Project 1 Memo FINAL Jamie Anuskiewicz (2) (1)
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School
Pennsylvania State University, World Campus *
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Course
100C
Subject
Medicine
Date
Dec 6, 2023
Type
docx
Pages
3
Uploaded by MagistrateHorsePerson72
To:
Ms. Priscilla Sneff
From:
Jamie Anuskiewicz
Subject:
Rhetorical Analysis of Gorilla Rack’s “Assembly Instructions: Storage
Rack/Workbench” instruction manual
Date:
02/07/2020
The purpose of this memo is to analyze the use of technical communication in the instruction
manual “Assembly Instructions: Storage Rack/Workbench” for Gorilla Rack’s Storage
Rack/Workbench product. My analysis of this manual is based on the following six
characteristics of a successful technical document, proposed by Mike Markel and Stuart A.
Selber: addresses particular readers, helps readers solve problems, reflects the organization’s
goals and cultures, is produced collaboratively, uses design to increase readability, and consists
of words or images or both.
Summary
Gorilla Rack’s “Assembly Instructions: Storage Rack/Workbench” instructions manual
effectively exhibits Mike Markel’s and Stuart A. Selber’s six characteristics of technical writing,
lacking only in a small area of using design to increase readability. The document effectively
addresses all English-speaking individuals who own this product, as addressed in the “Tips”
section, throughout the assembly instructions, and in the “Congratulations!” section. The manual
helps readers solve assembly problems by providing tips, safety warnings, assembly notes, and
contact information for additional information and concerns. The goals and culture of Gorilla
Rack are reflected in the instruction manual by providing contact information for questions and
concerns and providing a consistent and organized manual. The no-doubt numerous creators of
the manual all played an important role in producing the text, figures, and assembly instructions.
This manual increases readability by making use of headings, typography, and boxed text to
increase organization and navigation of the document, but may cause confusion by using similar
boxes to indicate both safety tips and minor assembly details. Text is supplemented with figures
to aid in readers’ understanding of the product assembly.
Discussion
Addresses Particular Readers
The manual effectively addresses all English-speaking individuals who own Gorilla Rack’s
Storage Rack/Workbench product, as addressed in the “Tips” section (p. 1), throughout the
assembly instructions (p. 3-10), and in the “Congratulations!” section (p. 1). Gorilla Rack creates
a suitable manual for all English-speaking owners of their product by using simple English terms
and avoiding complex technical terms, which may cause confusion for a reader who is unfamiliar
with furniture assembly. It is made clear that only English-speaking readers are being addressed;
assembly tips (in the “tip” section) and important safety and assembly information (often bolded
or encased in a gray box throughout the assembly instructions) are offered only in English. The
“Congratulations!” section of the document makes it clear that the primary audience is those who
own Gorilla Rack’s Storage Rack/Workbench by stating that “You have just purchased a superior
quality Gorilla Rack Product!”
Helps Readers Solve Problems
This manual helps readers solve problems with assembly of Gorilla Rack’s Storage
Rack/Workbench by providing tips for assembly, safety warnings, assembly notes, and contact
information for additional concerns. The “tips” section (p. 1) of the instruction manual provides
the readers with five helpful troubleshooting tips that customers may find helpful when running
into assembly problems. Safety warnings and suggestions are often found encased by gray boxes
throughout the document. These safety warnings may become important in avoiding injury to the
consumer or damage to the product. Additionally, important notes for assembling the product are
bolded throughout the text, therefore allowing the reader’s attention to be drawn to this
information. The manual offers a phone number and available calling times for customers to call
for assistance with assembly or product questions, which allows readers easy access to answers
that are not available in the manual itself.
Reflects the Organization’s Goals and Culture
In the “Congratulations!” section (p. 1) of the instruction manual, Gorilla Rack states that “we
pride ourselves in supplying our customers with a superior quality product”; they ensure a
quality product by providing contact information for assistance with assembly or quality
concerns and providing a consistent and organized instruction manual. By providing a phone
number, the company is showing their customers that they care about their experience with the
product. Additionally, they state: “The call you make as a consumer will make a difference in
improved services and innovations.” This statement ensures that customers feel comfortable
contacting the company, and, in return, the company is able to assist the customer and ensure that
they are providing the superior quality product that they pride themselves on. Furthermore, the
manual itself is organized in a way that is consistent and easy to understand, with clear section
headings and numbered steps (p. 3-10). By providing an easy to understand instruction manual,
Gorilla Rack is showing that they value their customers’ experience with the product and they are
willing to spend the extra time and money to ensure a quality experience.
Is Produced Collaboratively
Although no proof of collaborative writing exists in the manual, an organization itself is
collaborative, and therefore, undoubtedly, numerous individuals were required to come together
to produce the text, figures, and assembly instructions; it is highly unlikely that one, singular
individual will have the skills needed to design the document, understand the assembly of the
product, understand all aspects of the warranty, and design the figures. To produce this
document, it is likely that the company recruited individuals such as a writer/designer of the
document, an engineer to explain the assembly process, a head of the company to explain
warranty details, and a software expert to design the figures;
Uses Design to Increase Readability
This manual uses headings, typography, and boxed text to increase navigation and
comprehension of the document; however, it uses similar boxes to indicate safety information
and assembly details, which may cause confusion. Headings, such as the manual’s title (bolded
and in large text at the top of the manual), serve to immediately catch the attention of the reader
and increase navigation of the document. Additionally, subsections, such as “Tips” (p. 1) and
“Primary End Assembly” (p. 3), precede each section of the document, allowing the reader to
easily navigate the main topics of the manual. Typography is used throughout the assembly
instructions (p. 3-10) by bolding important terms for assembly and notes assisting in assembly,
allowing the reader’s eyes to easily access these important details and, therefore, avoiding
mistakes. Important safety tips are encased in gray boxes, which helps to draw the reader’s
attention; however, assembly instructions throughout the manual, including key holes involved in
each step and flange direction (p. 4), are encased in smaller gray boxes. The use of almost
identical gray boxes may cause confusion or cause readers to overlook important safety
information under the assumption it is an assembly detail.
Consists of Words or Images or Both
This manual effectively supplements text with figures to aid in the customer’s understanding of
the product assembly. In the “Overview” sections for both the workbench and the storage rack
(p. 2 and 6), each piece needed for assembly is labeled with a number, and a figure is labeled
with the same number to provide the reader with familiarity of the pieces and their structure. The
assembly instructions (p. 3-10) provide a figure corresponding to the text for each assembly step,
which allows the readers that may be less familiar with shelf assembly to limit mistakes and
confusion.
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