Organise your project in just a few steps

Registration/login

Your Planfred user account is created during registration. If your e-mail address already possesses a Planfred login by way of a project invitation, then registration is no longer necessary.

Register at: app.planfred.com/registration

Click Create password now in the confirmation e-mail and enter your desired password in the next step.

You may now log in with your e-mail address and your password at any time at: app.planfred.com

Use your Planfred access data to access all projects your own projects, as well as the ones that you have been invited to. In Projects (in top-centre), you may switch between the respective projects

TIP: The password may be reset again at any time when logging in. Change the password in the user account (top right).

Create project/plan selection

Each Planfred user (no matter whether you register yourself or receive an invite) is entitled to add their own projects, which starts the test phase.

Project list (above in projects)

• Click Create your first project
• Enter project title
• Select your own role in the project, or, if it's not available, enter it in the “New role” field and click +
• Click Create project

After 30 days, the user account of a project owner will become fee-based. Billing via e-mail does not take place automatically, however, but rather only after online ordering in the user account (package selection and billing address entry).

RECOMMENDATION: For the fee-based user account of the project owner, we recommend using an impersonal e-mail address. All projects should be created using this login. This provides one central account access to all company projects, and it is also the owner of all the data. The project managers are added in the respective project as administrators and therefore receive all permissions for project organisation.

TIP: The Project transfer function (in “Settings & backup”) enables you to transfer your project to the ownership of a participant (provided they have selected a package). If you no longer possess a project of your own, then you are no longer in the test phase.

Roles, Plan folders, and tags – individual project settings

NOTE: Filters for roles and tags are displayed as soon as the data with these attributes are available. If project participants upload plans or documents, then these will be stores with their roles automatically. A participant may only update or edit data for their own role; the participant only has reading permission for the data of other roles. Project administrators possess editing permissions for all roles.

Settings & backup (top-right)

Adjust plan and document folder

• Rename and save folder
• Delete folder by clicking: x (right)
• Add folder (write the name in the “New plan/document folder” field and click on: +)
• Change the order by dragging it (list symbol on the right)

Adjust plan and document tags

• Rename and save tags
• Delete tags by clicking: x (right)
• Add tags (write the name in the “New tag” field and click on: +)

Rename or add roles

• Rename and save roles
• Delete roles by clicking: x (right)
• Roles can also be added directly when adding project participants

TIP: Project settings can be accepted for additional projects (Create new project and Apply project settings from another project)

Roles and plan folders – folder structure when downloading

When downloading any plans, the roles form higher folders, while the plan folders form subfolders. In this case, when creating plan folders, think about which plans should be placed in a folder during downloading. The same applies to document folders.

Tags – additional filters

By adding “Tags”, plans are able to be grouped according to individual criteria and therefore filtered: e.g. Plan “Ground plan 2-fl” receives the tags “ground plan” and “2-flf”. If, for example, the ground plans for the architects’ execution plans are needed, the “architect” role is activated first in the filter, then “Exectution plan” in the plan folder filter, and then the “GP” tag (or entry in the search field: "architect + execution + ground"). We recommend defining tags so that the participants are able to select them when creating a plan.

TIP: Tags with similar meanings can be combined by renaming them (e.g. the tag “GP” is renamed to “Ground plan”, which means that all plans moving forward will feature the “Ground plan” tag only).

Invite participants to project / permissions

Participants do not need to register and may use Planfred free of charge! Planfred sends invitation e-mails when participants are added. Participants also receives a link to the instructions: www.planfred.com/hilfe

Participants tab

• Click Create new participant
• Enter e-mail address
• Select permission: Project participant, Project administrator or Participant without login
• Optional plan approval permission
• Upload notifier recommendation daily (each participant can switch off their upload notifiers themselves)
• Select the role or enter into the “New role” field and click +
• Enter last name, company, and telephone number (optional)
• Optional personal message
• Invite + add another one

TIP: Participants that are already added can be imported to additional projects (Add new participants and Import participant from another project )

TIP: By right clicking on a participant in the list, the following functions are available: Delete participant, Grant or revoke plan approval permission, Upload notifier (hourly, daily, OFF), Export contact.

TIP: In the participants detail view (click on participants) in Edit permission (top-right), a project participant may be made the project administrator retroactively or removed from project access, etc.

Project participant

Project participants can only use there Planfred access data to log into projects that they have been invited to. The project login enables participants to download all project data and upload their plans and documents, and these are stored automatically under the assigned role. Each participant may only update or edit their own role. Plans and documents of other roles are only available to a participant with reading permission. In case of a team of multiple structural engineers, it is important that they are assigned the same role during project invitation.

Project administrator

Project administrators generally have the same permissions in the project as the project owners (nevertheless, they cannot delete the project or revoke project access from the owner). An administrator is entitled to invite other participants, to delete them, and to change participants. Furthermore, an administrator has access to “Settings & backup” and to all documents in the document vault. An administrator is allowed to edit or update all plans and documents of other roles and may also update data for other roles representatively by changing the author (this enables the plans and documents to be stored under the role of the author instead of their own role).

Participant without login

Participants without a login do not have access to the project and are only available as a recipient for manual delivery of plans and document via the download link via e-mail. In the participants detailed view, receipt can be checked (click on participants – see under activities, e.g. “Download“). Project invitation e-mails and upload alerts cannot be sent to participants without a login. Participant without a login can, however, be managed as authors, e.g. a surveyor’s plan under the “Surveyor” role.

RECOMMENDATION: We recommend sending bid request packages to participants without a login (Zip files) in a separate project (award package)! (Advantages: Recipients and technical planners cannot see bidders and sensitive data like offer evaluations, agreements, etc. can be managed without access permission). Plotting orders are processed by manually sending plans to participants without a login, in which case the order data are entered via text message.

Plan approval permission

As soon as at least one participant with plan approval permission is available in the project, the approval system for plans is activated. Next, when uploading a plan, select whether approval is required for this plan. If this plan should be approved, those who can approve it may be selected from a list of all participants with plan approval permission.

A participant will be informed automatically by e-mail, if a plan is waiting for their approval. The participants may now be approve or correct. Correction via text and/or attachment. The plan author is informed automatically via e-mail about corrections/approvals.

The approval system is always active for documents, and an approval may always be requested by any participant.

Delete participants or revoke access to the project

If a participant is deleted or project access is revoked from a participant (in the participants detailed view Edit permission to Participant without login), then all download links in the e-mails are deactivated. Deleted participants and participants without login no longer have access to the project. Deleted participants are moved into the recycle bin (activities are still accessible in the recycle bin. They can be restored at any time).

Upload notifier

In case new plans and documents are uploaded, Planfred automatically sends messages, provided upload notifier is activated for the project.

A project participant can turn their upload alerts on or off themselves in the respective project (orange field in top-right). If daily is selected, Planfred will send a group e-mail at midnight including all new uploads over the last 24 hours.

Sort plans or documents according to most recent upload

Sorting the list view according to the most recent upload provides the best overview of new uploads in the project.

Plans or documents tabs

• Activate filter Display all (top-left)
• Click Last upload (on right in the list header)
• Filter according to “Role/author” and “Plan or document folder”
• Preview by right clicking on a plan or document and select Open PDF
• Download multiple plans by clicking Download plans or Download documents (blue button to the right above the list)

TIP: The list may be sorted according to all criteria in the black list header bar.

Create a new plan – upload plan for first time

ATTENTION: Each plan is only added once and is then updated. Plans may not be added multiple times, which means the most recent version remains clear! Reworked indexes can be accessed in the plans detailed view (click the plan).

Plans tab

• Click Create new plan
• Select a print file (pdf, etc.) from the file system or clipboard
• Select a CAD file (dwg, etc.) from the file system or clipboard
• The file name is added automatically to the plan number field
• Edit plan number: Remove the index and date and enter this into the “Index” field (the number remains unchanged in case of updates)
• Enter the description into the “Plan content” field (searching utilises terms)
• Select a plan folder
• Select optional tags or create tag (enter into “New tag” field and click +)
• Write optional comment
• Request optional approval
• Click Save + add another one

TIP: All file formats may be uploaded, including Zip packages (e.g. As-built plans). Planfred does not specify plan encoding. Each participant can add plans with their own encoding system.

Update plan – the plan was already created

ATTENTION: A previously uploaded plan needs to be updated! Reworked indexes can be accessed in the plans detailed view (click the respective plan).

Plans tab

• Click Update plan
• Select the plan to be updated
• Select a print file (pdf, etc.) from the file system or clipboard
• Select a CAD file (dwg, …) from the file system or clipboard
• Enter index
• Write optional comment
• Request optional approval
• Click Save index and return to list
• Select the next document to be updated …

TIP: right click with the mouse to open and update a plan in a new window (tab). You can open any number of windows (tabs) parallel to each other.

Create a new document – upload a document for the first time

ATTENTION: Each document is only added once and is then updated. Documents may not be added multiple times, which means the most recent version remains clear! Reworked versions can be accessed in the documents detailed view (click the document).

Documents tab

• Click Create new document
• Select a file from the file system or clipboard
• The file name is added automatically to the document number field
• Edit document number: Remove the version and enter this into the “Version” field (the number remains unchanged in case of updates)
• Enter the description into the “Document content” field (searching utilises terms)
• Limit optional access ONLY ACCESSIBLE BY
• Select document folder
• Select optional tags or create tag (enter into “New tag” field and click +)
• Write optional comment
• Request optional approval
• Click Save + add another one

TIP: All file formats may be uploaded, including Zip packages (e.g. photos). Planfred does not specify document encoding. Each participant can add documents with their own encoding system.

Update document – the document was already created

ATTENTION: A previously uploaded document needs to be updated! Reworked versions can be accessed in the documents detailed view (click the respective document).

Documents tab

• Click Update document
• Select the document to be updated
• Select a file from the file system or clipboard
• Enter the version (or date e.g. “200930”)
• Write optional comment
• Request optional approval
• Click Save version and return to list
• select the next document to be updated …

TIP: right click with the mouse to open and update a document in a new window (tab). You can open any number of windows (tabs) parallel to each other.

Clipboard – improved overview while uploading multiple plans and documents

The clipboard makes it much easier to create multiple plans and documents. When assigning files from the clipboard, the list view shows exactly which files have already been used (green) and which still need to be assigned (red - not yet visible in the project).

• Click My clipboard (top-right)
• Drag all files to upload or Select files
• Close clipboard (continues loading in the background)
• Click Create new plan, Update plan, Add new document or Update document
• Next, choose files with select from clipboard
• Edit number when creating a new one, enter when updating index/version …
• Once all files have been assigned, open the clipboard and empty (click x)

TIP: The clipboard may be sorted according to the file name (click the file name in the list header).

Download multiple plans or documents

Plans or documents tab

• Click Download plans or Download documents (blue button on right above list)
• Filter by role/author, plan or document folder, tags (or entry into the search field)
• Select the plans or documents using the check box (select all using the top check box)
• Click Download plans or Download documents
• Select folder structure (recommendation: Folder/Original)
• Click Download files

TIP: Plans and documents may be sorted according to all criteria in the black list header bar.

Send multiple plans or documents

Plans or documents tabs

• Click Send plans or Send documents (blue button to the right above the list)
• Filter by role/author, plan or document folder, tags (or entry into the search field)
• Select the plans or documents using the check box (select all using the top check box)
• Click Send plans to or Send documents to
• Select the recipient
• Add optional additional recipients (enter e-mail address and click +)
• Save optional recipient selection as a group (enter name and click +)
• Write message
• Create optional signature template
• Optional for plans “Send print files only”
• Click send