Semi-Formal Reports: Test and Lab Reports
Short Investigation Reports
Test and laboratory reports are semi-formal. They are typically used for medical or scientific reasons, which means presenting them in a memorandum or letter format would not only seem out-of-place, but would also be inappropriate. When creating a test or lab report, you will want to use the titled document format.The titled document format is shown below.
Test and lab reports can serve several purposes. Lab reports can tell about tests that were performed, then the results from those tests.They can also be more comprehensive and summarize the tests and results, then detail the background, purpose, equipment, methods, and results. A lab report can also be the result of a classroom experiment, where students perform a test, then detail the results.
In this lesson, we are going to cover a comprehensive lab report, as well as one created in a classroom setting.
Industrial Lab Reports
The report pyramid for writing industrial lab reports is pictured below.
- The Summary compartment gives the purpose, main findings, and the outcome.
- The Background compartment tells the purpose and scope of the tests.
- The Tests compartment has four sub-compartments.
- Equipment and Materials tells the materials and instruments used.
- Test Method tells a step-by-step description of the testing procedure.
- Test Results gives the results or findings.
- Analysis gives an analysis and interpretation of the results and/or findings.
- The Outcome compartment gives a summary of the results and the interpretation of what those results mean.
- The Evidence compartment is optional, but comprised of separate sheets that contain the actual test data.
Now that you know what information goes into each compartment, let's talk about how you should present that information in this type of report.
Remember that an industrial lab report should use the titled document format. The top part of the report is called the title block. A basic title block is highlighted below.
In an industrial lab report, the title block will contain the report's title at the top, then the number and date.
Your company may already have a template for this type of report. In addition to what will be placed in the title block, it might also contain fields for:
- The purpose of the test
- The name of a client, if applicable
- Authorization for the test, such as a purchase order
- Summary of results
- The signature of the person who performed the test
- The signature of whomever approved the results
- The date the tests were completed
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