OSU-Okmulgee || Faculty

Arts & Sciences

Carsten Schmidtke

Engl 2033 Technical Writing II Formal Proposal

Memorandum

DATE: November 9, 2005

TO: All Technical Writing Studios

FROM: Carsten Schmidtke

SUBJECT: Requirement for Long Report—Formal Proposal

Proposal Basics

All employees are encouraged to submit ideas for changes, improvements, upgrades, or purchases that they believe will improve their department specifically or the company in general. This can include upgrades or purchases in equipment, expansions (be it facilities, personnel, or services offered), changes in policy, etc. These documents are treated as unsolicited, internal proposals and should tackle a real problem.

Except for the Appendix, all material submitted must be your original work; if not, credit must be given to the source. If you use diagrams, equipment specifications, brochures, or other materials that you did not produce, place it in the Appendix.

Writing a formal proposal is not all that different from the other writing you have done in this class. It follows the same sorts of guidelines that the short reports followed, and it seeks to achieve the five main objectives of technical writing: clarity, conciseness, concreteness, completeness, and correctness.

However, the proposal does differ from the other types of writing because it is more in depth and detailed, larger in scope, and longer, and it requires even more attention to detail, formatting, mechanics, etc. Since this is your final project, it should be the culmination of what you have learned about technical writing this semester. You will need to give it the attention that its 230 points (23% of your course grade) deserve.

Other Requirements

You must include a minimum of two (2) graphics (photographs, drawings, charts, graphs, etc.). The images must be to scale (no enormous sizes covering one-half page) with captions and labels in 12-point size below.
You must include a minimum of one (1) table.
You must include a technical definition or a technical description in the body of the proposal.
Library or Internet research will be necessary for specifics to satisfy information needs (trade magazines, for example, may contain the latest information on equipment such as cost, technical specifications, etc.)

Parts of the Formal Proposal

The proposal must have a clear explanation of the problem.
The problem must be followed by a concise yet clear and complete proposed solution.
The entire proposal must be a minimum of eight (8) pages long (shorter proposals will not even be considered for a grade).
The proposal must follow the traditional format and include, in this order, the following:

1. Title Page (no page number)

2. Transmittal Letter (no page number)

3. Table of Contents and List of Illustrations (page iii)

4. Body of the Proposal that is 3-5 pages long (pages 1 through 5)

►INTRODUCTION

Purpose

Problem

►DISCUSSION

This section describes the solution and may contain any or all of

the following:

· Analyses

· Technical descriptions of mechanisms, tools, facilities, or products

· Technical instructions

· Options

· Technical definitions

· Schedules

· Cost tables or graphs

· Managerial chains of command (organizational charts)

►CONCLUSION

Major concern

Recommendation

5. Glossary – 8 entries minimum (page number follows last number of the body)

6. Appendix – one (1) minimum

o This includes material too complex, technical, or detailed for the report proper or material that you did not produce yourself.

o Labeled Appendix in the upper right-hand corner

Individual Formal Proposal Grading Rubric

Student Name: ________________________________________________________

Format	Title Page	5
	Transmittal Letter	15
	Table of Contents	15
	List of Illustrations	15
	Glossary	15
	Appendix	5

Content	Length (3-5 pages)		30
	3 Graphics and Table
		(1)	30
		(2)
		(3)
	Headings and Subheadings	INTRODUCTION	30
		DISCUSSION
		CONCLUSION
	Topic	Researched?	30
		Well thought out?

Spelling and Mechanics	Minus 1 point for each error	30
Creativity and Professionalism		10
TOTAL:		230

Assignment

Many customers have been complaining about the rising cost of fuel, and they have been putting off repairs or upgrades to their vehicles to be able to afford driving anymore. As a result, there has been less work in the shop, and the company has been considering layoffs. You, the shop supervisor, would hate to see good people leave. You remember reading an article in a trade magazine about the benefits of converting vehicles to natural gas engines.

Write an internal proposal to the regional manager of the corporation that owns your dealership. Try to convince him or her to encourage customers to have their vehicles converted to natural gas because of the substantial savings and other benefits. In the proposal, discuss why natural gas is ideal for city driving and address improved safety, environmental/health benefits, cost and savings (conversion, parts, fuel, maintenance, etc.) and Oklahoma state incentives for converting vehicles to alternative fuels. Research the advantages of using natural gas by reading relevant materials in books or magazines or by finding information online. Document your findings in the text and propose to management that a good course of action would be to try to get customers to convert their vehicles. Address the proposal to Mr. Lance Boyle, regional manager.

Some basic materials have been provided to get you started. However, this information is not sufficient to complete your proposal successfully. You must conduct additional research to gather all the facts you will need. You may start with the following three websites:

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carsten@osu-okmulgee.edu