Writing style useful steps

Writing your report Now that you have organised your thoughts, you need to put them into
writing. Ensure your writing demonstrates clarity and logic. You should think constantly
about your readers and make your report easy for them to read. To achieve good readability,
you should:

 Use effective headings and subheadings

 Structure your paragraphs well
 Write clear sentences with plain language
 Keep your writing professional
 Use white space and well-chosen fonts
 Number your pages
 Use footnotes, tables, figures, and appendices appropriately
Formal or Informal Reports
Formal reports are carefully structured; they stress objectivity and organization, contain much
detail, and are written in a style that tends to eliminate such elements as personal pronouns.
Informal reports are usually short messages with natural, casual use of language. The internal
memorandum can generally be described as an informal report.

Feasibility Report
A feasibility report is written to report the methods and findings of a feasibility study. A
feasibility study is done to determine if an existing program is efficient; in addition, a
feasibility study can be done to examine a potential program. Usually, the study’s ultimate
goal is to determine the success of a project based upon two important criteria: the cost of the
project and the future value of the project. Most feasibility reports are done collaboratively
with various participants providing the research for their various interests or skills. The
information is then brought together, and one person will work on the organization of the
report. Each member of the team should have written a small report on his or her specific task
so that the person writing the report will only need to compile the information in an organized
manner, provide transitions between each section, and, after the report is written, organize the
front and back matter.

Once the report is written, it is the responsibility of the entire group to revise and edit the
draft.

1. Steps:

A. Analyze the needs of your audience.

B. Examine the context and purpose of the study.

C. Organize the information into content sections.

D. Determine the order of the information.

 2. Organization: (Refer to the Formal Report resource.)

A. Front Matter—executive summary, title page, table of contents, abstract, preface, brief and
summary.

B. Body—introduction, body, conclusion, and recommendations.

C. Back Matter—appendices, glossary, index, and bibliography.

Inspection Reports
An inspection report is a document containing the result of an inspection conducted to gather
data that could be used to determine the condition of that which was inspected. In simpler
terms, an inspection report is a record of the details of an inspection. It is usually needed for
inspections of properties such as homes and vehicles, and for business operations in order to
verify compliance with safety and quality standards.

Writing Steps
 Determine the intent of the inspection.
What is the inspection for? Is it to check the safety of a home? Is it to evaluate the value of a
property based on certain attributes. Is the inspection for compliance with safety regulations
such as making sure that a vehicle is checked before it is driven for the day? Knowing the
intent of the inspection can help guide in writing an inspection report.
 Know who will be reading the inspection report.
Will the inspection report be submitted to a superior at work? Is it for regulators? Knowing
the intent of the inspection and its audience can better guide the inspector on how to write the
inspection report.
 Check what needs to be on the report.
Whether it’s for inspecting a property, checking the safety of a vehicle, or doing an
inspection at work for safety or quality, inspection reports are likely based on existing rules
and standards and thus have patterns or templates that can be followed as a guide for
conducting inspections and creating inspection reports. Make use of existing documents that
lay down the requirements for inspections to be made in the first place.
 Utilize tools that can help create inspection reports.
Using existing standards or regulations as a guide, with the audience and intent of the
inspection report in mind, you can now begin to write an inspection report using the tools
available to you. Inspection report apps available on mobile and web are great tools that you
can use to automatically convert existing documents on Word, Excel, or PDF into
digital inspection report templates.

Progress Report……….Material Testing Report

A progress report is a report in which you are updating information about a project. Progress
reports make it possible for management and clients to stay informed about a project and to
change or adjust assignments, schedules, and budgets. These types of reports are used for
projects that have many steps from onset to completion and are issued at regular intervals. If
you are sending your progress report within your company, send a memo, but if it is going
outside of your company you should send a letter.

1. Tone
A. Whether you are reporting good or bad news, your job in the report is the same: you
provide a clear and concise account of your activities.

B. Avoid defensive language. Even if you are behind schedule, maintain honest
communication.

C. There are instances where you may be tempted to either withhold information or mislead
your reader. This is unethical. Always respond honestly.

I. If the deliverable isn’t what you thought, describe the events that led to the conclusion and
explain how the deliverable will be different than what you expected.
II. If you are running out of time, explain why you are behind and give a new expected date
for completion.
III. If you are going over budget, you must report this and explain why you need more
money.
2. Format
A. Create a template of your first progress report for the entire project and use that template
for each consecutive report after the first.

B. Incorporate headings and subheadings to organize the report and maintain the same
headings for the duration of the project.

I. You may divide the headings under Project Information, Costs, Work Completed, and
Work Schedule.
II. Not only will this organization make reading the report easier for your audience, but it will
also help keep you on track while writing the report.
3. Content
The progress report has a subject line, an introduction, a body, a conclusion, and possible
recommendations.
A. Subject Line: Be specific—“Progress Report for XXX July 14, 2011.” Include the
subject line in all forms of communication—e-mail, memo, or letter. Even if you are merely
sending an email or message for the purpose of asking a question or making a comment, use
the subject line with the project name.
B. Introduction
The introduction includes the following:
I. The title of the project.
II. The date.
III. The names, titles, and contact information of the participants.
IV. The project status summary.
V. General information about the schedule, cost, and expected completion date— reveal
if you are on schedule or behind, etc.
VI. If this is the first progress report of the project, you will identify the project, methods
used, materials, cost, and completion date.
VII. After the first progress report, your introduction will contain only a transitional
introduction that briefly refers to the first report.
C. Body
The body includes the following:
I. A description of the status of the project in detail.
II. The cost to date as far as materials, labor, etc.
III. An estimate of the remaining costs of materials, labor, etc.
IV. A “Work Completed” section does the following:
a) Details what you have done up to that point.
b) Details what you have left.
c) Work schedule that details what you will do between certain dates.
d) Complications you may foresee.
e) Include tables, graphs, drawings, or charts to assist your audience members’
understanding of the information and in presenting the organization of schedules.
D. Conclusion
The conclusion includes the following:
I. A summary of the predicted schedule.
II. An explanation of future steps.
III. The reasons for any delay.
IV. A predicted completion date.
V. Recommendations
a) Recommended actions related to the schedule.
b) Request for the next group of resources and workers.
c) An estimated delivery date for the necessary machinery, tools, materials etc.
Failure analysis Report
A failure analysis report is the summation of all of the tests and analyses performed during
the course of an investigation.

A good report allows the reader to follow the investigator's thought processes during the
analysis and also documents and explains the course the investigation followed. Generally,
significant preparation is required prior to actually writing a report.

An author must compile all of the information generated during an investigation, review the
information, and have a reasonable understanding of the data. It is preferable for the report to
list work chronologically as the tasks were performed.

An investigative procedures section details the tests and methods used during the analysis. A
table of contents should be included if the report contains many pages, typically 10 or more.
The results section of the paper reports the pertinent data and information obtained from the
various tests performed during the investigation.