Record and approve variation dockets

A variation docket records work outside the agreed scope: what was done, on which project, the lines and quantities, and the client's signature. Your crew raises it on a form in the field. The client signs it on the device, signs or disputes it from a link the office emails them, or the office records a signed paper copy. A supervisor reviews it, then a project manager approves it.

This page uses the default names, Variation and Dockets. If your organization has set its own names under Terminology in Settings, the sidebar and screens use those. United States and Canadian accounts see Field Tickets instead of Dockets. See Name your dockets.

Turn variation dockets on

Assignar switches variation dockets on for your account. Once they are on, someone who can manage settings sets them up:

1. In the sidebar, select Settings, then General, and go to the Variation Dockets section.
2. Under Variation form, select Create the default form to add a ready-made form and use it, or pick one of your published forms and select Use this form. A form can be used only if it has fields for the project and the title, and a lines table with description and quantity columns. If it has a signature, it also needs a field for the signer's name. A form that cannot be used says why.
3. Under Numbering, enter a pattern and select Save pattern, or leave the default. Use {PROJECT_CODE}, {TYPE} (written as VD) and {SEQ:5} for a five-digit sequence. Each project keeps its own sequence. With no pattern saved, numbers look like MAIN-VD-00001, and projects without a code get VD-00001. Reset to default removes your pattern.
4. Under Approval rules, choose:
   • Client must sign before supervisor review: on by default. Turn it off to let a supervisor review an unsigned variation.
   • The person who raised it may do the supervisor review: off by default, so someone else does the review.
5. Select Save rules.

Until a form is chosen, the register shows No capture form is set up yet, and nobody can raise a variation. People who can manage settings get an Open settings link that goes straight to the section.

Raise a variation

1. In the sidebar, select Revenue, then Variations.
2. Select Raise variation. The variation form opens.
3. Choose the project, give the variation a title, and add a line for each item of work with its quantity.
4. Have the client sign on the device, with their name in the signer field, then submit.

The variation gets its number when it is submitted. If the crew fills the form in offline, it has no number until the device syncs. Until then, use the client reference on the form to match it to the paper the client saw.

A variation the client signed on submit shows as Client signed and goes straight to supervisor review. One submitted without a signature shows as Submitted. While Client must sign before supervisor review is on, it waits there until the client signs.

Email the client a sign-off link

When the client was not on site to sign, send them a link. They open it on their phone or computer and don't need an account.

1. Open the variation from the register.
2. Select Send for client sign-off.
3. Under Send to, choose who gets the link. The list shows the contacts with an email address linked to the variation's order first, then its project, then the client's primary contact. To send it to someone else, choose Another email address and enter it.
4. Select Send link.

The variation shows as Awaiting client, and Client sign-off shows who the link went to, when, and when it expires.

The link works once and expires 14 days after you send it. Sending it again cancels the earlier link. If the variation is edited after you send it, the link stops working, so send a new one once the changes are made. If the email cannot be sent, you see a message saying so; select Send for client sign-off again.

What the client sees

The link opens the variation: its number, project, title, description, line items with their quantities and units, and photos. No prices are shown. The client chooses one of these:

• I agree to this work: they enter their full name, draw their signature and select Sign.
• I dispute this work: they enter their full name, say what they dispute and select Send dispute.

A signed variation shows as Client signed, with the client's name, when they signed and their signature, and goes to supervisor review as if they had signed on the device. A disputed one shows as Client disputed. The person who raised it and the supervisors are told what the client disputes. Fix the variation if needed, then send the link again.

If the client opens a link that has been used, has expired, was replaced by a newer one, or belongs to a variation that was withdrawn or voided, the page says so and nothing is recorded.

Record a client's paper sign-off

When the client signs a printed copy instead of the device:

1. Open the variation from the register.
2. Select Record paper sign-off.
3. Enter the Client signer's name, choose Signed or Disputed, and set the Date on the paper. The date cannot be later than today.
4. If the client disputed it, say what they dispute under What the client disputes.
5. Under Signed scan, choose the scan: PDF, JPEG, PNG or HEIC, up to 20 MB.
6. Select Record sign-off.

A signed copy moves the variation to supervisor review. A disputed one shows as Client disputed, and the person who raised it and the supervisors are told what the client disputes.

Anyone who can review variations, or manage them, can record a paper sign-off or send a sign-off link until the client has signed.

Go ahead without the client's signature

When the client cannot sign but the work is agreed, someone who can manage variations can move it on:

1. Open the variation and select Go ahead without client sign-off.
2. Enter the reason. It needs at least 10 characters; the count under the box shows how many you have.
3. Select Go ahead.

The reason stays on the variation under Client sign-off, with who gave it and when.

Review and approve a variation

Each variation goes through two steps: Supervisor review, then Project manager approval. The buttons on a variation are only the ones you can use on it right now, so you see Approve only when the step waiting is yours.

1. Open the variation from the register.
2. Select Approve, add a comment if you want one, and select Approve again.

To send it back, select Reject, enter the reason, and select Reject. The person who raised it is told why.

The variation page shows each step under Approval: who decided, when, and their comment. Earlier revisions stay listed below the current one.

Fix a rejected variation and send it again

1. The person who raised it corrects the submitted form. Open it from Open the submitted form on the variation.
2. On the variation, select Reopen.

Reopening starts a new revision. It goes through supervisor review and project manager approval again. If the client's signature still covers the content as it is now, it does not need signing again. If the content changed, the earlier signature moves to Earlier sign-offs and the client signs the new version.

Withdraw or void a variation

• Withdraw takes a variation out of the approval queue, for example when it was raised by mistake. The person who raised it, or someone who can manage variations, can withdraw it until the supervisor approves it. A reason is optional.
• Void is final. Only someone who can manage variations can void one, and a reason is required.

Both stay in the register with their reason, shown at the top of the variation.

Find and export variations

The Variation Dockets register lists every variation you can see, newest first. Select a number to open it.

• Search finds variations by number, title or client reference.
• Project, Status and the Raised dates narrow the list. Select Apply to use them, or Clear filters to go back to everything.
• Columns hides or shows columns.

To export the list, select Export, then CSV, Excel (XLSX) or PDF. The file holds every variation that matches the filters, not only the page you are on, with the columns you are showing plus the description and each line item. An export holds up to 20,000 rows. If the filters match more, you see This view has more than 20,000 rows. Narrow the filters and export again.

Download a variation as a PDF

On a variation, select Download PDF. The button shows Preparing PDF… until the file is ready. The PDF has the variation's details, line items, photos, the client's sign-off with their signature, the approval steps and the audit trail. It is made when you download it, so it always shows the variation as it is now.

What each variation page shows

• Details: the project, client, order, client reference, revision, who raised it and when, and the description.
• Client sign-off: who signed or disputed, how and when, the signature or Open the signed scan for a paper copy, any earlier sign-offs, and the last sign-off link sent: who it went to and whether it is still open.
• The line items with their quantity, unit and cost code.
• Approval, step by step, for each revision.
• Audit trail: everything that happened to the variation, newest first.

Who can do what

Reviewing, approving and managing also need access to the variation's project.

If your account limits access by location, people see and act on a variation only when its order, or else its project, is at their locations, and only they get its review and approval alerts. The person who raised a variation still sees it. See Limit access by location.

If something goes wrong

• You raised this one, so someone else has to approve it. The approval rules stop the person who raised a variation doing its supervisor review. Ask another supervisor, or have someone who manages settings turn on The person who raised it may do the supervisor review.
• The client has to sign before it can be reviewed. Email the client a sign-off link, record their paper sign-off, or have someone who manages variations go ahead without client sign-off.
• No contact with an email is linked to the order, project or client. Add the client's contact with an email address to the order, project or client, or choose Another email address and type it in.
• The sign-off link was created but the email could not be sent. Select Send for client sign-off again. The new link replaces the one that was not delivered.
• The client says the link no longer applies. The variation was edited, or a newer link was sent, after that email. Send the link again.
• The PDF took too long to prepare. Try again in a minute. The PDF is made when you ask for it, and it gave up after a minute. Try again; if it keeps happening, contact support.
• This variation changed since you opened it. Reload to continue. Someone else acted on it first. Reload the page to see where it is now, then try again.
• The scan must be 20 MB or smaller. or Choose a PDF, JPEG, PNG or HEIC file. Scan the paper again at a lower resolution, or save it in one of those formats.