'Highly recommended' in-house delivery of Technical Report Writing​

ICE Training was proud to deliver a tailored version of our Technical Report Writing course for the International Marine and Dredging Consultancy (IMDC), based in Antwerp, Belgium, as we continue to extend our training offering to international clients in need of certified, high-quality training programmes.

As part of IMDC’s general training scheme, they seek to provide their staff with the necessary skills to do their jobs to the highest level. As a specialised consultancy firm that provides highly technical services related to marine, estuarine, and riverine environments, it is vital that their clients receive readable and clear reports.

Our Technical Report Writing course was recommended to the company by Jon Kemp, Operations Director and an ICE member. He said he “fondly recalled its usefulness, and the effective delivery, when he followed it earlier in his career.”

Jakki Bendell, a Business Writing Consultant and the course tutor, worked with ICE Training and IMDC to make sure the training was tailored for their needs. Jakki said, “I referenced the client's own house style guide to make sure the style and tone I was recommending resonated with the delegates. This also allowed for plenty of useful discussion throughout the day on consistency where there is more than one opinion on the correct way to write. For example, the use of British vs American spelling, and when to use active or passive voice. Also, some delegates at IMDC were writing reports in Dutch and French. We were able to discuss how the concepts of plain language (clear, concise writing targeted to the needs of diverse readers) might apply in these markets.”

The work tailoring the course was reflected in the positive delegate feedback:

• "The teacher was very clear and the course was interactive with some assignments to understand the course content" - Nathalie Van Caster, Environmental Engineer
• "It was good to see that many things I learned in the past, were still applicable today. Besides that the course gave me new insights as well, e.g. the importance of the report design process and review process" - Toon Goormans, Senior Hydraulic Engineer
• "The course was well taught. There was room for questions and topics were handled in more detail based on the questions of the attendees" - Alexander Mondelaers, Hydraulic Engineer
• "Good training overall. The trainer put enough stress on the important things to consider while doing technical writing" - Hilario Castro, Coastal Engineer

When asked about the benefits of the course for IMDC, Jon said “as an organisation we want to be able to continue to present our technical results to our clients in a clear and digestible manner and this course has aided our already high standard of reporting.” He also said he would definitely recommend the training to other international clients.

For commercial success, it is critical for engineers to be able to write clear, concise technical reports to tight deadlines. These are skills that are not often prized by schools, universities and English language courses. Of course, there is some crossover between academic writing and technical writing in industry. But there are also some key differences.

This course covers these differences in a lively, pragmatic way. It appeals to engineers because it offers tools and techniques that make the writing process more of a science than an art. The delivery is highly interactive, including discussion and practical exercises honed by years of training technical professionals globally.

Delegates often say they are confident in approaching writing tasks that seemed daunting before the course. Some of them go on to recommend it to their colleagues and direct reports. The skills they learn serve them, and the organisations they work for, throughout their whole careers.

You can find out more about the course and available public training dates here, or contact our in-house team to find out more about tailor-made delivery for your company.