Field notes
Practical writing on inspection practice and report writing in Australia, by the engineer who builds reportai.au. Field craft first, product second.
What an expert building report must contain: VCAT, NCAT and the Federal Court
The requirements an engineer or building consultant has to meet when writing an expert report for VCAT, NCAT or the Federal Court, what the three have in common, where they differ, and the omissions that most often weaken a report.
23 September 2026 · 9 min read · Expert evidence
Writing a structural movement assessment: what the report needs to show
How to structure a residential structural movement report so the cause, the evidence and the recommendations hold together: observations, crack records, floor levels, site drainage, vegetation, and a sequence of works that makes sense.
23 September 2026 · 8 min read · Report writing · Structural
Dilapidation reports: recording a baseline that settles arguments later
A practical guide to pre-construction dilapidation reports on neighbouring properties: what to record, how to photograph cracks so they can be compared later, and how to make the follow-up inspection a like-for-like comparison.
23 September 2026 · 7 min read · Report writing · Dilapidation
Choosing report software as a structural engineer: what to look for
An honest guide to the kinds of inspection and report-writing software available to structural and civil engineers in Australia, the questions that separate them, and what to test in a free trial before committing.
23 September 2026 · 7 min read · Practice management
How to photograph defects so the report almost writes itself
Field photography for building and structural inspection reports: what to shoot, how to give every photo a scale and a location, and the habits that stop you guessing at your own pictures three days later.
31 July 2026 · 7 min read · Field practice · Photography
Floor level surveys: taking spot levels, and reading what they actually mean
A practical guide to floor level surveys in residential and light commercial buildings: choosing a datum, how dense a grid needs to be, reading contours honestly, and the difference between differential movement and a floor that was never flat.
31 July 2026 · 9 min read · Field practice · Structural
What an Australian building inspection report needs to contain
The sections a building or structural inspection report is expected to carry in Australia, why the limitations section matters more than the findings, and how to structure a report so it survives being read in a dispute.
31 July 2026 · 8 min read · Reporting · Australia
Where the hours actually go in inspection report writing
Report writing after a site visit is mostly not writing. A breakdown of where the time goes — sorting photographs, retyping boilerplate, formatting — and which parts are worth automating and which are not.
31 July 2026 · 6 min read · Practice management
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reportai.au is a report documentation tool. It does not carry out inspections, does not assess or certify the condition of any building, and does not provide engineering services. Reports are AI-assisted drafts prepared for the inspecting engineer to check, correct, and sign off. All professional judgement remains yours.
Aiman Salem, trading as ReportAi.au · ABN 95 973 765 172 · admin@reportai.au · Prices in Australian dollars.