Built On Record is a document control practice, based in Arizona, for general contractors who need a clean job file and a current set they can trust, without an enterprise software contract or a full-time document controller on staff.
Maybe you are running several jobs at once. A superintendent covers more than one site, the PM (if there is one) is stretched thin, and the owner is still in the mix with the subs. Nobody's full-time job is the file. That is a real operation, and this site is written for it. The problem is not a missing software logo. It is keeping the field, the office, and the design team on the same facts while the job moves.
What we do
I offer three kinds of help:
- Job file setup — folders, naming, logs, current-set rules, and access, in Google Drive or Dropbox, so the next project starts clean.
- Retainer document control — ongoing control of the current set, the RFI and submittal logs, distribution, and the weekly open-items review during construction.
- Closeout support — collecting and packaging warranties, O&Ms, as-builts, and the rest of the closeout record before the last-month scramble.
Your files stay yours, in your account, and there is no software contract to sign. I quote a fee per job, based on scope, and it is usually carried in the job’s general conditions. Write to travis@builtonrecord.com if you want to talk through a live job.
Why the work is done this way
Large general contractors pay for enterprise platforms and a document control person because a short list of habits saves money: one current drawing set, a log of questions and approvals that shows who has the ball and whether the field has seen the answer, a transmittal record, and closeout collected along the way. Those habits prevent rip-outs, shorten arguments, and turn final payment into a file you already have.
Procore facilitates a process, and many tools can reach the same goals. You can borrow the habits without the enterprise price tag: Google Drive or Dropbox, a spreadsheet, a phone, and a few rules will carry a lot of jobs. When a fast revision cycle, a thin closeout folder, or a plain lack of hours means the cadence will not hold, someone whose job is the file can keep those same habits for you.
This site exists to teach those habits in plain language, and to offer the service when teaching is not enough. The guides are written for experienced contractors, not as a lecture about “going digital.”
Who is behind it, and where
Built On Record is the practice of Travis Estes, a construction management graduate of Northern Arizona University who served as acting document control manager on many Mortenson projects. He ran document control on a mission-critical data center project from startup through Phase 1, including the move to Procore. He also completed his senior capstone project at Northern Arizona University on document control. The full story is on the About Travis page.
The practice is based in Arizona, and I work remotely with GCs and trades in any state, in Google Drive, Dropbox, and spreadsheets.
If you want to talk about a live job, bring a recent RFI thread and a look at where your drawings live. That is enough for a first conversation. Write to travis@builtonrecord.com, or start at the Contact page.
A job-file kit you can use this week
Free logs and checklists for RFIs, submittals, dailies, changes, transmittals, pay apps, warranties, and closeout, plus a folder tree to keep them in. Sent by email, with an occasional practical note after that.
Free. Unsubscribe any time. Privacy
Write to travis@builtonrecord.com. Based in Arizona, working remotely with contractors in any state.