stand alone document and must con5e" to the reader the essence of the report. It allo2s the reader the choice 2hether to read the remainder of the report for details. c. T#()! ,. C,%+!%+". This lists all important report sections and appendices along 2ith page num&ers. 7hen listing appendices4 a descripti5e title 2ill &e included. See $ppendi- ! for a sample Ta&le of Contents. d. Li"+ ,. T#()!". This is a list of all ta&les in the report4 their descripti5e titles and page num&ers. Titles should state 2hat is in the ta&le and clearl" define the situation to 2hich the ta&le pertains. $ sample Esed of Ta&les is found in $ppendi- C. e. Li"+ ,. Figu !". This is a list of figures in the report their dra2ings and graphs4 their descripti5e titles4 and page num&ers. The figure@s title should state 2hat is sho2n in the figure and clearl" define the situation to 2hich the figure pertains. $ sample +ist of 0igures is found in $ppendi- #. f. Li"+ ,. S/0(,)". This is a list of an" a&&re5iation or s"m&ol used in the report along 2ith its definition and units. It is arranged alpha&eticall" 2ith ,nglish letters first4 then Gree6 s"m&ols4 and then other s"m&ols. $ sample +ist of S"m&ols is found in $ppendi,. g. B,1/ ,. +'! R!&, +. The main sections in the &od" of the report 5ar" 2ith the purpose of the report. <o2e5er4 most technical reports for anal"sis pro&lems4 design pro&lems4 and la&orator" e-ercises contain man" common elements. Specific guidance concerning technical reports for anal"sis and design pro&lem is gi5en in Section III; and for la&orator" e-ercises in Section I*. h. 2, 3" Ci+!1. The 2or6s cited portion of the technical report =often called a ?&i&liograph"?> lists all outside sources used to complete the report. See $ppendi- < for a sample ?7or6s Cited? section.

i. A&&!%1i-!". The effecti5e use of appendices enhances the reada&ilit" and coherence of the main &od" of the report. $ppendices are the proper place for presentation of the details supporting the &od" of the report. $ppendices are appropriate for large amounts of ta&ulated data4 annotated sample calculations4 detailed mathematical deri5ations4 and other supporting material 2hich ma" &e essential to the completeness of the report4 &ut 2hich 2ould &e distracting or un2ield" if placed in the main &od". Sufficient information is gi5en in the appendi- so that another engineer 2ould &e a&le to reproduce "our results. The main &od" of the report must reference all appendices. ,ach appendi2ill ha5e its o2n co5er sheet listing the same title specified in the report@s ta&le of contents. ,ach appendi- 2ill &e ta&&ed on its co5er sheet for eas" reference &" the reader.

SECTION III: BOD4 OF REPORT FOR DESIGN OR ANAL4SIS PROBLEMS $ complete Technical Report for an ,ngineering #esign %ro&lem or ,ngineering $nal"sis %ro&lem includes those items discussed in Section II a&o5e. The organization of the &od" of the report for a design or anal"sis pro&lem follo2s. It represents a logical method of presenting "our results that 2or6s effecti5el" in most cases. If "ou feel another organization 2ould more effecti5el" communicate "our results4 see "our professor. 1. I%+ ,1u-+i,%. The introduction is a concise statement of the purpose and &ac6ground of the anal"sis9design pro&lem. This is a &rief &ac6ground on the su&Dect to tell the reader 2h" the design or anal"sis 2as performed. The introduction should gi5e onl" the &ac6ground information 2ith a minimum of detail. ,3uations and calculations are rarel" used in this section unless the" are a&solutel" necessar". References often are used to point out pre5ious 2or6 accomplished 2hich is historicall" important to this report. In a design pro&lem4 "ou should also list the specifications and re3uirements of the design along 2ith an" constraints of the pro&lem. 2. A""u0&+i,%": This is a listing of the conditions 2hich4 in addition to the 6no2n facts4 are considered essential to the completeness and 5alidit" of the report. $ssumptions should &e 6ept to the minimum re3uired and must al2a"s &e realistic. !ssumptions listed in this section should relate to the o&erall pro'lem. $ssumptions relating to a specific procedure or e3uation should &e presented in the ?G,B,R$+ $%%RO$C<? section in conDunction 2ith presenting that procedure or e3uation. $ssumptions are sometimes re3uired to &ridge gaps in factual information 2hich cannot &e o&tained through research 2ithin the re3uired time. 3. G!%! #) A&& ,#-'. This section de5elops the general solution procedure 2hich should lead to and support the results4 discussion4 conclusion4 and recommendation stated in su&se3uent paragraphs. It completel" e-plains the logical4 theoretical4 approach to sol5ing the design or anal"sis pro&lem. The arrangement of this paragraph should clearl" illustrate a logical approach to the pro&lem. It ma" include the principal e3uations essential to the anal"sis4 their assumptions4 and their impact on the solution of the pro&lem. $ll methodolog" is completel" e-plained. The report 2riter should consider the follo2ing 2hen de5eloping this section: =a> #eri5ations or references for the go5erning e3uations can &e included. deri5ations should &e placed in an appendi- and referred to from this section. +ength"

=&> Short sample calculations might &e included here4 &ut are commonl" found in an appendi- and referred to from this section. =c> #o not ma6e this section a chronolog" of 2hat "ou ha5e done or a long4 &lo2A&"A&lo24 coo6&oo6At"pe description of the solution techni3ue used. <o2e5er4 the reader should feel confident from the description of "our approach that "ou ha5e follo2ed a sound solution procedure.

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. R!"u)+" #%1 Di"-u""i,%. This section presents the end products of the design or anal"sis process. This is not the place to &e &rief. This is the thin6ing and reasoning part of the report. The report 2riter should consider the follo2ing 2hen de5eloping this section: =a> Results must &e presented in a conspicuous manner. =&> If applica&le4 present a logical appraisal of the 5arious alternati5e means &" 2hich to sol5e the stated pro&lem &ased upon an o&Decti5e e5aluation of the pertinent facts. =c> Results should &e discussed and compared in a factual manner. =d> It is often appropriate to use summar" ta&les and graphs to present the supporting e5idence used in this section. Remem&er e5er" ta&le and graph presented in this section must &e discussed. =e> $ sensiti5it" anal"sis ma" &e appropriate in reporting the results in this section =f> $n opinion of the 5alidit" of the results ma" &e appropriate. =g> The effects of an" assumptions on the results ma" &e addressed in this section. ). C,%-)u"i,%". This sections should &e thought of as a summar" 2hich emphasizes the findings of "our 2or6. !etter "et4 it is a summar" of the results and discussion section. *n this section contains the ans+er to the pro'lem statement. Geep the follo2ing points in mind as "ou de5elop this section of the report: =a> There should &e no ne2 information here that has not &een pre5iousl" de5eloped and discussed in the pre5ious sections of the report. =&> $ reader should &e a&le to go directl" from the introduction to this section to determine if the report contains findings of interest. =c> Summarize "our conclusions concisel"4 prefera&l" in itemized form. =d> In a design pro&lem4 the conclusion states the final choice for the design4 2ith complete engineering specifications. 6. R!-,00!%1#+i,%". Recommendations are courses of action not pre5iousl" stated in the conclusion section that ha5e a &earing on the pro&lem. Recommendations4 I0 $B84 should follo2 from the conclusions. In addition4 other recommendations 2hich significantl" impro5e the outcome of the report =or the o5erall ?anal"sis? design process> should &e presented. #id "ou consider a certain effect negligi&le that is not negligi&leF #o "ou suspect "our anal"sis ma" &e o5ersimplified and further stud" is 2arrantedF Other areas of consideration ma" also &e mentioned and could include suggestions for further stud" or impro5ement.

SECTION I5: BOD4 OF REPORT FOR LABORATOR4 E6ERCISES $ complete Technical Report for a +a&orator" includes those items discussed in Section II a&o5e. The organization of the &od" of the report for a la&orator" follo2s. It represents a logical method of presenting "our results that 2or6s effecti5el" in most cases. If "ou feel another organization 2ould more effecti5el" communicate "our results4 see "our professor. 1. I%+ ,1u-+i,%. The introduction is a concise statement of the o&Decti5e =2hat are "ou to determineF>4 purpose =2h" are "ou conducting the la&orator"F>4 and assumptions used during the e-periment. Conclusions made later in the report must &e &ased upon the stated o&Decti5es. The listed assumptions ma" include an" maDor limitations imposed during the e-periment or those needed to simplif" or reduce the scope of the e-periment. 2. T'!, /. This section completel" and concisel" e-plains the logical4 theoretical approach to conducting the la&orator" e-periment. It should include the principal theoretical e3uations essential to the conduct of the la&orator". #eri5ations or references for the go5erning e3uations can &e included; ho2e5er4 length" deri5ations should &e placed in an appendi- and referred to from this section. 3. E7&! i0!%+#) P ,-!1u !". This section of the report contains a &rief description of the la&orator" procedures follo2ed in conducting the e-periment. Controls used during the e-periment4 fre3uenc" of readings4 e3uipment used4 and general procedure are contained in this section. The reader should &e a'le to follo+ the conduct of the e,periment from this section. $n" need to e-pand upon the la& procedure that might &e considered too length" should &e included in an appendi-. . R!"u)+" #%1 Di"-u""i,%. This section of the report presents the e-perimental results and o&ser5ations. This section should also include a discussion of possi'le erroneous data and possi'le sources of error in the e,periment. The la&orator" report 2riter should consider the follo2ing 2hen de5eloping this section: =a> Results must &e presented in a conspicuous manner. =&> Results should &e discussed and compared in a factual manner. =c> #iscuss disagreement &et2een the la&orator" and theoretical results. =d> It is often appropriate to use summar" ta&les and graphs to present the supporting e5idence used in this section. Remem&er4 e5er" ta&le and graph presented in this section must &e discussed. =e> Sample calculations and supporting e5idence in support of this section is normall" presented in appendices. =f> $n opinion of the 5alidit" of the results ma" &e appropriate.

=g> $ sensiti5it" anal"sis ma" &e appropriate in reporting the results in this section. =h> Encertaint" and percent error calculations supporting the error anal"sis are usuall" included in an appendi- and discussed in this section. ). C,%-)u"i,%". This section of the report correlates the results 2ith the o&Decti5e of the e-periment. Geep the follo2ing points in mind as "ou de5elop this section of the report: =a> There should &e no ne2 information here that has not &een pre5iousl" de5eloped and discussed in the pre5ious sections of the report. =&> $ reader should &e a&le to go directl" from the introduction to this section to determine if the report contains findings of interest. =c> Summarize "our conclusions concisel"4 prefera&le in itemized form. =d> Conclusions should &e &ased on the current e-perimental effort and not on other results found in the literature. =e> If recommendations are appropriate4 the" ma" &e included in this section or pro5ided as a separate section.

$ppendi- $ Sample Title %age

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$ppendi- ! Sample Ta&le of Contents

T$!+, O0 COBT,BTS %age $!STR$CT +IST O0 T$!+,S +IST O0 0IGER,S +IST O0 S81!O+S 1. IBTRO#ECTIOB 2. $SSE1%TIOBS 3. G,B,R$+ $%%RO$C< 3.1 #escription of the 1odel 3.2 #escription of the Structural Scheme 3.3 Structural 1em&er Selection %rocess . R,E+TS $B# #ISCESIOB .1 Critical loading Conditions .2 ,ffects of #esign +oads on !ridge Superstructure .3 Critical 1em&er Selection ). COBC+ESIOBS '. 7ORGS CIT,# $%%,B#II $: !ridge 1odel *erification $%%,B#II !: Calculations Supporting $ppro-imate $nal"sis $%%,B#II C: Sensiti5it" $nal"sis of the Relati5e Se5erit" of +oads ii i5 5 5i 1 3 ' ' ( . / / 1C 11 13 1 1' 2C 32

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$ppendi- C Sample +ist of Ta&les

+IST O0 T$!+,S Ta&le 1. 2. 3. Title Results of Iterati5e #etermination of 1em&rane Section %roperties 1a-imum 0i&er Stress in 1em&rane $ for 1ilitar" +oad Class . Critical *ehicle +oading 1a-imum Stresses in the !ridge Superstructure for +oad Classes II through *II %age 11 12 13

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$ppendi- # Sample +ist of 0igures

+IST O0 0IGER,S Ta&le 1. 2. 3. . ). Title General Configuration and O5erall #imensions of the +ight *ehicle90oot !ridge T"pical Cross Section of the Center !a" of the +ight *ehicle90oot !ridge Bode Bum&ering Scheme Esed in !ridge 1odel 1. *ertical #eflection of the Top Chord for !ridge 1odel 1. +ongitudinal *ariation of Bormal and Shear Stress at the Outside of the Top Chord =+oad Case II>. ( / 1C %age 3

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$ppendi- , Sample +ist of S"m&ols

+IST O0 S81!O+S The s"m&ols listed here are ones used in e3uations4 figures4 ta&les and the te-t of this report. Some S"m&ols are from a computer program. Some 5aria&les ha5e t2o s"m&ols &ecause one form 2as con5enient for use in e3uations and a different form 2as used in the computer program and the program generated figures. $ a $cr $,9+ $+%1 $+%2 $% $%IC $%IS $S ! & C c9p ca ca CI%C area =+2> slope of the linear regression line crossAsectional area of the pile 2all =+2> pile spring constant =09+> design method $+%1 =Tomlinson 1/)(> design method $+%2 =Tomlinson 1/(1> total end area of the pile tip =+2> design method $%IC =1/.C R%2$ Recommended %ractice> design method $%IS =1/.C R%2$ Recommended %ractice> area of the pile side in contact 2ith soil =+2> pile tip diameter =+> intercept of the linear regression line pile circumference =+> ratio of the shearing strength to free field effecti5e o5er&urden pressure local pileAsoil adhesion =09+2> a5erage pileAsoil adhesion =09l2> castAinAplace concrete pile 2ith metal shell

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$ppendi- 0 Sample 0igure

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$ppendi- G Sample Ta&le Ta&le '. *iscosit" and #ensit" of 7ater at 1 atm T4 C C 1C 2C 3C C )C 'C (C .C /C 1CC 4 6g9m3 1CCC 1CCC //. //' //2 /.. /.3 /(. /(2 /') /). 4 Bs9m2 1.(.. ,A3 1.3C( ,A3 1.CC3 ,A3 C.(// ,A3 C.')( ,A3 C.) . ,A3 C. '( ,A3 C. C) ,A3 C.3)) ,A3 C.31' ,A3 C.2.3 ,A3 4 m29s 1.(.. ,A' 1.3C( ,A' 1.CC) ,A' C..C2 ,A' C.''2 ,A' C.))) ,A' C. () ,A' C. 1 ,A' C.3') ,A' C.32( ,A' C.2/) ,A'

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