Document QA/QC Overview
Learn how Foreman's Document QA/QC automates quality checks for Autodesk Forma files using customizable rule sets, validation lists, and PDF content extraction to ensure document compliance.
What is Document QA/QC?
Foreman's Document QA/QC lets you define quality rules and automatically validate every file in your Autodesk Forma project — or uploaded directly from your machine — against them. Instead of manually opening documents to spot-check naming conventions, metadata fields, and title block content, you configure rules once and let Foreman check thousands of files in minutes.
Key capabilities:
- 7 built-in rule sets ship out of the box covering all 12 rule types: ISO 19650 Naming (Full and Core), Basic Naming Hygiene, Document Register Compliance, Cross-Field Validation, Metadata Quality, and PDF Title Block Validation. Clone any to create editable copies.
- 5 built-in validation lists for ISO 19650 codes: Discipline Codes (24), Suitability Codes (23), Form Codes (26), Sample Originator Codes (10), and an Example MIDP Register (20 entries). View, clone, and customise with your project's values.
- 12 rule types organised into three categories:
- File & metadata -- Naming Convention, Required Metadata, Allowed Values, File Format, Freshness
- Lists & ranges -- List Validation, Numeric Range, Register Cross-Reference (MIDP/TIDP completeness), Segment Consistency (conditional cross-field checks)
- PDF content -- Content Match, Content Convention (regex per zone), Content Extraction
- Reusable validation lists -- store discipline codes, originator codes, suitability codes, or full MIDP/TIDP registers as named lists. Reference them from any List Validation or Register Cross-Reference rule. Tenant-shared so the whole team works against the same approved values.
- PDF zone extraction with visual zone editor, multi-page support, and OCR for scanned documents in 15 languages.
- Size variants for handling different sheet sizes (A0, A1, A3, etc.) with smart per-file template matching.
- Multi-rule-set selection to combine rules from multiple rule sets in a single check, with per-rule toggle control.
- Per-folder rule sets to apply different standards to different discipline folders in a single check run.
- AI-powered regex builder that generates naming patterns from example filenames.
- Scheduled checks that run automatically on a cron schedule with email notifications.
- Local file upload to check files before uploading to Forma, validate documents from external sources, or run quick standalone QA without needing a Forma project. Files are processed in memory and never stored.
- Branded PDF reports with configurable sections, your logo, and clickable Forma links.
- Violation tracking with an Open / Acknowledged / Waived / Resolved workflow.
- Push files back to the cloud — publish reviewed files into a destination folder in Forma, SharePoint, or Box in one click, with custom attributes auto-filled from PDF zone values and filename segments, composable display names, duplicate-name preflight, and Foreman QA Status stamped on every pushed version. Save the mapping as a reusable preset (User or Tenant scope) or let auto-memory restore it silently. Optional auto-push on pass per folder.
- Time Saved tracking on the dashboard showing estimated hours saved compared to manual QA review.
Who is it for?
| Role | Use Case |
|---|---|
| Document Controllers | Enforce naming conventions across thousands of files without opening a single one. Cross-check folders against MIDP/TIDP registers — flag missing AND unexpected files in one pass. Assign different rules per discipline folder. |
| QA/QC Managers | Schedule nightly compliance checks across all active projects. Get email summaries with pass rates and violation counts. Use validation lists to maintain a single source of truth for approved codes. |
| BIM Managers | Cross-validate PDF title block fields (drawing number, revision, date) against CDE metadata to catch mismatches early. Enforce conditional cross-field rules like "if discipline = ST then originator must be ACE or BKR". |
| Project Directors | View pass rates and trends on the dashboard. Generate branded PDF reports for audits and handover milestones. Track deliverables completeness against the MIDP at every milestone. |
The 5-Phase Pipeline
When you run a QA check against Forma files, Foreman executes a five-phase pipeline:
- Find files -- Resolves all files from the selected folders (including subfolders if enabled). Deduplicates by file ID.
- Load metadata -- Fetches custom attributes from Forma for every file in batches.
- Read PDFs -- Downloads PDF files and extracts text from defined zones using native text layers or OCR. Matches each file to the correct zone template variant by page dimensions.
- Check rules -- Evaluates each file against the applicable rule set. In per-folder mode, each file is checked against its folder's assigned rules.
- Save results -- Stores all results, violation details, and extracted content. Updates the check run record with pass/fail/warning/skipped counts.
For local file uploads, phases 1 and 2 are skipped (files are already provided and Forma metadata is not available). The pipeline begins at phase 3 with the uploaded bytes.
Navigation
Navigate to QA / QC from the sidebar. The page has five tabs:
| Tab | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Dashboard | Health score, charts, and trends for the selected project |
| Run Check | Select Forma folders or upload local files, assign rule sets, and start checks |
| Rules | Create and manage rule sets and individual rules |
| Zone Templates | Upload PDFs, define extraction zones, and create size variants |
| Check History | View past check runs, drill into results, export, and re-run |
Select a hub and project from the selector at the top of the page. All tabs filter to the selected project.
Rule sets are tenant-scoped, meaning all users in your organisation can use the same rule sets across different projects. Zone templates are user-scoped.
Next Steps
- Creating Rule Sets & Rules
- PDF Zone Templates
- Running QA Checks
- Managing Violations — triage and bulk-update violation statuses
- Re-checking failed files — re-run only what changed
- Pushing Files to the Cloud — publish reviewed files to Forma, SharePoint, or Box
- Attribute mapping presets & auto-memory — save the push mapping for next time
- Composite attribute mapping — compose values from multiple sources