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Bulk Update - Submittal Workflows

Mass update of submittal workflows across a project or a selection of submittals.

The submittal workflow bulk update feature enables mass modifications of workflow configurations across multiple submittals. You can update approvers, due dates, response requirements, and even remove workflows entirely, all within Procore technical boundaries.

1 - How It Works

1.1 - General Process

  1. Select Action: Choose the type of workflow modification to perform
  2. Define Scope: Target all project submittals or a specific list of IDs
  3. Configure Parameters: Specify which steps and users to modify
  4. Validate: (optional) Run simulation mode to preview changes
  5. Execute: Apply changes to workflows in Procore

1.2 - Workflow Processing Logic

The system processes workflows intelligently:

  • Closed steps (all required users responded) are never modified
  • Started steps (at least one user responded) have limited modifications available
  • Open steps (no responses yet) allow full modifications
  • Changes are applied atomically per submittal
  • Due dates cascade automatically when modified

2 - Available Actions

2.1 - Add User(s)

Add new approvers to workflow steps.

Rules:

  • Can add to started steps (user hasn’t responded yet)
  • If user already exists in step, only “required” status is updated
  • Multiple users can be added to the same step

2.2 - Remove User(s)

Remove approvers from workflow steps.

Rules:

  • Cannot remove users who have already responded
  • Cannot remove from closed steps
  • If last user in step is removed, entire step is deleted

2.3 - Replace User(s)

Replace one approver with another.

Rules:

  • Cannot replace users who have already responded
  • If new user already exists in step, old user is simply removed
  • Maintains the original user’s “required” status

2.4 - Update “Required” Status

Change whether a user’s response is required or optional.

Rules:

  • Cannot modify users who have already responded
  • Cannot modify closed steps

2.5 - Update Days to Respond

Change the number of working days allocated for a step.

Rules:

  • Cannot modify started or closed steps
  • Due dates are automatically recalculated based on working days
  • Changes cascade to subsequent steps

2.6 - Update Due Date

Set a specific due date for a workflow step.

Rules:

  • Cannot modify started or closed steps
  • Due date cannot be before previous step’s due date
  • Subsequent steps are automatically adjusted based on their days to respond

2.7 - Suppress Workflow

Remove the entire workflow from submittals.

Rules:

  • Only works on workflows that haven’t started
  • Workflow must have no responses or comments
  • Useful for cleaning up draft submittals

2.8 - Align Submission Date with Submit_By Date

Automatically align the first workflow step due date with the submittal’s submit_by date.

Conditions:

  • Workflow hasn’t started
  • Status must be “Open” or “Draft”
  • Must be first revision of the submittal
  • Submit_by date must be valid (within 3 years)
  • First step must be “Submitter” type
  • Subsequent steps are recalculated based on working days

3 - Step Number Notation

3.1 - Valid Formats

You can reference workflow steps using:

NotationDescriptionExample
1, 2, 3…Specific step number1 = first step
LLast stepIn 5-step workflow, L = step 5
L-1Second-to-last stepIn 5-step workflow, L-1 = step 4
ALLAll stepsApplies to every step in workflow

Important: ALL cannot be used with “Update Due Date” action.

3.2 - Step Numbering

  • Steps are numbered starting from 1 (user-facing)
  • System internally uses 0-based indexing
  • Empty steps are automatically removed after modifications

4 - Modification Rules

4.1 - Step States

Each workflow step has a state that determines what modifications are allowed:

Open Step (no responses)

  • ✅ Add users
  • ✅ Remove users
  • ✅ Replace users
  • ✅ Update required status
  • ✅ Update days to respond
  • ✅ Update due date

Started Step (some responses)

  • ✅ Add users (who haven’t responded)
  • ✅ Remove users (who haven’t responded)
  • ✅ Replace users (who haven’t responded)
  • ✅ Update required status for users (who haven’t responded)
  • ❌ Update days to respond
  • ❌ Update due date

Closed Step (all required responses received)

  • ❌ No modifications allowed
  • Step is copied as-is to the updated workflow

4.2 - Due Date Cascading

When you modify a due date or days to respond:

  1. First step uses the specified due date
  2. Subsequent steps are calculated by adding working days to the previous step’s due date
  3. Working days are based on project configuration in Procore
  4. Modified due dates cannot be before the previous step’s date

5 - Execution Modes

Dry run mode does not make modifications to procore and provides an Excel file showing which submittals would be affected, with a preview of the modifications.

Execution mode does the following:

  • Validates parameters
  • Pre-conts modifications
  • Applies changes to Procore workflows
  • Updates submittal workflows
  • Delivers complete eecution log & associated Excel file (also sent via email)

Safety Features:

  • Maximum 500 modifications per execution (automatic switch to dry run if exceeded)
  • Stop-on-error option (halts on first failure)
  • Rate limiting protection (3,600 requests/hour)

6 - Best Practices

  1. Always start with simulation mode to preview changes
  2. Verify user IDs - system validates against authorized approvers
  3. Check step numbers - especially when using L or L-1 notation
  4. Plan batch size - keep under 500 modifications for direct execution

7 - Limitations

7.1 - Volume Limits

  • Maximum 500 modifications per execution - system switches to dry run if exceeded
  • Maximum 1,500 submittal IDs when using list scope
  • Rate limit: 3,600 requests/hour - enforced by Procore API
  • Processing speed: ~10 submittals/second (multithreading)

7.2 - Action Constraints

Suppress Workflow:

  • Only works on workflows that haven’t started
  • Cannot be used if any responses or comments exist

Align with Submit_By Date:

  • Only applies to first revision submittals
  • Requires valid submit_by date (within 3 years)
  • Status must be “Open” or “Draft”
  • First step must be “Submitter” type

Update Due Date:

  • Cannot use “ALL” step notation
  • Must be after previous step’s date
  • Cannot modify started steps

7.3 - Access Requirements

  • Admin permissions required for Submittals tool in the project
  • Feature must be activated for your user/company
  • Users being added must be authorized submittal approvers