Submittals are how all project stakeholders — GCs, subcontractors, owners, and architects — get aligned on what's being built before work begins. In Raken, Submittals gives your team a structured way to submit, review, and approve project documentation with a fully trackable workflow, version history, and audit trail — all in one place.

To create a submittal in Raken:

A submittal is a document or sample that a subcontractor submits to the GC — and the GC submits to the owner or architect — to confirm that what's being built matches the approved plans. Common examples include shop drawings, product samples, cut sheets, and specifications.

Submittals typically happen at the start of a project and flow up the chain:

RFIs happen throughout a project as questions arise. Submittals are more front-loaded — they're about alignment before work starts.

On web: Log into the Raken web app. Click Projects in the left navigation and open your project. In the project left navigation, click Submittals — it's listed below RFIs.

On mobile: Open the Raken mobile app. Tap Project Tools in the bottom navigation bar, select your project, and tap Submittals.

From the Submittals log you can see all submittals for this project by status, create new ones, download reports, and access settings. Use the All submittals view to see submittals across all your projects in one place.

From the Submittals log, click or tap the orange + New submittal button. The creation form opens with a General information section at the top.

Select the Submittal package this submittal belongs to. Packages are the organizing buckets for submittals — typically organized by subcontractor scope or trade (e.g., Mechanical, Structural Steel, Finishes). The package number becomes part of the submittal's unique ID.

If no package exists yet, click + Add new package to create one. Packages can also be set up in advance under Project Settings > Submittals. Most customers have a standard numbering structure — if yours doesn't, this is a good time to establish one.

Example: If this is the first submittal in the Paint package (02 200 00), the submittal number will be 02 200 00.1.0 — first submittal in the package, version zero.

Select one or more Spec sections to add a deeper level of specificity. Spec sections reference sections from the project's master specification book and are based on CSI (Construction Specifications Institute) codes. This is optional but commonly used on larger projects.

Multiple spec sections can be selected if the submittal covers more than one. Spec sections can also be pre-loaded under Project Settings > Submittals.

Select the Submittal type from the dropdown. Default types include: Prints, Product Information, Product Manual, Sample, Shop Drawing, and Specification. These come pre-loaded for all accounts and can be customized at the company level under Company > Submittals > Types.

The Submittal manager defaults to whoever is creating the submittal. Change this to reassign ownership to another team member. Add a Cost code if applicable — cost codes pull from the project's production settings.

Enter a Description to give context to the submittal. To add attachments, click or tap Add attachment +. You can pull in files from:

The workflow defines who needs to act on this submittal and in what order. Each step has a Role and a Contact:

Roles:

Contacts can be:

Click or tap + Add step to add additional workflow steps. The workflow progresses automatically — once step 1 is completed, step 2 becomes active and the assigned party is notified.

Typical GC workflow: Step 1 — Subcontractor submits. Step 2 — GC reviews internally. Step 3 — Architect or owner approves. For a sub, typically just one step: submit to the GC.

Enable Reminder / overdue notifications to automatically send alerts to the assigned contact one day before and one day after the due date. This is per step — each step has its own notification.

Add CC contacts to keep additional stakeholders informed. CC'd contacts receive notifications at every step as the submittal progresses, but do not receive reminder or overdue alerts.

The Submittal schedule lets you define key dates tied to this submittal. Set the Required on-site date — when materials or approvals must be on-site — and Raken will auto-populate the related milestone dates based on your company's lead time settings. You can adjust any date manually.

If the submittal schedule is not relevant (common for subs), it can be disabled company-wide under Company > Submittals > Settings.

Click or tap Save to publish the submittal and send notifications to all workflow participants. Click Save as draft if you're not ready to send it out yet.

Once a submittal is live, responses can be added in two ways:

When adding a response, select the Response option (e.g., Submitted, For record only, Pending, Rejected, Revise and resubmit), add notes, include attachments, and optionally sign. The default response options are pre-loaded and configurable under Company > Submittals > Response options.

Once a step response is submitted, the workflow automatically advances to the next step.

Stopping the workflow: Some response options are configured to stop the workflow — for example, "Revise and resubmit" stops the workflow so a new version can be created before it continues. This is configurable per response option at the company level.

If the workflow is stopped (e.g., a "Revise and resubmit" response was given), you can create a new version of the submittal. Click the ellipsis (…) menu and select Create new version. The creation form reopens with the same package number — the revision number increments automatically (0 → 1 → 2). Update details as needed and save to restart the workflow at step 1.

Previous versions are read-only and accessible via the ellipsis (…) > Submittal versions.

From the Submittals log you can see every submittal's current step, who it's Ball in court with, due dates, package, and spec section at a glance. Use Filters to narrow by Ball in court, status, package, type, or assignee — useful for quickly identifying which submittals need your attention.

Actions available from the ellipsis (…) on any submittal:

You can also send a reminder to a specific step's contact directly from the workflow table on the submittal detail page.

Export submittal data in several formats:

Navigate to Project > Settings > Submittals to manage:

Navigate to Company > Submittals to manage:

Packages are project-specific — they organize submittals by trade or scope of work (e.g., Mechanical, Structural Steel). They're set up at the project level. Types describe what's being submitted (e.g., Shop Drawing, Sample, Product Manual) and are standardized at the company level.

Yes. Add them as a guest contact. They'll receive an email notification with a mobile-friendly link to view the submittal and add their response in a browser — no Raken account required.

The submittal stays open but no further steps are activated. You'll see the stopped step highlighted in the workflow. Create a new version to restart the process with a revised submittal.

Yes — click Edit from the ellipsis menu to update the submittal. You can also resend notifications at any time from the same menu.

RFIs are questions that come up throughout a project — they're reactive. Submittals are documents submitted for review and approval — they're proactive and mostly happen at the start of a project before work begins. Together with Change Orders (coming soon), they form Raken's full project management suite.

A sub typically has a single-step workflow — they submit their plans to the GC. A GC manages a multi-step workflow that moves from the sub, through internal review, up to the owner or architect. Raken supports both with flexible workflow configuration.

Yes. Use the All submittals view to see a combined view across all your projects in one place.

How to Use RFIs in Raken

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