Engineering Presentations

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Engineering Presentations

• Development and Delivery

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Needs for Presentations in Engineering

• Introduce new ideas for approval
• Share a purpose/intent
• Persuade
• Convey information
• Communicate progress on project/process
• Demonstrate ideas/projects/products
• Wrap up a project

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Relationships
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Know your audience

• What are the needs/desires?
• Their roles
• Their interest to the subject
• Distant or live audience
• Size
• Demographics
• Attitudes
• Knowledge

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Types of presentations

• Informative
• focus on pertinent points
• introduce small amount
• repeat often
• Persuasive
• motivate and convince
• demonstrate a need
• provide proof/evidence
• show benefits

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Types of Presentation Machinery

• Overhead transparencies or viewgraphs
• Overhead projector, transparencies
• Lowest tech of approaches to visual aids
• More control to presenter over media
• Easily changed during presentation
• On-going costly
• Static multimedia
• Can become dull/washed-out

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Types of Presentations Machinery

• Thirty-five-mm slides
• Slide projector, film slides
• High resolutions and brightness
• Requires high quality camera
• Film processing needs to be factored in to lead
  time
• Possible equipment difficulties due to sensitivity

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Types of Presentations Machinery

• Computer-based projection system
• Computer, projection
• Initial investment relatively high for projection
  system
• High resolution and brightness
• Include animation, film clips, dynamic slide
  transition
• High tech which can be unreliable

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Basis for Presentation

• Design Templates
• Introduction, Body, Conclusion
• Graphic elements, charts
• Color, animation, video
• Simplicity
• Handouts, notes

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Design Structure and Template

• Common background or theme
• Logos, project name, pictures
• Standardize size, colors, fonts, style
• Simple, non distractive
• Use appropriate color contrast and
  font size
• Use horizontal slides

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Template example
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Introduction

• Purpose
• Focuses audience attention
• Ask a question
• State an unusual fact
• Tell an interesting story or historical even
• Present a catchy phrase or quote
• Use humor
• Get audience to talk to you or each other
• Establishes purpose of presentation
• Establishes you as a credible source

Power Presentation,Brody, Marjorie and Shawn
Kent, pg 89
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Body

• Purpose
• Development of presentation ideas
• Organize in logical manner
• Use visuals to support data
• Make points interesting and memorable
• Involve your audience
• Use examples and stories
• Show relationships (CE, comparisons)
• Define assumptions and terms

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Conclusion

• Purpose
• Review the purpose and/or key points
• Leave the audience remembering the speech
• If persuasive, prompt audience for action
• Structure
• Review points
• Memorable statement
• Thank the audience

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Use graphs, diagrams
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Use color, animation and video

• add interest, richness and depth
• make presentation more dynamic

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Simplicity

• few words on each slide
• bullet point list
• phrases
• talking points

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Handouts
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Answering questions

• Ask audience for questions
• Leave enough time of questions
• Before answering a question, repeat it

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Non Verbal Communication

• Visual signals
• clothing
• gestures
• expressions
• stance

• Vocal signals
• volume
• speed
• pitch
• pauses

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Non-verbal Visual Dos

• Dress professionally
• Dress appropriately for occasion
• Dress with colors that compliment
• Dress for comfort
• Eye communication
• Keep eye contact with audience
• Vary your target
• Complete a thought or idea
• Facial Expression

Power Presentation,Brody, Marjorie and Shawn
Kent, pg 24
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Non verbal visual Dos

• Posture and movement
• stand upright, hold shoulders squarely
• open posture
• dont sway
• keep movements smooth, natural
• Gestures
• emphasize point
• use purposefully and sparingly
• vary gestures
• palms open and upward

Power Presentation,Brody, Marjorie and Shawn
Kent, pg 30
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Non-verbal Vocal Dos

• Pitch
• Volume
• Rate
• Emphasis
• Pause

Power Presentation,Brody, Marjorie and Shawn
Kent, pg 30
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Dos for Preparing the Presentation

• Check slides for accuracy and organization
• Learn to use the equipment before making
• the presentation
• Have pointers, pens, etc.
• Have backup copies of slides or handouts
• Practice, practice, practice

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Dos for Giving the Presentation

• Speak clearly and loudly
• If you are introduced, thank the moderator
• Make a smooth transition between speakers
• Spend little time changing slides
• Have a slide on the screen at all times
• Tell in advance if you are to change topics
• Use a pointer
• Keep with the times allocated to you

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Donts for Giving the Presentation

• Talk to the screen
• Stand in front of the screen
• Use your hand as a pointer
• Point at the audience
• Put your hands in your pocket
• Look at watch

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Donts for Giving the Presentation

• Use phrases such as ah, um or ok
• Use terms that are not defined
• Read material directly from the slides
• Switch back to previously shown slides
• Use material in which you cannot answer questions

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Summary

• Elements to successful presentation
• Time, preparation and effort
• Needs of audience
• Logical flow
• Presentation types/equipment
• Visual aids
• Supporting data
• Presenter

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Credits

• This module is intended as a supplement to design
  classes in mechanical engineering. It was
  developed at The Ohio State University under the
  NSF sponsored Gateway Coalition (grant
  EEC-9109794). Contributing members include
• Gary Kinzel. Project supervisors
• Phuong Pham.. ... Primary authors
• L. Pham ... Audio voice

References Power Presentation, Brody,
Marjorie and Shawn Kent, John Wiley and Sons,
Inc., New York, 1993. Tools and Tactics of
Design, Dominick, Demel, Lawbaugh, Freuler,
Kinzel, Fromm, John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New
York, 2001.
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