Blueprint Designer
The blueprint designer is the interface where you define the complete structure of a reporting process — sections, fields, permissions, form layout, output templates, and lifecycle settings. Everything configured here flows into every edition created from the blueprint.
Designer areas​
The blueprint designer is split into several panels and tabs:
| Area | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Blueprint properties | Name, display name, description, category, reporting frequency, icon, and version. |
| Sections panel | Add, reorder, and configure sections. Each section is a named group of fields. |
| Field list | The list of fields within the selected section. Add, reorder, and configure individual fields. |
| Field configuration panel | Detailed settings for the selected field: type, label, validation, default value, options. |
| Form Designer | Visual layout editor for arranging fields across tabs, rows, and multi-column cells. |
| Section permissions | Role-based view/edit access per section. |
| Outputs | Manage output templates linked to this blueprint. |
| Lifecycle | Blueprint version, status, and publish controls. |
Blueprint properties panel​
Accessible via the Settings button at the top of the designer.
| Property | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | Internal identifier used in the blueprint library and edition creation lists. |
| Display name | Shown on report covers, the edition header, and in the report viewer. |
| Description | Short summary shown in the blueprint library selection card. |
| Category | Organisational grouping — create categories to match your report taxonomy. |
| Reporting frequency | Controls the default edition period length: daily / weekly / biweekly / monthly / quarterly / annual / ad-hoc. |
| Icon | Emoji or icon identifier used in the library card. |
| Colour | Accent colour used in the library card and edition header. |
| Version | Current version label (e.g. 1.0, 2.1). Incrementing the version signals a structural change to all editions. |
| Owner | The user or team responsible for maintaining this blueprint. |
| Tags | Free-form labels for search and filtering in the library. |
Sections panel​
Section types​
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Single entry | One set of field values per edition. Used for summaries, narratives, status updates, cover data, commercial totals. |
| Repeating rows | Multiple rows per edition. Used for risk registers, action logs, lookahead records, quantity sheets, activity progress. |
Section settings​
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Section name | Displayed above the section in form mode and in the section navigation panel. |
| Description | Guidance text shown to contributors above the section inputs. |
| Required | Whether the section must be marked complete before the edition can be submitted. |
| Collapse by default | Whether the section starts collapsed in the edition form. |
| Section order | Drag to reorder sections. Order is reflected in the edition form navigation and in default output component bindings. |
Field list and field configuration​
Adding a field​
- In the Sections panel, select the section you want to add a field to.
- Click + Add Field.
- In the field configuration panel, set the field type, name, and display label.
- Configure type-specific options (see Blueprint Field Types).
- Set Required if the field must be filled before the edition section can be marked complete.
- Click Save field.
Field reordering​
Drag fields within the field list to change their order. Field order is reflected in the default form layout and in the column order of grid-mode sections.
Field grouping​
Fields can be grouped under a subheading within a section — this creates a visual divider in the form without creating a new section. Useful for long sections with distinct sub-areas (e.g. Baseline vs Forecast dates within a Schedule Status section).
Common field configuration properties​
| Property | Applies to | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Field name | All | Unique identifier used in output bindings and expression references. |
| Display label | All | Label shown to contributors in form/grid mode. |
| Required | All | Blocks section completion if empty. |
| Placeholder | Text, Textarea, Number, Date | Hint text shown in the empty input. |
| Default value | All | Pre-filled value when a new edition is created. |
| Read-only | All | Prevents contributor editing — used for auto-populated or lookup fields. |
| Min / Max | Number, Currency, Percent | Validation range. |
| Character limit | Text, Textarea | Max length enforcement. |
| Options list | Select, Multi-select | The list of allowed values. |
| Expression | Computed | Formula that calculates the field value from other fields. |
| Conditional visibility | All | Show/hide this field based on the value of another field. |
Form Designer tab​
The Form Designer lets you arrange fields in a structured tab-and-column layout for the edition form, instead of the default single-column scroll.
To open: click the Form Designer button in the designer toolbar.
Key capabilities:
- Tabs — split the form into named topics (e.g. Status, Schedule, Commercial, Risks).
- 12-column grid — place fields in cells spanning 1–12 columns per row.
- Display modes — set each section block to Form, Table, or Spreadsheet mode.
- Column layout — configure 1, 2, 3, or 4 columns within a form-mode block.
- Collapsed blocks — sections that start accordion-collapsed.
- Field visibility overrides — show only specific fields in a block.
See Blueprint Form Designer for the full reference.
Section permissions​
Section permissions control which roles can view and edit each section in the edition form.
To configure:
- Select a section in the sections panel.
- Click Permissions.
- Set access per role:
| Permission level | Description |
|---|---|
| Edit | Role can view and enter/change field values in this section. |
| View | Role can see the section and its values but cannot edit. |
| Hidden | Role cannot see this section at all. |
If permissions are not set on a section, it inherits from the project-level role defaults (Contributor = Edit; Reviewer = View; Observer = Hidden by default).
See Section Permissions for the full configuration guide.
Outputs tab​
The Outputs tab lists all output templates linked to this blueprint. Each output template is an independent layout designed in the Output Designer.
| Action | Description |
|---|---|
| + New Output | Opens a new blank canvas in the Output Designer. |
| Edit | Opens the existing template in the Output Designer. |
| Duplicate | Creates a copy of the template (useful for PDF vs Excel variants). |
| Set as default | Marks this template as the default when generating output from an edition. |
| Delete | Removes the template. Editions that have already generated output using this template retain their generated copies. |
Blueprint lifecycle​
Versions​
Versions track structural changes to the blueprint. Increment the version when adding or removing sections or fields that affect existing editions.
| Version action | Description |
|---|---|
| Minor version | Increment for non-breaking changes: adding optional fields, relabelling, adding options to a Select. |
| Major version | Increment for breaking changes: removing fields, renaming fields used in outputs, changing section types. |
Blueprint statuses​
| Status | Description |
|---|---|
| Draft | Blueprint is being designed. Cannot be used to create editions. |
| Published | Blueprint is live. Contributors can create editions from it. |
| Archived | Blueprint is no longer active. Existing editions are preserved; no new editions can be created. |
Publishing​
Click Publish blueprint to move from Draft to Published. A confirmation dialog lists any validation warnings (e.g. sections with no fields, required fields with no default that may surprise contributors).
Unpublishing​
Click Unpublish to return a Published blueprint to Draft for editing. This does not affect existing editions — they remain intact and can still be accessed.
Contributor assignment panel​
The Contributor Assignment panel defines which users or teams are responsible for completing each section by default. These assignments are pre-filled in the edition creation form and can be overridden per-edition.
| Assignment type | Description |
|---|---|
| Section contributor | User or team responsible for filling in a specific section. |
| Section reviewer | User or team responsible for reviewing and approving a specific section. |
| Edition owner | The user who manages the edition overall (typically the report author). |
Best practices​
- Design sections first, fields second. Get the section structure right before adding any fields — it is harder to restructure sections once data exists.
- Test before publishing. Create a draft edition and fill it in as a contributor. Fix anything that is confusing or missing before publishing.
- Version on structural changes. Increment the version number whenever you add, remove, or rename fields that are used in existing output templates.
- Use meaningful field names. Field names are used as binding references in output templates — choose names that will make sense to the output designer (e.g.
schedule_ragnotfield_12). - Set defaults for common values. Pre-filling Status = "Not Started" and RAG = "Amber" saves contributors a click on every edition.