Requests For Information

User Personas: Project Management | Field 

The Request For Information (RFI) module in eSUB Fusion enables you to formally request additional information or clarifications as needed during the life of your project and to record official responses so they are easily accessible by your project members, whether they are in the office or in the field.

To perform the actions described in this article, a user must have the RFIs - General Permissions, Share, Change Status to Closed, and Change Status to Void permissions.

Use the links below to quickly jump to a topic:

• View and Manage the RFI Log
  • Log Features
  • Document Statuses, Due Dates, and Flags
• Create RFI
  • RFI Features
• Record an RFI Response
• Revise RFI
• Edit RFI
• Export RFI
• RFI Settings

View and Manage the RFI Log

1. Select Projects on the global navigation menu, then select the desired project from the list
2. Select RFIs from the slide out menu
3. Use the sort and filter icons on the log to refine the list
4. Select an RFI to view it

Log Features

Search, Sort, and Filter the Log

• Use the Search bar at the top of the page to enter your search criteria
• For pages that appear as tables, use the filter buttons on the header to make your desired sorting/filtering selections
• For pages that appear as card lists, use the filter button that appears above the card list (next to the Search bar) to make your desired sorting/filtering selections

See the Navigating through the eSUB Fusion Interface article for more guidance.

Download Documents

1. Select the 3-dot menu in line with the applicable document from the log page, then select View PDF
   
2. Select the desired sections and/or attachments to include in the PDF (if applicable) then select Done
3. If the preview is acceptable, select Download, or select Configure and repeat step 2

See the Document Downloads and Exports article for more guidance.

Export Document Logs

To be able to save your records or for analysis, you can export document logs into CSV. 

Filtering first will save time and make your export cleaner.

Select the Action button and select Export Log. The log file will download into CSV format.

See the Document Downloads and Exports article for more guidance.

Email Documents

1. Select the 3-dot menu from the log page, then select Email
2. Compose the email, then select Send

See the Emailing Documents article for more guidance.

Document Statuses, Due Dates, and Flags

Documents with an approval process or of a time-sensitive nature have additional features displayed on the log page so that the most pertinent information is available at-a-glance.

Document Statuses

The Status represents the document’s current state. Status options vary by document type.

Due Dates

Documents of a time-sensitive nature may display a due date. Depending on the document type, the due date may represent a date that is pertinent to an internal or an external stakeholder on the project team.

Flags

Some documents can be flagged for urgency while creating or editing the document. Flagging serves as a visual indicator of importance to the user viewing the document log.

Flags are not currently available on the mobile app.

Use the three-dot menu on a document from the log page to quickly access actions for the document, such as Revise or Email.

Create RFI

RFIs can be created on either the mobile app or the web. See the RFIs on Mobile article for more guidance on creating RFIs via the mobile app.

1. Select Projects on the global navigation menu, then select the desired project from the list
2. Select RFIs from the slide out menu
3. Select Add RFI on the action button
4. Fill in the fields as desired (See below)
5. Select Save when finished

How to create an RFI

RFI Features

See the sections below for additional information on the various features of the RFI document.

General Info

Use the fields in the General Info section to choose recipients for the RFI and to establish base details of the RFI such as the due date, subject matter, and scheduling and/or cost impact. If the No. field is left blank, the RFI number will be generated automatically. If the RFI is marked Urgent, then it will flag the RFI in the RFI log.

Request for Information

Enter supporting details for the RFI, as well as your question and recommended solution.

Answer to Request for Information

This section serves as a place to record the official response to the RFI. Attachments on an RFI have the ability to be designated as the official RFI answer/response and are viewable via the mobile app.

Attachments

Files, media, and other supporting documentation can be attached or linked to a document. Some attachments may be included when generating a PDF of the document, if desired.

Attachments on an RFI have the ability to be designated as the official RFI answer/response.

Revisions

Revisions allow you to make corrections or updates to the document while also keeping a record of the previous versions. Document revisions will have R1, R2, R3, etc. appended to the document number field so that they can be easily identified. Older document revisions are uneditable, but they can still be emailed or downloaded as PDF.

Use the Show latest revision only filtering option to hide old revisions from the log.

Activity Log

The Activity Log tab displays a timeline of activity related to the document such as the email activity.

To see the Activity Log tab, a user must have the Mailbox - General Permissions permission.

From the document log page:

1. Select the document to view it then select the Activity Log tab
2. Select a link under Email Activity to view the associated message

Record an RFI Response

While creating or editing the RFI:

1. Complete the fields in the Answer to Request for Information section
   • Select the Responded On field and choose a date
   • Select the RFI Status
   • Enter an RFI Status Comment
   • Enter the response into the Answer to Clarification field
2. Select the checkbox on an attachment to mark it as the official response, if desired
3. Select Save when finished

How to record a response to an RFI

Certain actions, such as entering a Responded On date to the RFI, will automatically update the status to Answered. The status can also be manually changed.

*IMPORTANT: RFIs cannot be deleted. If an RFI is no longer needed, change the RFI status to Void. 

Revise RFI

From the RFI log:

1. Select an RFI to view, then select Revise
2. Make corrections as desired
3. Select Save when finished

Previous revisions of a document will have their status automatically updated to Void.

Edit RFI

From the RFI log:

1. Select an RFI to view, then select Edit
2. Make edits as desired
3. Select Save when finished

Export RFI Log

The RFI log can be exported as an CSV file and includes all the info displayed in the RFI Info tab of the log.

From the RFI Log in either the Global or Project View:

1. Select Actions then Export log
   
   • The file will be downloaded to your default downloads folder

RFI Settings

Project-specific RFI settings can be toggled by a project manager or administrator.

See the Project Settings article for more guidance.