Guidelines for Writing a Technical Report for Technologist Certification, Study notes of Engineering

Download Guidelines for Writing a Technical Report for Technologist Certification and more Study notes Engineering in PDF only on Docsity!

GUIDELINES AND

REQUIREMENTS

FOR AUTHORING A

TECHNICAL REPORT

As a Partial Requirement

Toward Certification at the

Technologist Level

GUIDELINES AND REQUIREMENTS

FOR AUTHORING A TECHNICAL REPORT

Completing a satisfactory technical report is a requirement for certification as a technologist. This document provides requirements and guidelines for preparing and submitting a technical report.

The technical report must be no fewer than 3,000 words (excluding executive summary, table of contents, references, bibliography, and appendices). The subject must relate directly to the discipline in which the applicant seeks certification. An outline of the technical report should be approved by the ASET Registrar prior to the applicant writing the report to ensure the subject matter is appropriate.

Applicants should pay particular attention to the six areas indicated below.

1. SUBJECT OF THE REPORT

The report must be related to the discipline in which the applicant is seeking certification. The report must demonstrate engineering/applied science competence at the technologist level, (including elements of design and application of theory) with extensive technical and mathematical depth. This will illustrate that the author has a clear understanding and mastery of the subject.

The technical report must attempt to discuss an engineering/applied science issue and demonstrate:

 Critical analysis of a technical issue (i.e. a technical thought pattern leading from the identification of an issue to the creation of a hypothesis, and ultimately to a conclusion).

 Analysis of a technical issue, evaluation of alternate resolutions, how the recommendations were derived.

 A conclusion that supports the recommendations.

 Acknowledgement of sources (bibliography, references, footnotes). Acknowledgement of sources not only indicates intellectual courtesy and honesty, it also enables the examiner to confirm reference materials.

management, technical sales and teaching. Such activities may be carried out in association with other professionals.

Uses an applied approach based on a comprehensive understanding of a specific technology.

Evaluates assignments, determines procedures and implements solutions, schedules work to meet objectives, participates in short- and long-range planning, and may become involved in developing and promoting conceptual change.

May assume managerial or administrative responsibility for a wide range of technical endeavours.

May supervise and co-ordinate a diverse working group and train less experienced technical and professional staff.

3. FORMAT OF THE REPORT

The technical report must adhere to specific ASET guidelines and must contain:

 Properly documented references to current technical literature to demonstrate an up-to-date and full understanding of the subject.

 Suitable illustrations, photographs, diagrams, and tables.

 Proper sizing in an 8.5 x 11 inch format, one-sided, double-spaced with one-inch minimum margins.

 Appropriate elements of a technical report ( see ASET Technical Report Components on page 6 ).

 Calculations and supporting data included in appendices and annexes to the report.

 Footnoted statements of engineering/applied science fact to show the basis for the statement(s).

4. SUBMISSION OF THE REPORT

The report should be submitted to the ASET Registrar. It will then be evaluated by the ASET Board of Examiners who will grade the technical report. The Board will make one of the following decisions:

a. The report may be found to be acceptable.

b. The applicant may be required to present an oral defence of the report.

c. The report may be found to require additional work and/or correction

d. The report may be found to be not acceptable.

The decision of the Board will be communicated to the applicant by the ASET Registrar.

5. DECLARATION OF AUTHORSHIP

A completed Declaration of Authorship must accompany the technical report ( see Declaration of Authorship on page 15 ).

6. MARKING FORMAT

The general marking format used to evaluate a technical report is as follows:

Report Format /

Executive Summary /

Introduction Content /

Exhibits /

Conclusion/Recommendations – Content and Logic /

Technical Content /

Proper use of References /

Up to 20 points deducted for poor use of grammar ( )

Passing Mark for Technical Report 65%

Any Plagiarism will result in a mark of 0%

4. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

It is appropriate to acknowledge and thank individuals who aided, contributed, or acted as a technical advisor to the author.

EXAMPLE: I would like to thank Dr. Jane Smith for the mentoring she provided during this project. I would also like to acknowledge Bob Green, P. Tech. (Eng.) for allowing my access to the laboratory and use of the test equipment.

5. TABLE OF CONTENTS The Table of Contents lists major topics and the related page numbers. Minor topics are included as sub-topics under the appropriate major topic.

EXAMPLE:

Table of Contents Page Table of Contents........................................................... 4 Exhibits.................................................................…….. 5 Executive Summary........................................................ 6 Introduction..................................................................... 7 Discussion...................................................................… 8 Conclusion..................................................................... 34 Recommendations......................................................... 38 References..................................................................... 42 Bibliography……………………………………………….. 43 Appendices.................................................................... 46

6. LIST OF EXHIBITS

EXAMPLE:

7. LIST OF ACRONYMS (OPTIONAL)

EXAMPLE:

8. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The executive summary includes (very briefly):

 Why the investigation was initiated

 How the investigation was performed

 An overview of the results

 The conclusions based on the results

 The recommendation (actions) based on the conclusion

Rationale: A brief description of the report content. As the name suggests, the executive summary is a summary at the beginning of the report provided as a courtesy to the reader (possibly a busy executive) who may not have time to read the entire report. It should be written so a reader with some knowledge of the subject matter can determine if they need to read the entire report to get more detail.

List of Exhibits Page Exhibit 1, (Example) System drawing........................................... 36 Exhibit 2, (Example) Test results.................................................. 37 Exhibit 3, (Example) cost comparison.......................................... 38

Acronyms

OSB – Oriented Stand Board TWT – Traveling Wave Tube

Discussion (Body of Report) The discussion is the body of the report and will include the details of the investigation. The discussion will include the procedure used and data collected during the evaluation (voluminous amounts of data should be included in the appendices and simply referred to in the discussion). The discussion should be divided into subsections as needed to provide a clear presentation of the subject matter.

Rational: The technical report must attempt to solve an engineering or applied science issue. The report must demonstrate a critical analysis of a technical issue. Technical Content is marked out of 30.

In-Text Citations The technical report must be the original work of the author of the report, but every report will require outside sources of information to substantiate and validate the report author’s results. It is not only required to research the subject matter of the report and include that research in the report, but it is also required to properly document the source of the research material.

In-text citations indicate where to find the source of the outside information. The references are numbered sequentially as they appear in the body of the report. Also indicated in the citation is the page number where the quote can be found. The citations are listed numerically in the reference section where additional information is provided. For more information on documenting sources, please review an appropriate style guide (for example, the APA Style Guide).

EXAMPLE:

Test 6 and 7 of the investigation were performed outside in February when the temperature reached - 400 C. The results obtained were consistent with results obtained above this temperature, but it should be noted that the instrument manufacturer indicates the “lowest reliable operating temperature is - 300 C” [1, p185]

Footnotes Explanations and other notes not easily incorporated in the text may be inserted as footnotes. They will appear at the bottom of the page.

EXAMPLE:

Quotations Short direct quotations of not more than two of three lines should be made part of the text and enclosed in double quotation marks (“…”).

Quotations longer than three typewritten lines begin on a new line, are introduced by a colon, are single-spaced, and are not enclosed in quotation marks. It is best to indent such quotations from both sides of the page to set them off clearly from the text. Follow the paragraphing and punctuation of the original. All quotations must be exact.

Identify all direct quotations by using a footnote, which gives precise details of title, authorship, publication and exact page. The singular abbreviation for page is “p” (plural “pp”).

Rationale: Proper documentation of sources not only indicates intellectual courtesy and honesty; it also enables the examiner to confirm reference materials. Proper use of References is marked out of 10.

12. RECOMMENDATION(S)

Recommendations correspond to specific conclusions and refer to actions that are required based on the author’s interpretation of the data.

Rationale: The recommendations are linked to the conclusion and provide the author with additional opportunity to demonstrate critical thinking.

The recommendations are suggestions for change based on the conclusion(s). In the introduction a purpose of the report was indicated. The recommendation section details potential resolution to the underlying issues that were the purpose for writing the report. There must be a recommendation for each conclusion. The Conclusion and Recommendations are marked out of 20.

13. REFERENCE LIST References can be cited by inserting a reference number into the report at the appropriate point. The list of references is limited to materials that are definitely cited, and the entries are arranged in the order in which they are first cited. For more information on listing references, please review an appropriate style guide (for example, the APA Style Guide).

EXAMPLE:

14. BIBLIOGRAPHY (OPTIONAL)

The Bibliography includes an alphabetical list of books, articles and works reviewed in the preparation of the report. The Bibliography should not contain those sources included in Reference List.

EXAMPLE:

15. APPENDICES

Supplementary data created by the author that may be too voluminous for the body of the report but not essential to the body of the report should be included as an appendix.

16. ANNEXES Supplementary data not created by the author that may be too voluminous for the body of the report but not essential to the body of the report should be included in the appendix (for example, data sheets and manufacturers data). 17. INDEX (OPTIONAL) An Index is alphabetical list of specific topics in the report. 18. GLOSSARY OF TERMS (OPTIONAL) A glossary of terms is an alphabetical list of terms and words used in the report.