Raising and resolving issues

Issues are the spine of project coordination on Planscape. Every observation, RFI, NCR, and snag flows through the same issue system — same fields, same status machine, same audit trail. This guide covers the full lifecycle from raised to verified.

Issue types

Where issues can be raised

• Mobile app — on site, with photo + GPS + voice. See tutorial.
• Web app — Project › Issues › + New issue.
• Revit plugin — right-click any element → "Raise issue". Element link auto-set.
• Email-to-issue — every project has a magic email address; emails sent to it become issues with attachments preserved.
• BCF import — Project › Issues › Import → drop a BCF 2.1 file from Navisworks / Solibri / BIM Track. Each topic becomes an issue.

The fields that matter

The form has many fields but only a few make-or-break the workflow:

• Title — short, specific. "Fire damper FD-103 installed back-to-front" beats "damper issue".
• Type — picks the workflow. Get this right at raise-time; changing later is allowed but messy.
• Priority — drives sort order in dashboards. Critical = response within 24h, High = 72h, Medium = 7d, Low = 30d.
• Linked element — Revit ElementUniqueId. Without this the issue is "floating" and harder to action. Use QR scan or the element picker.
• Assignee — who's on the hook. One person, not a team. Re-assign as the issue moves through phases.
• Due date — optional but useful. Triggers SLA breach alerts when missed.

The status machine

Default workflow for Quality / Safety / Coordination / NCR:

open ──> in-progress ──> resolved ──> verified ──> closed
                              │
                              └──> reopened (back to in-progress)

• open — raised, awaiting action.
• in-progress — assignee acknowledged, working on it.
• resolved — assignee says it's done.
• verified — raiser (or QA) confirms it's actually fixed.
• closed — admin-locked; can't be edited.

RFI workflow is simpler: open → answered → closed.

Status transitions are gated by role:

• open → in-progress: assignee only
• in-progress → resolved: assignee only
• resolved → verified: raiser, QA role, or Project Lead
• verified → closed: Project Lead
• * → reopened: anyone, with a comment explaining why

Comment threads

Every issue has a comment thread. Comments are markdown — you can use **bold**, `code`, lists, and inline image embeds. Tagging a user with @firstname sends them a push notification.

Comments are append-only — you can't edit or delete them. If you make a mistake, post a correction. This protects the audit trail.

Attachments & photos

Up to 10 photos and 5 voice notes per issue. Additional documents (PDFs, drawings, RFIs) can be attached as well, up to 50 MB each.

Photos taken in the mobile app are automatically:

• Compressed (80% JPEG, 1080p by default).
• Thumbnailed (400px wide for fast list-view loading).
• Geotagged with capture coordinates.
• Timestamped with capture time + upload time.

Tracking & reporting

Project › Issues › Dashboard shows:

• Open issues by type and priority.
• SLA breach count (issues past their due date).
• Median time-to-resolve, broken down by assignee.
• Aging buckets (0–7d, 7–30d, 30–60d, 60+).
• Trend lines for the last 30 days.

Export to CSV or PDF for client reporting.

BCF round-trip

For coordination work with consultants on a different platform:

1. Project › Issues › Export → BCF 2.1.
2. Filter (open coordination issues only, for example).
3. You get a .bcfzip file with topics, comments, viewpoints, and snapshots.
4. Consultant imports into Navisworks / Solibri / etc., resolves issues, exports back.
5. Import the modified .bcfzip back into Planscape. Status changes are applied automatically; conflicts surface for review.

Pushing issues to the Revit author

When the author opens the Revit project with the Planscape plugin, the dock panel shows a count of open issues linked to elements in the active view. Clicking the count opens a side panel listing each issue with its photo, comments, and a "Zoom to element" button that re-centres the Revit view on the affected element.

Bulk actions

From the issue list view, select multiple issues (checkbox or shift-click) and choose:

• Bulk assign (re-route 20 snags to a new contractor)
• Bulk close (after a verification round)
• Bulk export to BCF
• Bulk add comment (useful for batch status updates)

Issue templates

For recurring issue types (e.g. "missing fire collar"), create a template under Settings → Issue templates. Templates pre-fill type, priority, assignee, and a draft description. Coordinators just adjust the linked element and submit.

Common patterns

Daily snag walk

1. Coordinator walks the site with the mobile app.
2. Each defect → photo + drop pin + Quality issue type.
3. Auto-assigns to the relevant trade based on location + element category.
4. Trade lead gets push notification, schedules fix.
5. Coordinator re-visits next day, verifies fix, marks Verified.

RFI to designer

1. Site team raises RFI from mobile, attached to the affected element.
2. Project Lead reviews + routes to the right designer.
3. Designer answers in-thread (markdown supported).
4. If a drawing revision is needed, designer attaches the revised drawing as a Deliverable, links to RFI.
5. Project Lead marks RFI Closed.

NCR / non-conformance

1. QA raises NCR with linked element + photo + spec reference.
2. Auto-assigned to contractor responsible.
3. Contractor proposes corrective action in-thread.
4. QA approves the corrective action (or asks for alternative).
5. Contractor implements; marks Resolved.
6. QA re-inspects, marks Verified.
7. Project Lead closes NCR after Verified.

Common mistakes

• Generic titles. "Issue with HVAC" doesn't tell anyone what's wrong. Be specific.
• Floating issues (no linked element). Hard to triage and easy to forget. Always link.
• Assigning to "the team". Assign to a person. Re-assign as ownership moves.
• Skipping the verify step. Resolved ≠ fixed. Make the raiser confirm.
• Closing without comments. Future-you will want to know why this was closed. Leave a note.