Custom Fields for Projects and Proposals
Custom fields let you track the project and proposal details that matter to your firm.
You can use them to segment projects, control who can see certain information, organize project lists, and build better reports. Done well, custom fields help you answer questions like:
Which project types are most profitable?
Do we make better margins on private work or public work?
Are certain building types consistently stronger than others?
Which market sectors should we pursue more often?
Custom fields are used on projects and proposals only.
They are not system-wide fields used everywhere in BaseBuilders. Once created, they can be entered on projects and proposals, added to column sets, and used for searching, sorting, and reporting.
Why Custom Fields Matter
Most firms already think about projects in categories.
You may think about work by building type, funding source, client type, market sector, delivery method, or basis of fee. The problem is that if those categories are stored in someone’s head, buried in notes, or typed inconsistently, they are hard to report on.
Custom fields solve that problem.
They give your firm a structured way to capture the information you want to compare later.
For example, you may want to track building type:
Airport
Bank
Commercial Building
Dwelling
Higher Education
K-12 Education
Library
Restaurant
Tenant Improvement
Once that information is stored consistently, you can use it in project lists and reports. That means you can compare profitability by building type instead of guessing.
Custom fields are especially powerful when paired with profitability reporting. They let you move beyond “Did this project make money?” and start asking “What kinds of projects make us the most money?”
Access Levels
Each custom field includes an access level.
This controls which users can see or use the field.
The basic access levels are:
Limited User
Production User
Financial User
These access levels work as a hierarchy.
Financial users can see fields available to production and limited users.
Production users can see fields available to limited users.
Limited users only see fields available to their level.
You can also limit a custom field to specific access groups. This gives you more control when only certain people should see or work with that field.
For example, a general field like Building Type may be useful to most users. A financial or risk-related field may need to be limited to financial users or a specific management group.
Use access controls when the field contains information that is sensitive, internal, or not useful to every user.
Field Types
When you create a custom field, you choose the field type.
The field type controls how users enter information.
Text
A text field allows users to type a short entry.
Use this for simple values that do not need a long paragraph.
Permit number
Client reference code
Internal tracking code
Short project note
Text fields are flexible, but they are not ideal for reporting categories. Because users type their own values, spelling and wording can vary.
If you want consistent reporting, use a Select field instead.
Text Area
A text area field allows users to enter longer text.
Use this when the field may need a sentence or paragraph.
Project resume description
Proposal summary
Project background
Internal project notes
A text area is useful when the information is descriptive instead of something you need to group or total in reports.
Select
A Select field gives users a dropdown list of choices.
This is one of the most useful custom field types for reporting.
Building Type
Funding Source
Client Type
Market Sector
Basis of Fee
Project Category
The advantage of a Select field is consistency.
Everyone chooses from the same list. That prevents one person from typing “Restaurant,” another from typing “Restaurants,” and another from typing “Food Service.” If the entries are inconsistent, reports become messy.
For project segmentation, Select fields are usually the best choice.
Autocomplete
An Autocomplete field is similar to a Select field, but more flexible.
You provide a list of choices, and users can select from that list. Users can also enter a custom value on the fly.
Custom values do not become part of the standard list.
Use Autocomplete when you want to suggest common choices but still allow exceptions.
Special project category
Flexible project tag
Optional classification
Specialty work type
Be careful with Autocomplete if the field will be used heavily in reporting. Because users can create custom values, the data may become less consistent than a Select field.
Date
A Date field stores a date.
Expected award date
Permit received date
Proposal expiration date
Construction start date
Client decision date
Use Date fields when the information needs to be tracked by calendar timing.
Number
A Number field stores numeric values.
You can set decimal precision and choose units.
Square footage
Acres
Number of units
Estimated hours
Building count
Site area
Number fields can use different unit types, such as:
Each
Time
Length
Area
Mass
Volume
For example, an architecture firm may track square footage. A civil or site planning firm may track acreage. Another firm may track the number of units or structures.
Currency
A Currency field stores a money value.
The currency follows the project’s profit center.
Estimated construction cost
Owner budget
Grant amount
Internal allowance
Preliminary fee target
Use Currency fields for financial values that are useful to track but are not already part of the standard project setup.
Percentage
A Percentage field stores a percentage value.
Estimated completion percentage
Risk percentage
Fee contingency percentage
Internal probability adjustment
Use this when the value is naturally expressed as a percent.
Boolean
A Boolean field is a true/false field.
In plain English, it means yes or no.
Public bid
Prevailing wage applies
Requires stamped plans
Includes reimbursables
Has additional services risk
Requires special insurance
Boolean fields are useful for simple flags. Either the condition applies or it does not.
Company
A Company field lets users select a company from the address book.
Developer
Owner representative
Prime consultant
Contractor
Funding agency
Use this when the value should connect to an existing company record.
Contact
A Contact field lets users select a contact from the address book.
Owner contact
Agency reviewer
Developer contact
Primary outside contact
Use this when the value should connect to a specific person.
User
A User field lets users select one of your BaseBuilders users.
Plan stamper
Project executive
Internal reviewer
QA/QC lead
Proposal lead
Use this when the field tracks internal responsibility.
Using Select Fields for Segmentation
Select fields are especially useful when you want to segment your projects.
Segmentation means breaking projects into meaningful groups so you can compare them.
Common segmentation fields include:
Building Type
Funding Source
Client Type
Market Sector
Basis of Fee
Project Delivery Method
Project Category
For example, a Funding Source field might include choices such as:
Federal
State
Local
Public
Private Owner
Private Developer
Nonprofit
Once that field is used consistently, you can run reports and compare performance by funding source.
You may find that your firm does better with privately funded work than public work. Or you may find that state-funded projects are more profitable than federally funded projects. Every firm is different. Custom fields let your own data show you what is true for your firm.
Using Prefixes in Select Lists
For longer Select lists, prefixes can help keep related items grouped together.
For example:
CLM - Commercial Building
DWL - Dwelling
EDU - Higher Education
EDU - K-12
TI - Tenant Improvement
Because custom fields can be searched, sorted, and reported on, prefixes can make lists easier to scan and reports easier to read.
This is optional, but it can be useful when your firm has a lot of categories.
Adding Custom Fields to Column Sets
Custom fields can be added to column sets.
This is where they become more useful in day-to-day work.
Once a custom field is added to a column set, you can use it in project and proposal lists. Depending on the field and view, this can help you search, sort, compare, and report on your projects.
For example, you could add Building Type, Funding Source, and Project Category to a project list. Then you can review projects by those fields instead of opening each project one at a time.
This is also helpful for reports.
Instead of only seeing profitability by project, you can begin comparing profitability by the custom categories your firm cares about.
Best Practices
Start with the fields you will actually use.
Custom fields are powerful, but too many fields create clutter. If users see a long list of fields that do not matter, they are less likely to keep the important ones accurate.
Good custom fields usually do one of four things:
Help you report on profitability
Help you group similar projects
Help you find and sort projects faster
Help you capture information your team repeatedly needs
Use Select fields when consistency matters.
Use Text and Text Area fields when the information is descriptive.
Use Number, Currency, Date, and Percentage fields when the value needs to be measured.
Use Company, Contact, and User fields when the value should connect to an existing record.
Use Boolean fields for simple yes/no flags.
Do not create a custom field just because the information might be interesting someday. Create it because the information will help your firm manage projects, proposals, reporting, or profitability.
Example Custom Fields for A/E Firms
Here are practical custom field ideas for architecture and engineering firms:
Building Type
Funding Source
Client Type
Market Sector
Basis of Fee
Project Delivery Method
Construction Type
Project Resume Description
Estimated Construction Cost
Square Footage
Site Acreage
Number of Units
Public Bid
Prevailing Wage Applies
Requires Stamped Plans
Plan Stamping User
QA/QC Reviewer
Proposal Category
Strategic Priority
Additional Services Risk
Final Thought
Custom fields let your firm define how projects and proposals should be categorized.
They are not just extra data fields. They are a way to structure project information so it can be searched, sorted, grouped, and reported on.
Start with a small number of meaningful fields. Keep the choices clean. Use Select fields when reporting matters. Then use column sets and reports to turn that information into better project and business decisions.