What Goes Into a Good Thermography Report?
A good thermal image captures useful information. A good thermography report turns that information into something understandable, traceable and actionable.
An Easy Way to Remember
Think:
IDENTIFY → SHOW → MEASURE → INTERPRET → ACT
- Identify what and where it is.
- Show the thermal evidence.
- Measure what’s relevant.
- Interpret what the pattern could mean.
- Act on what should happen next.
A good thermography report isn’t about producing the most pages or the most colourful thermograms.
It should allow someone who wasn’t at the inspection to understand what you saw, why it matters and what they should do next.
This principle applies whether the inspection involves electrical switchboards, motors, HVAC equipment, pipework, building envelopes or moisture investigations.
However, the information needed to support the findings changes with the application.
For example, electrical thermography depends heavily on equipment loading and operating condition, while building thermography can depend heavily on weather, solar exposure, wind, indoor/outdoor temperature differences and moisture conditions.
The report therefore needs to capture more than temperatures and colourful thermal images.
A Simple Report Structure
1. Inspection Details → who, where, when and scope
2. Findings Summary → what needs attention
3. Inspection Conditions → load, operation and environment
4. Camera & Calibration → equipment and measurement setup
5. Finding Pages → thermal + visual + measurements + interpretation + action
6. No-Issue Register → what else was inspected
7. Supporting Images → additional records if required
For building inspections, keep the same structure but add more detail on weather, indoor/outdoor conditions, solar exposure, wind, rain, surface condition and other environmental influences where relevant.
1. Inspection Details
- Client / site
- Inspection date & time
- Thermographer
- Inspection scope
- Equipment / areas inspected
- Applicable procedure / standard
Defines exactly what the inspection covered and provides basic traceability.
2. Inspection Conditions
- Equipment operating condition / status
- Load / current, where relevant
- Ambient conditions, where relevant
- Other conditions affecting the inspection
- Inspection limitations
For building inspections, also include where relevant:
- Indoor / outdoor temperature
- Humidity
- Weather conditions
- Wind
- Recent rain
- Solar exposure
- HVAC operation
Thermal patterns depend on inspection conditions.
Electrical inspections rely heavily on load and operating condition, while building inspections can be strongly influenced by weather and the surrounding environment.
3. Camera & Measurement Information
- Camera make & model
- Serial number
- Calibration status / date
- Lens, where relevant
- Emissivity
- Reflected apparent temperature, where relevant
- Other relevant measurement parameters
Records how the thermal data was collected and provides measurement traceability.
4. Findings Summary
- Total equipment / areas inspected
- Number of anomalies
- Finding locations
- Priority / severity
- Key findings
- Major limitations
Give the reader the important information upfront.
Don’t make the client search through 50 pages to discover the important findings.
Give them a quick overview, for example:
127 assets inspected | 8 anomalies | 1 High | 3 Medium | 4 Low
For buildings, you could use:
23 areas inspected | 6 thermal anomalies | 2 possible moisture-related patterns | 3 insulation irregularities | 1 requiring further investigation
The summary tells the reader where their attention is needed first.
5. Individual Finding / Anomaly
- Equipment / area ID
- Location
- Thermal image
- Visual image
- Relevant temperatures
- Operating or environmental conditions
- Observation
- Interpretation
- Priority / severity
- Recommended action
This is the heart of the report.
Someone who wasn’t at the inspection should still be able to understand where the issue is, what was observed and what needs to happen next.
6. Interpretation
- What was observed
- Relevant comparison / reference
- What the thermal pattern may indicate
- Further verification required, if any
Don’t automatically turn a thermal anomaly into a diagnosis. Infrared thermography in most cases only indicate a possible issue.
Report what you observed first, then what it may indicate. Propose further investigation.
A hot electrical connection doesn’t automatically mean “loose connection.” Likewise, a cool patch on a wall doesn’t automatically mean “water leak.”
Instead of:
❌ Fault: Loose connection
Write:
✓ Observation: Localised heating at the Phase B termination compared with similar connections.
✓ Interpretation: Abnormal heating is present at the connection.
✓ Action: Investigate connection condition and verify electrical loading.
7. Recommended Actions
- Investigate
- Verify
- Repair
- Monitor
- Reinspect
Tell the client what should happen next. Recommendations should be practical without claiming more than the thermal evidence supports.
8. Inspection Limitations
- Inaccessible equipment / areas
- Equipment not operating
- Low electrical load
- Obstructions
- Reflective surfaces
- Unsuitable environmental conditions
- Other inspection restrictions
Clearly state anything that could affect the reliability or completeness of the inspection.
For example:
- Equipment not operating
- Low electrical load
- Panel inaccessible
- Surface obstructed
- Heavy rain
- Strong solar loading
- Unsuitable thermal differential
This prevents someone later assuming that “no anomaly reported” means “no problem exists.”
9. No-Issue / Equipment Register
- Equipment / area ID
- Location
- Inspection status
- Relevant comments
Record what was inspected even when no significant anomaly was found. Not mentioned shouldn’t leave the client wondering whether something was inspected at all.
10. Supporting Records
- Additional thermograms
- Visual photographs
- Reference measurements
- Previous inspection images
- Supporting test results
Keep supporting evidence available without overcrowding the main findings pages.
A good thermography report doesn’t need to be complicated. It needs to be clear, complete and useful. Record what you inspected, capture the conditions, present the thermal evidence clearly, explain what you observed and give the reader a practical next step. Ultimately, the report should allow someone who wasn’t there during the inspection to understand what you found, why it matters and what should happen next.
Keep Learning About Thermography Reporting
Explore our other guides on Infrared Thermal reporting:
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