In this article you will learn how to generate a comment corrections report by learning how to set up a template, edit an existing template, and later pick a report template to generate a Corrections Report Letter.
1. Creating a new template
The first thing we need to do in order to create a corrections report is to first create a template for our report. This template holds basic information that will not change between reports using the same template such as the report title, logo, and instructions.
1.1. Navigate to report configuration
Navigate to the report configuration page by clicking on ‘Reports’ found under the ‘Configuration’ column on the left nav bar. Your screen should look like the one below.
1.2. Open the new template form
At the top of the template list, you should see a button labeled ‘Create New Template’. Click the button to bring up the new template form.
1.3. Fill out the form and save
Note that if one of the fields is empty, the ‘Save’ button will be disabled.
Below are some sample inputs for a new template:
Template Name: My First Report Template
Title: My Amazing Report (this will also be used as the filename the report is saved as in the attachments tab)
Logo: Please use an image from your own computer.
Instructions: My awesome report instructions! Please edit me in the future.
(Don’t worry about the project fields, sort options, or address they will be covered later.)
After filling out the form, click the ‘Save’ button.
1.4. Preview your new template!
A previous iteration of the report builder allowed users to move fields around. Though a future iteration will enable this feature, the initial version of this new report interface does not include the ability to position components in order to provide a consistent, easy-to-read format.
If all went well you should now see a preview of your template on right hand side of the screen. The preview should contain all the information you just entered in the form.
Since this is a preview of the template itself, you will see fake project info as placeholders to show you where the information will go. When you generate a real report from one of your projects, your project info will be shown in place of the placeholders. Your screen should look like the one below.
2. Editing a report template
There may be times where, after we create our template, we realize we made a mistake or forgot to include something. Luckily, we can always go back and edit our template instead of having to create a new one. The following steps will walk you through editing an existing template.
2.1. Open the edit template form
Let’s edit the template we just created. If you have navigated away from the template, go back to the report config page, find the template in the template list, and click it. In the top right corner of the preview, you should see a button labeled ‘Edit Template’. Click it to bring up the Edit Template form.
Look familiar? This is the exact same form as before, except with the current template info pre-filled!
2.2. Make changes and save template
First, let's edit the report title:
My Awesome Report
Then, let's add this to the instructions:
I have been edited!
Next, let's expand those ‘Project Fields’, ‘Sort Options’, and ‘Address Options’ tabs we saw earlier by clicking on each label.
The ‘Project Fields’ section allows you to choose project values to display as part of the report.
As an example, check the ‘Project Name’, ‘Square Footage’ and ‘Building Height’ boxes in the Project Fields.
‘Sort Options' allows you to define a sort method.
For example, click the middle option to sort by Category and Subcategory.
The 'Address Options' auto-fills with the agency address from the Address page, but allows you to replace the default address with one used specifically for this report template.
Click the ‘Save’ button to save changes.
2.3. Preview your changes
After saving, you should now see the changes you to the report instructions and report title in the preview.
Note that since we don’t have real project info at this point, the Project Fields and Sort Options we selected won’t be previewed yet. We’ll see those in action when we create a real report.
3. Generating a Sample Corrections Report
We’re finally ready to create our corrections report and save it as an attachment! Before we continue, I’m going to assume that you already know how to create a project. If you haven’t done so, please look at our ‘Creating a Project’ guide.
3.1. Set up or select a project
If you plan to use an existing project, feel free to skip this section.
Setup your project with the following information:
Project Number: My Corrections Report Project
Project Name: My Awesome Project
Purpose: For Permitting
Project Type: Demolition
Construction Type: Type 3-B
Square Footage: 2364.00
Building Height: 64.00
Let’s add the following comments to the project from the Project → Comments page.
Content: My First Comment!
Category: Electrical
Subcategory: Corridors
Content: My Second Comment!
Category: Grading
Subcategory: Firewalls
Content: My Third Comment!
Category: General Req.
Subcategory: Building Area
If your Category/Subcategory differ, simply choose a different category for each comment.
3.2. Select comments and preview real report
Check all three comments you just created. After selecting the comments, you should see a button labeled ‘Report’. Click it to open the report preview modal.
The modal should look similar to the report configuration page from earlier. You should see your report template on the left hand side. Click the template to see a preview of your report.
Your agency info should be shown in place of what is seen above (City of Jackson Hills).
You’ll notice that unlike the template preview, this preview contains all of our project information. Notice however, that we don’t see our Project Type or Construction Type information anywhere on the preview. This is because we did not check those fields in the template form. Only the selected fields will show up on the report.
As you scroll through the preview, you will see that each of the comments is grouped by their category. This is because we selected this sort option in the template form.
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3.3. Save report as attachment
It’s finally time! Click the ‘Save As Attachment’ button to save your report. You’ll see a loading icon for a few seconds while we prepare your report for you. Once the report has finished saving, the preview modal will close and you can head on over to the ‘Attachments’ tab to download your report.
Download and open the file and voilà! You just created your first corrections report. You are now an expert on the corrections report creation process. Go grab smoothie and celebrate, because you deserve it.