Submittals
Creating, reviewing, finalizing, and resubmitting Submittals — standalone or Procore-connected.
Overview
A Submittal is information prepared by the CM/GC or its subcontractors — such as shop drawings, product data, samples, and other documentation — submitted for design-team review. On Procore-connected projects, see also Procore-Connected Submittals.
What a Submittal is, and where it lives
A Submittal is a package the CM/GC or its subcontractors prepare for design-team review — shop drawings, product data, samples, calculations — together with the record of who reviewed it, what they said, and what the architect ultimately returned. LiveArch treats the package and that record as one object: a Submittal is not a file you send, it is a record that moves.
Two things follow from that, and they explain most of how the module behaves. First, one Submittal carries one combined PDF per round rather than a folder of loose files, so everyone reviews the same document and the markups accumulate in one place. Second, the record has a state at all times — it is always someone's turn — which is what makes the list views, the ball-in-court, and the notifications possible.
Standalone or Procore-connected
The review itself is identical either way. What differs is where the record is born and where the answer has to end up.
- On a standalone project, the Submittal is created in LiveArch, reviewed in LiveArch, and the finalized response is returned from LiveArch. LiveArch is the only system of record.
- On a Procore-connected project, the Submittal is created in Procore and arrives in LiveArch already submitted — it lands in the Inbox as Pending, skipping Draft entirely. The review runs in LiveArch, and the finalized response then has to be returned to Procore, which is one extra deliberate step at the end.
Connected projects have their own page for the assignment rules, the sent-date and current-reviewer requirements, and the return trip: Procore-Connected Submittals. Everything on this page applies to both kinds of project unless it says otherwise.
How a Submittal moves
Every Submittal moves through five stages: Draft (being authored — standalone projects only), Pending (in the Inbox, not yet distributed), Open (under review), Reviewed (reviewers done, no official response yet), and Closed (response returned — the diagram's Finalized stage). The nav views map onto the same stages: the Inbox holds Pending records, Open holds the review in progress, and Returned holds Reviewed and Closed together, so a returned Submittal is findable in one place.
- Pending means received but not yet distributed — the architect still has to build the distribution list. A Submittal sitting in Pending is waiting on the design team, not on the reviewers.
- Rejected is the completeness check, not a technical opinion. An incomplete package can be returned unreviewed straight from Pending, before any reviewer sees it.
- Reviewed means the reviewers are finished and the architect has not yet assigned the final status. The reviewer comments exist, but no official response has been issued.
- Closed is the only state with an official response in it. Until then, what reviewers have written is coordination history rather than an answer.
Once a Submittal is distributed, LiveArch keeps it moving without anyone having to check in manually: each reviewer is notified when it's their turn, the architect is notified once every reviewer has responded, and the submitting party is notified — and, on a connected project, Procore is updated — as soon as the finalized response goes out.
A required resubmission re-enters the same machine as the next revision of the same Submittal — never a new base number. The steps are under Revise and resubmit below.
Create a standalone Submittal
Create the Submittal with the project's numbering convention — commonly the six-digit specification section, file number, and revision number — a clear title, and the applicable specification section. Attach one searchable combined PDF containing the transmittal cover sheet, the required CM/GC review stamp, and all content for review, then confirm the package is complete and coordinated and submit it.
Video: Creating a new Submittal (~30 sec)
Numbering, the specification section, and attaching the combined review PDF.
Distribute, review, and respond
From Pending, the architect builds the distribution list — an ordered chain of reviewers, typically drawn from a reviewer group — and sends the Submittal out. That move is what opens the record for review.
Video: Distributing for review (~30 sec)
Build the distribution list, order the reviewers, and send it out.
Reviewing
Open the record from the email link or your assigned-items view and download the current review PDF. Review the earlier markups and the project requirements, add your comments and stamp to the same review package as the project workflow requires, upload the result as a single PDF, and submit your response.
Video: Reviewing and responding (~30 sec)
Open your assigned item, download the package, upload your marked-up PDF, and submit a response.
Response names and meanings follow the project's approved standards — do not invent new response language without authorization. On a Procore-connected project, the available LiveArch responses must match Procore; use the response-sync function in Settings if the lists differ. Reviewer comments contribute to the review, but the architect's finalized response is the official response returned to the submitting party.
Revise and resubmit
If the final response requires resubmission, download and review the returned comments and markups, correct the package, and resubmit: a new combined PDF with a new transmittal, submitted as the next revision of the existing Submittal. Start it from New Submittal and choose Revise File … in the file-number picker. The revision number increments; the base number never changes.
Track status and notifications
Where to look: the Inbox holds what has not yet been distributed, Open holds what is under review, and Returned holds final responses. From there:
- The My Items / All Items toggle on the Open view defaults to My Items, limiting the list to records where your company is a reviewer.
- A record highlighted green means it's currently your company's turn to review it, and a red Days Outstanding value means it's overdue.
- Open the distribution list on any record to see completed reviewers, the current ball-in-court party, and upcoming reviewers.
- Use the table's filtering, searching, and column options, or export a CSV report that matches the table's current filters.
- Due dates and allowed review periods are configured per project — rely on the date shown on the record.
Video: Finding things (~30 sec)
Move between the list views, narrow with filters, search across records, and export what you are looking at.
LiveArch emails your company for Submittal events, including:
- A new Submittal is distributed naming your company as a reviewer, or copying your company on the distribution list.
- Another party completes their review and your company becomes the ball-in-court party.
- Review is complete and your company is listed as Notify on Return.
Coordinate with the BBB project team to configure which users at your company receive these notifications — see Settings.
Support
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