Fabrication drawing / specification approval Workflow

Why should we automate shop drawing approvals instead of handling them by email?

Handling approvals over email means details like drawing revision, materials, price and lead time can get lost across message threads, and it's easy to lose track of which version a customer last saw. This workflow keeps every submission, revision and customer response on a single record with a status and timeline, so staff can see at a glance whether a job is awaiting approval, being revised, or ready for the workshop. It also removes the need to manually re-send updated drawings, since the revision cycle restarts automatically from the approval request step.

What is the ROI of using this workflow for a fabrication business?

The main return comes from time saved chasing customers and coordinating drafters, since the workflow automatically sends the approval request and loops back to the drafter when changes are requested. Office staff also save time because the release-to-workshop task is generated automatically once a customer approves, rather than someone needing to notice the approval and manually kick off production. Over many jobs, this reduces administrative overhead and helps jobs move to the workshop with less delay.

How does the customer actually approve or request changes to a drawing?

The customer receives an emailed form showing the drawing revision, materials and grades, finish, quantities, price and lead time, with the option to approve or request changes and add comments. They don't need an account to respond — the form is sent directly to their email. Their response is what determines whether the record moves to Approved status or goes back to the drafter for revisions.

What happens if the customer requests changes to the drawing?

If the customer selects 'Request changes', the record status is set to Revising and a task is created for the drafter, due in 2 days, to update the shop drawings, drawing revision, materials and grades, and price. Once the drafter submits the updated details, they are saved to the record and the status resets to Awaiting Approval before the approval request is sent to the customer again. This loop can repeat as many times as needed until the customer approves.

Who is responsible for releasing an approved job to the workshop?

Once the customer approves the drawing, the record status is set to Approved and the customer receives an emailed confirmation. At the same time, a task is created for the office, due in 2 days, to release the job to the workshop. This task doesn't hold up the workflow, so the approval confirmation to the customer isn't delayed by the office completing that task.

Can we customise the fields collected on the request form or the drafter's revision task?

Yes, the request form and task fields can be adjusted by describing the change in plain English or editing the steps directly in the workflow editor. For example, a business could add fields for additional specification details or adjust what the drafter is asked to update. Earlier versions of the workflow are kept, so changes can be reviewed or reverted if needed.

What information is kept on the record versus just on a task?

Information entered on steps the workflow waits for — such as the customer's approval decision and comments, or the drafter's updated drawings, revision, materials and price — is saved directly to the record. The office's confirmation that the job was released to the workshop is recorded only on that task, since the workflow doesn't wait for it to complete. This distinction means the record's core drawing and approval history stays clean while task-specific confirmations are still tracked.

How do we track the status of multiple fabrication jobs at once?

Each submitted drawing becomes its own record with a reference number, a status such as Awaiting Approval, Revising or Approved, and a timeline of what happened at each step. Table views and dashboards display records grouped by status, making it straightforward to see which jobs are waiting on a customer, which are being revised, and which are ready for the workshop. Workspace activity is also logged, giving visibility into actions taken across jobs.

Does this workflow handle payment collection for the fabrication job?

The workflow as described captures and displays the price to the customer as part of the approval request, but it doesn't include a payment step. A workspace that wants to collect payment can connect Stripe and add a payment step to the workflow, since connecting Stripe on its own doesn't change how the workflow runs.