Submittal Desk / How to build a submittal log from the spec book
GUIDE: SUBMITTAL LOG
How to Build a Submittal Log From the Spec Book, Section by Section
A submittal log, also called a submittal register, lists every submittal the spec book requires, one line per requirement, with who owes it, when it is due and where it stands. On an MEP sub it is the first document the project engineer builds on a job.
This guide shows where the requirements live, which columns matter, and how to date long-lead gear so a late approval shows up on the log before it costs a factory slot.
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Step 1
Start with Division 01, then open every section in your scope
Section 01 33 00 Submittal Procedures sets the rules for the whole job: how packages are sent, how long the reviewer has, and what stamps and cover sheets are required. Read it first, because it sets the review time you plan around.
Then open every technical section in your scope. Each one lists what it needs in Part 1, in an article usually titled Submittals, or split into Action Submittals, Informational Submittals and Closeout Submittals.
Step 2
Read past the Submittals article
Requirements hide in other articles. In the public LAWA panelboard section 26 24 16, the Submittals article (1.2) asks for shop drawings and product data, then adds a condition: shop drawings sent before the coordination study is approved are returned without review (1.2.C). The keying requirement, two keys per panelboard keyed to the owner's system, sits separately in 1.4.A Maintenance Materials.
Qualifications are usually due early, before work starts, while warranties, certificates and sustainability documents cluster toward closeout (Trunk Tools, 2026-08-21). Put both on the log on day one.
Step 3
Keep only the columns someone will update
These are the columns that answer the questions a PM asks every week:
- Spec section and paragraph, so every line points to the sentence that created it
- Description and submittal type: product data, shop drawings, samples, test reports, O&M data, warranties, certificates
- Responsible vendor or sub-tier
- Required-by date, worked back from the install date
- Status and revision number
- Reviewer action and date returned: approved, approved as noted, revise and resubmit, or rejected
- Ball in court: who has it right now
Step 4
Date long-lead gear backwards from the install date
For each long-lead item, set the required-by date as the date the gear must be on site, minus the manufacturer's lead time, minus the review time in 01 33 00, minus one resubmittal cycle. If that date has already passed, the log has told you something the schedule has not.
The lead times are long enough to make this matter: medium voltage switchgear averages 22 months on 2026 orders, generators run 40 to 70 weeks, chillers and CDUs 35 to 55 weeks, and UPS and PDUs 30 to 50 weeks (Archdesk, 2026-04-16).
Or hand it to the desk
How Submittal Desk builds the log
The Spec Log reads every section in your spec book and writes one line per required submittal, with the spec paragraph cited on every line. Your PE reviews it before it is used. The acceptance check is simple: every Submittals article in the spec book has a line in the log. The $1,500 sample run does this for one spec division, up to 25 sections.
Straight answers
Questions this guide answers.
- What is the difference between a submittal log and a submittal register?
- In practice the two names are used for the same list: every submittal the spec book requires, with its type, owner, dates and status.
- Who should own the submittal log on an MEP sub?
- The project engineer who sends the packages, with the project manager reviewing the long-lead lines every week.
- Where do submittal requirements live in a spec section?
- Mostly in Part 1, in the Submittals article or its Action, Informational and Closeout Submittals articles. Check the other Part 1 articles too: in LAWA 26 24 16 the keying requirement sits in 1.4.A Maintenance Materials.
Start with one job
Request a sample run.
The sample run report is yours to keep whether or not you go further. Sign setup within 30 days of the report and the $1,500 comes off setup in full.
Sample run $1,500. Setup $5,000. Then $1,200 a month per active project.
The sample run is a fixed price, returned 10 business days after your documents arrive. Setup takes 4 weeks, including 2 weeks running beside your PE on live packages. The monthly fee covers up to 60 packages a month per active project, month to month with 30 days notice.