3. Format
Once the objectives have been established, start
organising the information available. As you find
material, put it into one of three categories:
1. important information that is relevant to the
objectives
2. borderline information which might be useful
to some readers or support more important
material
3. information which may be interesting to you,
but is not relevant to the objectives
Set aside category 3 material to check it later. Material
in categories 1 and 2 must be kept available and
thought of as probable main text (category 1) and
appendix material (category 2).
When you’ve identified probable main text, you can
start looking through it to decide on how it could be
ordered logically.
3.1 Appendices
Although appendices are at the end of a report, think
about them first as they can be one your most useful
tools. Appendices should be used to remove from the
main text all information which is not needed by the
majority of readers.
3.2 Sections and subsections
Divide information and place it under headings that are
as specific as possible. From a visual point of view, this
space on the page makes your report easier to read.
Also, readers can identify and refer to sections which
are relevant to their interests.
Section headings
If you don’t have a template for a report provided by
your company or university, then there are some widely
accepted section headings you can use:
– Title page
– Acknowledgements
– Summary
– Table of Contents
– Introduction/Terms of Reference/Scope
– Procedure
– Findings
– Conclusions
– Recommendations
– References/Bibliography
– Appendices
These sections can be adapted or merged together,
depending on what you think would be appropriate for
your reader. They form a framework for a report, but you
don’t need to start writing at the beginning. Writers
often find it easier to start with the factual material in
the Findings section.
Notation
The logical linking of headings is shown by notation,
usually decimal notation. The system is easy to produce
and follow, and the fact that it is widespread means
that readers are likely to be familiar with it.
A guide to technical report writing – Format
05
If the main text is clear of detailed
statistics, maps, explanations of
technical terms or experimental
data, it will be kept as short and as
readable as possible.
By using appendices, you can also cater
to different types of readers, their
needs and priorities. Experts may feel
patronised by too much explanation
in the main text and non-experts left
confused by lack of information – but
appendices can satisfy both parties.
An engineer may be frustrated by
technical information interwoven with
details of costing, but both technical
and financial readers will be happy to
find costings in the appendix.