Free templates / Construction

Submittal Log Template (Excel)

A free Excel submittal log for contractors: one row per submittal, the date it must be sent counted back from the date the item is needed on site, the review due date, days in review, and flags for submittals that are late to go out or late to come back.

Download the Excel template

Free, no sign-up. Opens in Excel, Google Sheets and LibreOffice.

Mirage does this work from your own documents. See RFI and submittal automation

Who uses it, and when

Project engineers and project managers at general contractors keep the submittal log from the start of procurement to closeout. Subcontractors and suppliers produce the submittals; the architect and engineers review them; the superintendent needs the log to know which materials can be ordered and installed.

The log matters most on jobs with long-lead items (switchgear, curtain wall, elevators, structural steel), where a submittal sent two weeks late becomes a delivery four weeks late. Its job is to make that visible while there is still time to act.

What is in the file

Submittal log: The project block with the review period your contract gives the design team, then one row per submittal: number, specification section, description, type, who provides it, the date it is required on site, the supplier's lead time, the computed submit-by date, the dates submitted and returned, the computed review due date and days in review, the status, the revision and an overdue flag.
Instructions: How to fill it, step by step.

Column by column

Submittal no.: Your sequential number, often prefixed by the specification section. A resubmittal keeps its number and increments the revision.
Spec section: The section that requires the submittal, from its 'Submittals' article (part 1 of each section in a MasterFormat specification).
Description and type: What is submitted, and whether it is shop drawings, product data, samples, a mix design, a test report or a certificate.
From: The subcontractor or supplier who prepares it.
Required on site: The date the material or equipment must be on site, from the schedule.
Lead time (days): Fabrication and delivery time the supplier quotes once the submittal is approved.
Submit by: Computed: required on site, minus lead time, minus the review period. The latest date the submittal can go out without delaying the work.
Date submitted, review due, date returned: When it was sent, when the answer is due (computed from the review period) and when it came back.
Days in review: Computed from submission to return, or to today while it is out.
Status and revision: Not submitted, Submitted, Approved, Approved as noted, Revise and resubmit, Rejected or Void, and the revision number.
Overdue: Computed: 'Not submitted' when the submit-by date has passed with nothing sent; 'Review late' when the review period has passed with nothing returned.

How to use it

Enter the review period the contract gives the design team, in calendar days.
Go through the specification section by section and list every submittal it requires, before the first one is due.
For each, enter the date the item is needed on site from the schedule and the supplier's lead time: the submit-by date computes.
When a submittal goes out, enter the date submitted; when it comes back, the date returned and the status.
Review the overdue flags every week, in the meeting where the design team is present.

Limits

The review period is one figure for the whole log; if your contract sets different periods for some submittals, overwrite the review due date on those rows.
The log tracks dates; it does not check the content of a submittal against the specification. That review is the design team's.
Dates are calendar days. If your contract counts working days, adjust the formulas with WORKDAY.

A worked example

Submittal 001, section 08 11 13, hollow metal doors and frames, shop drawings from Metro Door Co. Doors are needed on site on 1 December 2026; lead time 42 days; review period 14 days. Submit by: 1 December minus 42 minus 14 days, 6 October 2026.

It was sent on 28 September, so the review was due on 12 October; it came back on 9 October, Approved as noted, after 11 days in review. No flag. Had it gone out on 15 October instead, the row would have turned red with 'Not submitted' from 7 October.

Mistakes to avoid

Building the log as submittals arrive instead of from the specification. The ones nobody thought of are the ones that end up late.
Ignoring lead time. A submittal sent 'on time' against the review period can still be too late for fabrication.
Closing a submittal on 'Revise and resubmit'. It is still open, with a new revision to track.
Starting fabrication on an unapproved submittal to save time. If the reviewer marks it up, the cost is the contractor's.
Keeping separate logs for the architect and the engineers. One log, with the reviewer in the ball-in-court sense, is easier to read.

Questions

What is a construction submittal?

A document or sample the contractor sends to the design team for review before fabrication or installation: shop drawings, product data, samples, mix designs, test reports, certificates. It shows how the contractor intends to meet the contract documents.

What is a submittal log?

The list of every submittal the specification requires, with its dates, reviewer, status and revision. It tells the team which submittals are late to go out or late to come back, and which materials can be ordered.

How long does submittal review take?

The contract sets it; ten to fifteen working days or fourteen to twenty-one calendar days are common, longer for complex items or when consultants review in sequence. The log uses the period you enter.

What does 'approved as noted' mean?

The reviewer accepts the submittal with corrections marked on it; the contractor can proceed if it follows the notes, without resubmitting unless the notes say so. 'Revise and resubmit' means it cannot proceed until a new revision is approved.

Is a submittal log the same as an RFI log?

No. An RFI asks a question about the contract documents; a submittal shows how the contractor will meet them. Many teams keep both side by side because an RFI answer often changes a submittal.

Submittals listed from the specification

This log tracks the submittals you list. Mirage deploys AI agents that read the specification, list every required submittal with its section, and keep the log current as packages come and go, for your project engineers to review.

Book a call See RFI and submittal automation