Construction glossary
What is a construction decision log?
A construction decision log is a running record of the decisions made on a project — what was decided, why, when, and by whom — kept connected to the document that records each one, so months later you can still recover the reasoning behind a call instead of digging through someone’s inbox for it.
Also called: Decision register, Project decision record, Decision tracking log.
What a usable entry captures
A bare line — “went with the alternate fixture” — is worthless six months on. A real entry pins down five things: the decision, the reason behind it, the date, the person who made the call, and the document that records it — the RFI response, change order #14, the meeting minutes, the email from the architect approving the substitution. That last one carries the weight. A decision you can’t trace back to a source is just a recollection, and recollections don’t hold up when a sub disputes who signed off on the curtain wall swap.
Decisions also move over time. A choice made at design development gets reopened when a long-lead item falls through; an owner’s direction in week 6 runs into a code review in week 20. A good log shows that the answer changed — when and why — instead of quietly overwriting what came before.
Why it earns its keep in a dispute
Decisions on a job get made fast — over email, over text, standing in the trailer — and they get forgotten just as fast. When a change order is contested or a delay claim lands, the question is always the same: who decided this, when, and on what basis? A log that points to the actual RFI, change order, or signed approval answers it in seconds. A log of plain sentences with nothing behind them answers nothing, and rebuilding the trail after the fact — pulling threads, asking who remembers — is where weeks go.
How BRAD keeps it recoverable — and honest about scope
BRAD reads the documents and messages a project already runs on — RFIs, change orders, submittals, meeting minutes, and the email and text between the office and the field — and connects them into one record. Ask it why a decision was made and it answers with the source attached: the change order number, the RFI response, the message where the super signed off. The decision and the proof behind it stay tied together, so the log doesn’t hang on someone remembering to type the entry by hand.
Be clear on what this is: BRAD is document intelligence for construction, not a legal record, a guarantee, or a substitute for your own contract files — its answers are only as complete as what you forward it. Your project’s content stays yours and each workspace is kept isolated. If you have specific data-handling requirements, ask us and we’ll answer plainly.
See it on your project
Brad turns the documents and messages that run your job into one shared brain — and answers your team in seconds, with the source attached. Request a demo and bring a project.