Technical Writing for Engineers

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Technical Writingfor Engineers

• by
• Dr. Aly N. El-Bahrawy
• Faculty of Engineering, Ain Shams University

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Typical Engineers Day
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Engineers and Writing

• Engineers write a lot
• Engineers write many kinds of documents
• Successful engineers require strong writing
  skills
• Engineers can learn to write well
• No one can be a good writer
• only a good rewriter

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Many Kinds of Documents
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Noise and the Communication Process
Noise possibilities
Mess- age
Mess- age
Encoder (sender)
Channel (speech, writing, etc.)
Decoder (receiver)
Noise possibilities
Anything that causes reader to hesitate due
to uncertainty, confusion or frustration is noise
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Technical Writing Process
Planning
Drafting
Reviewing
Mechanics
Purpose
Grammar
Readers
Initial Draft
Style
Research
Outline
Content
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Technical Style Characteristics

• Objectivity
• neutrality, absence of bias
• Precision
• concrete language, exact dimensions and units,
  well-defined terms
• Clarity
• word choice, completeness, correctness
• Economy
• fewest words for the desired meaning
• Audience
• general, technicians, experts, executive, mixed

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Objectivity Denotative versus Connotative
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Precision Concrete versus Abstract
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Clarity Examples

• Misplaced modifiers
• Training sessions will be offered at several
  sites covering the operational characteristics of
  the equipment. (Distracting)
• Training sessions covering the operational
  characteristics of the equipment will be offered
  at several sites. (clear)

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Clarity Examples

• Careless punctuation
• Several members were absent from the meeting
  fortunately, the key agenda items were
  rescheduled. (confusing)
• Several members were absent from the meeting
  fortunately, the key agenda items were
  rescheduled. (clear)

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Economy

• Hints to be concise
• Substitute single words for phrases
• Delete unneeded words or phrases
• Avoid there is, it is constructions
• Limit use of passive voice
• Revise indirect sentences into direct forms

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Verbs for Phrases
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Words for Phrases
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Redundant Expressions
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Economy Examples

• Avoid it is, there is constructions
• Pour concrete when it is 40 F.
• Passive voice
• Many of these tasks are now performed by office
  computers.
• Office computers now perform many of these tasks.

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Economy Examples

• Wordiness
• There are three assumptions on which this
  proposal is based.
• This proposal is based on three assumptions.
• Indirectness
• In an article that was published in
  Computerworld, there is an explanation of this
  phenomenon that has been so puzzling to so many.
• A Computerworld article explains this puzzling
  phenomenon.

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Audience

• General
• define technical terms, use graphics, focus on
  how to use
• Technicians
• focus on construction, installation and
  servicing, use graphics
• Experts
• design or evaluation of technology
• Executives
• costs, personnel, company politics, summary and
  conclusions
• Mixed
• clear summary, non-technical language, details in
  appendix

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Checklist for Effective Technical Style
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Guidelines for Good English Writing

• Why you are writing?
• Your readers
• To the point
• Document specifications
• Accurate information
• Logical material
• Clear expression

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Guidelinesfor Good English Writing

• Efficient wording
• Accessible ideas
• Information lists
• Page formatting
• Time management

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Why you are writing?

• Purpose
• Inform
• Request
• Instruct
• Propose
• Recommend
• Persuade
• Record

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Your Readers

• Consider their
• Needs
• Interests
• Level of expertise
• Possible reaction

• They can be your
• Peers
• Supervisors
• Subordinates

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Bridging the Gap

• Ask yourself questions
• Knowledge
• Different field, different audience
• Ability
• Level and vocabulary, unreasonable expectations
• Interest
• Purpose, level of detail, attitude

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Document Specifications

• Length of document
• Brief memo, specs, RFP
• Topic
• Editor requirements
• No of words, format

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To the Point

• Most important at the beginning
• Managers need the bottom line
• Kind of document
• Letter (opening sentence)
• Memo (subject line)
• E-mail (concise subject heading)
• Report (informative title, executive summary)

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Accurate Information

• Errors make readers lose confidence
• Examples of errors
• Incorrect reference, inaccurate directions,
  claims true under certain conditions
• Difference between fact and opinion

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Logical Material

• Chronological
• progress of trip report
• From most to least important
• no of points
• Order of familiarity or difficulty
• Text book
• From general to specific
• memo

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Clear Expression

• Engineering is a precise discipline
• Sentence must convey a single meaning with no
  room for interpretation
• or misunderstanding
• Pitfalls to avoid
• Ambiguity, vagueness, coherence, directness

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Clear Expression

• Ambiguity
• Point to more than one referent in a sentence
• Vagueness
• Words causing no useful meaning to reader
• Coherence
• Paragraphs and documents should stick together
  and be focused on subject
• Directness
• Access to information should be quick and easy

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Example of Ambiguity

• Before accepting material from the new
  subcontractors, we should make sure they meet our
  requirements.
• We should make sure the materials from the new
  contractors meet our requirements before
  accepting them.

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Example of Vagueness

• The Robotics group is several weeks behind
  schedule.
• The Robotics group is six weeks behind schedule

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Example of Coherence

• A significant advantage of the 125-H CRT is its
  high power consumption. The tube requires
  substantial power to produce the high voltages
  and currents that are necessary to drive and
  deflect the electron beam. The 125-H is
  inefficient only about 10 to 20 of the power
  used by the tube is converted into visible light
  at the surface of the screen. The 125-H is
  poorly suited for portable display devices that
  run on batteries, where lower consumption is
  necessary. We should consider other options
  before committing to purchase the 125-H.

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Example of Coherence

• A significant advantage of the 125-H CRT is its
  high power consumption. This tube requires
  substantial power to produce the high voltages
  and currents that are necessary to drive and
  deflect the electron beam. In addition, the
  125-H is inefficient only about 10 to 20 of
  the power used by the tube is converted into
  visible light a the surface of the screen. Thus,
  the 125-H is poorly suited for portable display
  devices that run on batteries, where lower
  consumption is necessary. Because of this
  drawback, we should consider other options before
  committing to purchase the 125-H.

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Example of Directness

• After the long and difficult development cycle
  due to factory renovation, the infrared
  controller will be ready for production in the
  near future.
• The infrared controller will be ready for
  production March 4. Its development cycle was
  slowed down by the factory renovation.

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Efficient Wording

• Cost to produce one written page (15-20)
• Wordiness
• Simplest and plainest word
• Never utilize utilize when you can use use
• Let your writing cool off for a while, then
  come back to edit later

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Example of Wordiness

• You may often find that there are a number of
  words contained in your writing that can be
  safely eliminated without any kind of danger to
  your meaning whatsoever
• Can you fix it?

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Example of Wordiness

• You may often find that there are a number of
  words contained in your writing that can be
  safely eliminated without any kind of danger to
  your meaning whatsoever
• You may find words that can be eliminated without
  danger to your meaning

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Examples of Wordiness

• I regret to say that at this point in time I
  basically do not have access to that specific
  information.
• I do not know.
• It is our considered recommendation that a new
  computer should be purchased.
• We recommend buying a new computer.

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Wordiness Table (words)

• commence
• compel
• comprises
• employ
• endeavor
• fabricate
• finalize
• Initiate
• optimal
• prioritize

• start
• force
• is
• use
• try
• make
• end
• begin
• best
• rank

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Wordiness Table (phrases)

• many
• now
• contact
• can
• if
• sometimes
• because
• about

• a large number of
• at this point in time
• come in contact with
• exhibits the ability to
• in the event of
• in some cases
• in view of the fact that
• in the neighborhood of

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Efficient Wording

• Redundancy
• Using words that say the same thing
• (e.g. basic fundamentals, connected together)
• Turning verbs into nouns
• Wanting to write in the passive rather than the
  active voice
• (e.g. made a selection selected,
• investigation was undertaken investigated)

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Table of Redundancy

• alternative choices
• actual experience
• completely eliminate
• Just exactly
• exactly identical
• prove conclusively
• rectangular in shape
• 12 noon
• very best

• alternatives
• experience
• eliminate
• exactly
• identical
• prove
• rectangular
• noon
• best

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Accessible Ideas

• Subdivision into sections and sub-sections
• Hierarchical headings
• FIRST Second (indent) Third
• Numbered headings
• 1.0 1.1 1.1.1
• Paragraph length
• Under 12 lines or less, avoid orphans and widows

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Information Lists

• Numbered
• Order of importance, 7 items
• Checklists
• All items must be tended to (usu. in order)
• Bulleted
• No specific order

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Information Lists

• Punctuation
• Lead-in ends with a verb, use no colon
• Some of the main concerns of environmental
• engineering are
• air pollution
• solid waste disposal
• public water supply
• Lead-in is a complete statement, use colon
• Some of the main concerns of environmental
• engineering are as follows

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Information Lists

• Items are complete statement, use period.
• Otherwise, use no punctuation
• The group accomplishments are as follows
• Logic design was completed.
• Final simulations were run.
• Test patterns were debugged.
• Consistent capitalization
• Grammatical parallelism
• Same beginning (verb, noun, etc.)

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Page Formatting

• Readers like visually pleasing print
• Margins
• One inch all around, ragged right-hand margin,
  extra left margin for binding
• White space
• Provides breathing room

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Page Formatting

• Typeface
• Serif (larger quantity of text) and sans serif
  (headings)
• The electric car prototype has regenerative
  braking, which recharges the supply while
  decelerating the vehicle.
• The electric car prototype has regenerative
  braking, which recharges the supply while
  decelerating the vehicle.

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Time Management

• Finding and using time
• breaks, laptops in waiting rooms, hotels, at
  airport, on trains, etc.
• Outlines, deadlines, and time lines
• Collaborative writing
• Team writing is not easy (divide work among
  persons, finish and pass to the next, or assign
  each person a different task)