5 Importance of Data Collection and Analysis in Lab Reports

Writing lab reports is no child’s play. You need to plan and conceptualise the entire project. Then you need to design the production and maintenance phase. Finally, depending on the project phase, you need to decide which data is the best for the report. Handling so many tasks simultaneously becomes a challenge for most students. This is why you will find so many students seeking help with lab report writing. However, you need to remember these five things before you start collecting data –

• Details about the event for which you want to collect data – the overall system, product type, and process used.
• Is it an internal or external detection method?
• Happenings during the testing and production run
• If any events have similar historical records?
• If there were some recent changes like altered test conditions or different vendors

Now that you know what to check before collecting data, let’s discuss the importance of data collection and analysis in lab reports –

Identifying and controlling failed items

As soon as a failed item is identified, it must be tagged as a failed or potential failure. These tags help to free up space for the failure report. The serial numbers can be tracked to check which items will be classified as permanent failures. All the failed parts must be marked conspicuously and disposed of in a controlled environment, thereby maintaining all rules, laws, and regulations. Data analysis is so important because it tells us which parts should never be handled in any manner and must be disposed of from any future studies.

Reporting problems and failures

Failure reports must be initiated every time there is a problem with the software or hardware. The lab report must contain the detailed information necessary for correcting failures or determining the origin of the problem. Include the following information in your report –

• Descriptions of the symptoms that lead to failures.
• Conditions during the failure of the event.
• Identifying the failed hardware
• Information about every dependent and independent failure, including the exact confirmation of the symptoms.
• Identifying the failure models.
• Description of the actions taken to repair the failed processes and make them operational.
• Detailed information about the investigation results, including analysis report of part failures.
• Analysis report of the designed items.
• Detailed report on the corrective steps taken to evade recurring failures. (rationale for the old decision, if no corrective measures were taken)

Verify failures

Failures that are reported must be verified as real failures. It should be followed by an acceptable explanation justifying the reasons for failure. This explanation is deemed as a guideline to avoid future failures. If the failure continues to persist, that process must be reported. The software or the hardware should be reported with enough evidence of malfunction. It can be a damaged part, buggy interface, leakage residue, etc. If there is not enough evidence to verify the reason for the failure, the rationale is incomplete and should not be considered sufficient.

Investigating and analysing failures

Every reported failure must be analysed and investigated. The investigation process should be thorough enough to detect any kind of malfunction. Irrespective of the software or the hardware, the analysis report should be able to detect the cause of the failure and what potential effects it can inflict. You are free to use any research method like microscopic analysis, dissection, x-ray, spectrographic analysis, application study, etc.

Use whatever method you feel is best for your study to determine the reason for the failure. If the cause of failure seems external or there is no defect in the hardware, the study should be extended to the circuits and other subsystems. No matter where the fault lies that must be documented.

Corrective action and follow up

After the reason for the failure is detected, a corrective action plan should be designed and implemented. This is crucial to reduce or eliminate the chance of the reoccurrence of the same issue. Post-implementation, the effectiveness of the new method should be followed up to ensure it is operating smoothly.

If you need more guidance on how to implement all these in your lab report, try asking, “Who can write my report?” by clicking on MyAssignmenthelp.com.

Summing Up:

These are the reasons why data collection and analysis are prioritised during lab report writing.

Author Bio:

Mia is a leading assignment report for MyAssignmenthelp.com and can also offer excellent business report examples for students.

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