Construction Submittal Log Template

What a construction submittal is

A submittal is the package you send the architect or engineer, through the GC, to prove that what you intend to install matches the specification before you order or fabricate it. Product data shows the manufacturer’s published performance; shop drawings show how you will fabricate and fit the work; samples and mock-ups show finish and quality. The reviewer returns the package with a stamp — approved, approved as noted, revise and resubmit, rejected — and only an approved (or approved-as-noted) submittal releases the item for purchase.

That makes the submittal log a schedule document as much as a paperwork one. Every item on it has a lead time, and every lead time starts the day the reviewer’s stamp comes back. A log that only records what went out and when is a history; one that computes when each item must go out is a plan.

The log, field by field

• Spec section and number — the six-digit section and a sequence, revision on its own row: 23 37 13-01 Rev 0, then Rev 1.
• Type — product data, shop drawings, samples, mock-up, calculations, certificates, O&M / closeout. The type tells the reviewer what to expect and tells you what to assemble.
• Submitted / returned / days in review — the review clock. Days in review runs to the returned date, or to the status date while the reviewer still has it. When it exceeds the review period the cell turns red, and the top of the sheet counts how many items are overdue with the reviewer.
• Need on site, lead time, submit by — the plan. Submit by = need on site − lead time − review period. A diffuser package needed September 21 with a 28-day lead and a 14-day review has to be submitted by August 10. Sort the log by this column at the start of each month.
• Status — six values from the dropdown; the counts and the colour coding depend on the exact words.

A worked submittal example

The completed example is a mechanical subcontractor’s log on a medical office building, thirteen rows as of September 3, 2026, with a 14-day review period. Rooftop units, the air handler, both insulation packages and the plumbing fixture schedule are approved or approved as noted. The Level 1 ductwork shop drawings came back revise-and-resubmit on June 24, went back as Rev 1 on June 29 and were approved July 8 — two rows, one item, a nine-day turnaround the second time. The BMS controls package is on its second revision and has been with the engineer ten days. Two items — the TAB agency qualifications and the commissioning plan — are not yet submitted, with submit-by dates in October and November computed from their need dates. The header counts read 2 not submitted, 3 in review, 6 approved, 2 revise/rejected.

The cover sheet in the example is transmittal T-011 for the diffuser package, submittal 23 37 13-01 Rev 0, sent August 21: three items enclosed (ceiling diffusers, return and exhaust grilles, the finish schedule), action requested “for review and approval,” contractor review checked for conformance and coordination with the reflected ceiling plans, and a remark that says why the date matters — a four-week lead and a September 21 install, so please return by September 4. Look at the log row for that item: the submit-by date was August 10. It went out eleven days late, and the remark on the transmittal is the subcontractor managing that risk in writing. That is what a submittal example should show — not a perfect log, but a log that makes the problem visible in time to do something about it.

What goes on a submittal cover sheet

The cover sheet, or transmittal, does five jobs. It identifies the package (submittal number, spec section, revision, transmittal number and date). It lists what is enclosed, with copies and type per item, so nothing is lost between your office and the reviewer’s desk. It states the action you are asking for. It carries your contractor-review statement — that you checked the package against the contract documents and coordinated it with the field — which most specifications require before the architect will look at it. And it records receipt, by signature or portal timestamp, which is when the review clock starts. Deviations from the specification go in the remarks, called out explicitly; a deviation the reviewer did not notice is not approved.

Submittal, RFI or change order?

• Submittal — “here is what I intend to install; confirm it meets the spec.” It changes nothing about the contract.
• RFI — “the documents are unclear or conflict; tell me which is right.” Unclear drawings usually surface here first, while you are assembling the shop drawings.
• Change order — “this changes scope, price or time; agree it in writing.” If a reviewer’s note on a submittal adds cost, it becomes one of these.

The need-on-site dates on the log come from your construction schedule; put the overdue and late-to-submit counts on the agenda in your meeting minutes each week, and check the list of required submittals against the scope of work before you sign so nothing in the spec surprises you after mobilization. At the end of the job the same log tracks the closeout submittals — O&M manuals, warranties, as-builts — that the project closeout checklist walks through.