When you share a project with an outside company, its people see that one project and can act on it according to their role. This article covers what a shared project exposes and what each role can do. For how sharing is set up, see Stakeholder collaboration overview.
What a shared project shows
When a project is shared, stakeholders can see the project and the records under it. The What is shared? panel lists this in three groups. To open it, click the question-mark icon next to Who should have access to this project? in the External Stakeholders section.
Project details: the project name and description, the Project Manager and Inspector names, and the construction start and end dates.
Inspections: approved and completed inspections, their photos and attachments, and item placements. Draft inspections show only when the owning company allows it.
Items: item specifications and details, quantity and placement information, material certifications, and installation progress.
Stakeholders do not see data from your other projects, only the one you shared with them.
What each role can do
What a stakeholder can do depends on the kind of company they belong to.
Action | Project Contractor | Project Owner | CEI Stakeholder |
See the shared project and its records | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Add their own team members to the project | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Invite other contractor companies | No | Yes | No |
Sign or decline a change order as the contractor | Yes | No | No |
Sign or decline a change order as the owner | No | Yes | No |
Sign a change order as the engineer | No | Yes | Yes |
Create a submittal on behalf of a contractor | No | Yes | Yes |
Team members that a Project Contractor or Project Owner adds are view-only. A CEI Stakeholder's team members can create and manage inspections, change orders, and pay requests.
How a contractor or owner signs a change order
When a change order is routed to a contractor or an owner, the people in that role on the project can sign or decline it. The signing panel is labeled Contractor Signature or Owner Signature and tells you the change order is awaiting your signature.
To sign a change order:
Open the change order that is awaiting your signature.
Click Sign as Contractor or Sign as Owner, depending on your role.
Draw your signature in the box.
Click Save Signature.
To decline a change order:
Open the change order.
Click Decline.
Enter a reason. The reason is required, and the engineering firm managing the change order sees it on the approval trail.
Click Confirm Decline.
After you decline, the change order goes back to the engineering firm managing it so they can make changes and, if needed, send it again. For the full change order workflow, see Routing and Approving a Change Order.
Creating submittals as a stakeholder
A Project Owner or CEI Stakeholder can create a submittal on behalf of a contractor on the project. For the steps, see Create a submittal.
Troubleshooting
I cannot see the shared project
Ask the owning company to confirm the project is shared, not private, and that your company was added through the invite flow. If you were just invited as a brand-new user, accept the email invitation and set your password first.
I do not see draft inspections
Stakeholders see only approved and completed inspections unless the owning company turns on Allow Stakeholders to see inspections in Draft. Ask them to turn it on if you need to see drafts.
A change order cannot be sent to the contractor or owner
The project needs someone in that role before a change order can be routed to it. The owning company invites a Project Contractor or a Project Owner first, then routes the change order.
Frequently asked questions
Can external stakeholders change my project's inspections and items?
It depends on the role. A CEI Stakeholder's team members can create and manage inspections, change orders, and pay requests. Team members that a Project Contractor or Project Owner adds are view-only.
Who gets notified about change orders?
When a change order is routed to the contractor or the owner, the people in that role receive an email letting them know it is their turn. When it returns to the engineering firm managing it, that firm's managers are notified.