Construction Submittal Process: Shop Drawings, Approvals, and Common Mistakes

Construction submittals are the documents and samples that contractors submit to the design team before fabricating or installing anything that requires approval. They're how you prove that what you're about to build actually matches the contract documents — and they're how disputes about substitutions, dimensions, and materials get resolved in writing before they become field problems.

Submittals slow down projects when the process isn't structured. A disorganized submittal log, late reviews, or unclear approval language creates delays that cascade into schedule impact and change order disputes. Understanding how the process is supposed to work — and where it typically breaks — prevents most of those problems.

What Is a Construction Submittal?

A submittal is any document, drawing, sample, or product data that the contractor must submit to the design team for review and approval before proceeding with that portion of the work. The requirement to submit is spelled out in Division 01 of the specifications, and individual submittal requirements appear in each technical section (Division 03 through Division 48).

Submittals serve two purposes: they give the architect and engineer a chance to verify that the contractor's proposed materials and methods conform to the design intent, and they create a documented record of what was approved. That record is critical if disputes arise later about whether what was installed matched what was approved.

The Three Types of Submittals

The Submittal Approval Workflow

A submittal moves through a chain from the subcontractor who prepares it to the design team that approves it, then back. Each handoff has a review obligation and a time limit (usually 14 calendar days per the spec, though that varies).

Stamp Actions Explained

The Submittal Schedule

Division 01 typically requires the GC to submit a submittal schedule within the first few weeks of the project. The schedule maps every required submittal to a target submission date and required return date, working backward from the date that item needs to be on-site or fabricated.

A functional submittal schedule accounts for:

• • Lead times: Custom fabrications (structural steel, curtain wall, elevators) have 8–26 week lead times. The submittal approval must be complete before the fabrication clock starts.
• • Review periods: Spec-mandated review times (often 14 calendar days per review cycle). Budget one resubmittal per item as the base case.
• • Engineer-of-record review: Structural and MEP submittals go to the respective design engineers, not just the architect. Their review cycles may differ.
• • Owner-furnished items: OFCI equipment submittals may require the owner's procurement team in the review chain, adding time.

5 Common Submittal Mistakes

• 1.
  Submitting without a GC review.

  GCs who forward submittals straight from the sub to the A/E without their own substantive review are bypassing a contractual obligation — and creating liability exposure. When the A/E returns comments about field coordination issues, the GC's own review would have caught them. The GC stamp exists for a reason.

• 2.
  Fabricating on "Revise and Resubmit."

  Schedule pressure causes this repeatedly. If the shop drawing comes back "Revise and Resubmit," nothing may be fabricated until the revised submittal is approved. Fabricating anyway shifts 100% of the risk to the contractor — if the installed work doesn't conform, you own the rework cost.

• 3.
  No submittal log or tracking system.

  Without a log, submittals get lost in email chains, return dates get missed, and "I never got the review back" becomes a common but unverifiable claim. A submittal log with submission date, return date required, actual return date, and stamp action is non-negotiable on any project with more than 50 submittals.

• 4.
  Treating "Approved as Noted" as blanket approval.

  "Approved as Noted" means approved only if you incorporate the markups. Ignoring the notes and proceeding as originally submitted is a nonconformance. The notes are part of the approval, not optional comments.

• 5.
  Confusing substitution requests with submittals.

  A submittal proves conformance with a specified product. A substitution request proposes a different product and requires separate evaluation, owner approval, and often a contract modification. Submitting an alternate product through the submittal process without a substitution request is a substitution attempt by another name — and it will come back rejected.

How Plan Review Connects to Submittals

The submittal requirements are embedded in the drawings and specifications. Every product, system, and material that requires a submittal should be identifiable from a thorough plan review — and the submittal schedule can't be built without first knowing what the drawings require.

Gaps in the drawings create submittal problems downstream:

• • A drawing that specifies "equal approved" without a basis-of-design product leads to substitution disputes during submittal review
• • Missing equipment schedules mean subcontractors don't know what product data to submit
• • Spec/drawing conflicts on materials force A/E to reject submittals that conform to one document but not the other
• • Uncoordinated MEP and structural drawings mean shop drawings come back with coordination conflicts the A/E catches but didn't design out

A plan review before construction start — specifically looking for incomplete specifications, "equal approved" ambiguities, and coordination conflicts — reduces the submittal revision cycle and protects your schedule.