Business Operations

Three Strategies to Help Mine Operators

The Key to MSHA Compliance: Three Strategies to Help Mine Operators

Learn the Secrets to Staying Safe and Productive

Whether you have a surface or underground mining business, evolving compliance is putting a larger burden of responsibility on your business than ever before. Learn how to keep your team safe and productive.

In this ebook find out answers to questions including:

What can you do to be ready for MSHA’s new requests and inspections?
What puts smaller mines at risk?
How do you create a culture of safety?
How the Best Field Service Companies Get Started with Mobile Apps

Complete the form to access your copy.

Ultimate Guide to Roof Inspection Report Templates

Posted on February 25, 2022March 12, 2025 by Danny Kanev

Ultimate Guide to Roof Inspection Report Templates

As a roofing contractor, your business has a long list of forms that need to be completed on the job. This includes things like routine inspections, roof reports for clients, safety forms for employees, and a multitude of other related forms like work orders and estimates.

Instead of relying on paper forms, contractors are converting these processes into digital forms to help simplify workflows for everyone involved. This article covers an overview on roof inspection reports and links to the digital templates you can find provided by GoCanvas. Using our roof inspection report software, contractors can easily manage and share documents all from one centralized platform.

What is a roof report?

A roof report is a document that records the current condition of the structures and features of a roof. For example, a residential roof report would document the condition of a sloped roof or a flat roof for a homeowner, whereas a commercial roofing report would be created for the building owner of a commercial space.

In general, a roof report is designed to document findings from the inspection process that looks for any sort of structural damage, decay, or deterioration. The report summarizes everything the client or owner needs to know about the roof at that given point in time, so they can make appropriate repairs or plan for them in the future.

How do I write a roof inspection report?

With many different types of building structures and purposes, there are naturally many different types of roof reports. What to include in your roof inspection report will depend on many factors like the type of building, type of roof, client information, and more.

Rather than starting from scratch when writing a roof report, contractors can leverage pre-built templates and simply customize the form with any additional fields needed. Here is one example of the types of information that can be included when writing a basic roof report:

Basic information – Includes things like the client name, location, report #, date of the report
Roof notes – Includes things like estimated roof age and life expectancy, general roof condition, photos captured, and general roof condition notes
Roof diagram – Documents the roof type, slopes, and other important elements or parts of the roof
Signatures – Sign off with the roof inspector’s signature is included to make it official

What is included in a roof inspection?

The roof report sent to the owner or client is often a summary of key findings from the roof inspection. So what is included in a full roof inspection form? According to InterNACHI standards, a roof inspection should cover:

The roof-covering materials;
The gutters;
The downspouts;
The vents, flashing, skylights, chimney, and other roof penetrations; and
The general structure of the roof from the readily accessible panels, doors or stairs.

The roof inspection standards from InterNACHI also note that the inspector should describe

the type of roof-covering materials and should report as in need of correction, such as observed indications of active roof leaks. Other standards note that the inspector is not required to:

Walk on any roof surface.
Predict the service life expectancy.
Inspect underground downspout diverter drainage pipes.
Remove snow, ice, debris or other conditions that prohibit the observation of the roof surfaces.
Move insulation.
Inspect antennae, satellite dishes, lightning arresters, de-icing equipment, or similar attachments.
Walk on any roof areas that appear, in the inspector’s opinion, to be unsafe.
Walk on any roof areas if doing so might, in the inspector’s opinion, cause damage.
Perform a water test.
Warrant or certify the roof.
Confirm proper fastening or installation of any roof-covering material.

Roof Inspection Report Examples and Templates

With digital roofing report templates, employees in the field can fill out forms on a mobile device or tablet and have the information automatically sync back to the office for reporting. Roofers and roofing inspection companies can use roofing inspection management software from GoCanvas to help speed up the inspection and maintenance process. Here are some examples of roofing forms for contractors:

Roof Inspection Checklist – As part of any building inspection, use this detailed checklist template provided in this mobile app to inspect and detail the condition of the roof and lead to early detection of any roof problem or damage (roof leaks).
Roof Inspection Report – Provides a simple way for roof inspectors to track the results of their work and note any issues found during the inspection services. Once the roof inspection form template is complete, the roofing contractor can sign off on the results and have the homeowner or building owner sign off as well.
Roofing Certificate of Completion – Use this app as a contractor when documenting successful completion of roofing for a building. Workers in the roofing industry can use this roof installation and repair form to generate new work completion forms once a job has been completed without having to return to the roofing company office.

Additional Forms for Roofing Contractors

Beyond roof inspections and reports, there are many other related roofing forms that can be used on the job site. Here are some other examples of how roofing contractors are using GoCanvas to streamline their operations:

Work orders – Managing work is simplified when using software for generating work orders, dispatching the right workers, and tracking the status of work in progress. GoCanvas helps provide the tools to improve workflows between the field and office, with easy-to-use software for managing roofing work orders.
Estimates and Invoices – Another opportunity to streamline work is by digitizing your roofing estimates and client invoices. GoCanvas enables you to provide a digital customer experience with PDF reports for estimates, and digital invoices that allow you to get paid faster. You can even sync GoCanvas with your accounting system to automate processes and you can also use our software to manage employee timesheets to track hours worked on client sites.
Safety and Meetings – Roofing work requires working at heights and contractors need to ensure property safety protocols are followed on the job. GoCanvas can also function as a safety management system, with forms specifically designed for roofing safety. Use GoCanvas to provide fall prevention safety meetings, ensure proper PPE with checklists, and enable employees on the job to perform self inspections with checklists for fall protection equipment.

Get started with a free trial of GoCanvas to see all of the roofing contractor forms we have to offer. To learn more about the benefits of digital forms for the roofing industry, hear from Texas State Builders in the video below to see how they leverage work process software.

About GoCanvas

GoCanvas® is on a mission to simplify inspections and maximize compliance. Our intuitive platform takes care of the administrative tasks, freeing our customers to focus on what truly matters – safeguarding their people, protecting their equipment, and delivering exceptional quality to their customers.

Since 2008, thousands of companies have chosen GoCanvas as their go-to partner for seamless field operations.

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The Ultimate Guide to Quality Control Inspections

Managing a construction project is a complex and stressful process. Among other things, you have to coordinate project team members, materials, and equipment and ensure that contractors are not afflicted by the potential risks and hazards present at the construction site. That said, quality means different things to different people which is why you should…

Read the blog

A man using GoCanvas for the digital transformation of his workflow.

Constructions Digital Transformation

Your competition is finding faster ways to capture data and get critical insights from the field into their existing systems. In short, they’re not going bigger, they’re getting smarter. In this 15-minute broadcast on the construction industry’s digital transformation, find out why the trend is to modernize workflows – and how you can stay ahead of the curve…

see for yourself

See how VIP Lighting optimized efficiency with GoCanvas

VIP Lighting is a retail lighting and electrical maintenance business that services over 10,000 retail locations all over Australia and New Zealand. Before GoCanvas, VIP Lighting had two separate systems that were impossible to integrate, leading to inefficiencies. GoCanvas made it easy to integrate their systems into single, centralized platform…

read their story

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We’ll help you put together the right solution for your needs.

What is a Purchase Order Form?

Posted on February 20, 2022November 21, 2024 by Danny Kanev

What is a Purchase Order Form?

Analytics and Data Collection | Business Operations | Forms

Purchase order forms are used to record the details of a transaction between a buyer and seller. Purchase orders, often referred to as POs, are used by different types of companies for their documentation and record-keeping purposes. Purchase orders are most commonly used by companies that need to process sales, with use cases that span from the retail industry, wholesale businesses, restaurants, vendors, service providers, and more.

Like other forms of documentation, order forms are designed to include all of the relevant details of the purchase and clarify what’s included with this transaction between the buyer and seller of goods or services. Purchase orders become transactional documents when both parties sign off on the agreement of the sale.

This article covers common ways to create a purchase order form, with examples and templates from GoCanvas to help you simplify the purchase order management process for your business.

How do I create a purchase order form?

Deciding how to create a purchase order form will depend entirely on your business needs. There are many tools available that your business can leverage to create a purchase order form. Here are a few options for creating PO forms:

Paper: The most basic option is simply using a pen and paper form to fill out POs on the job. However, managing paper forms can become complicated when you have a growing business or multiple locations. To solve the challenges of paper forms, many companies are switching to digital tools to simplify and streamline their business operations.

Word or Excel: For companies starting out in exploring digital options, many look to familiar tools like Excel, Google Sheets, or Word document templates for purchase order forms. While these tools are good for managing your own documents, they can be limited in terms of providing workflow and collaboration tools to manage and share information between multiple people in real-time.

Software and Apps: The best option for companies that need to scale their operations is to consider digital apps and software built for order form management. This category of software provides an easy-to-use system for creating and assigning purchase orders, capturing images and digital signatures, and sharing PDF files in real-time to both the seller and buyer. Going from paper forms to digital software and apps is designed to help companies provide a better service experience, collect payments faster, and maximize productivity by eliminating manual work.

Example of a purchase order form

No matter what format you decide on to create your purchase order, there are some common types of information to include on these forms. Here is an example of how to write a purchase order and what to include in your form:

Seller and Buyer details: When writing the purchase order, it should document the basics of the transaction between parties. Including things like the name of merchant, name of purchaser, billing addresses, and similar types of information typically need to be recorded on the PO.

Purchase Order details: When you are writing the purchase order, it should include all of the specifics relevant to the agreement. Many companies will include things like a unique PO #, the shipping terms, a description of items being purchased, the payment method and payment terms, and the date of the PO.

Calculations: A typical format of writing a purchase order will have a table or fields that are used for calculations, with quantities of items, price per item, taxes, and total amount to be billed. Many software tools for purchase order forms will also help by providing automatic calculations to ensure accurate billing every time.

Images: While much of the purchase order form will be written in text format fields, you may want to include any relevant images that add context to the sales order. This could be branding the document with company logos or even capturing photo images of the items being sold to include along with the order form.

Signatures: Capturing a signature may be required for the purchase order form. In that case, it can be helpful to have software or apps for PO management to sign off digitally on documents and share the final PDF report when multiple parties have signed off on the agreement.

Purchase Order Form Templates

A purchase order is like a blank canvas and writing a form can be done in whatever way makes the most sense for your business. Starting from scratch though can be difficult, which is why GoCanvas has created a wide range of purchase order templates to get you started. These digital form templates can be customized to fit any business needs, and we have different purchase orders depending on your industry or use case. Using our drag and drop form builder, creating a digital purchase order is simple and doesn’t require any advanced training or help from an IT department.

Access the simple purchase order form app here on the GoCanvas app store or view a PDF version of the template here.

About GoCanvas

Since 2008, thousands of companies have chosen GoCanvas as their go-to partner for seamless field operations.

Check out even more resources

Gown Your Business with GoCanvas Partner Program

Join our Partner Program and gain instant access to our global network of thought leaders and industry experts enjoying shared collaboration and collective success.

Forte Supply Chain Solutions Partner Video

Partner Snapshot: Forte Supply Chain Solutions

Explore how Forte Supply Chain Solutions partnered with GoCanvas, combining in-house industry expertise with our white-label mobile forms to revolutionize their processes.

GoCanvas Integrations: Streamline your Workflow

Integrate with over 1,000 software applications. Enhance your GoCanvas experience by syncing real-time data to one or all of your business tools.

Connect with an Expert Today.

We’ll help you put together the right solution for your needs.

Quality Control vs Quality Assurance: What Construction Companies Should Know

Posted on February 15, 2022November 19, 2024 by Danny Kanev

Quality Control vs Quality Assurance: What Construction Companies Should Know

Business Operations | Compliance and Safety | Inspections

Any reputable company in the construction industry operates on a safety-first basis at all times. The health and safety of its employees are paramount to the company because the company is well-aware of the fact that the employees are the ones who enable the company to do what it does. They are the backbone that makes everything else possible. This makes the processes of both quality assurance and quality control essential. However, there is some confusion about what these terms mean, what the differences between the two are, and why each one is fundamental to the operation of a successful and growing business. We will cover these topics and many more right now.

Quality Control: What Is It?

Imagine a world in which there is a one-in-ten chance that the packaged food that you purchase is expired, moldy, and could make you sick if consumed. If that is the world that we live in, then no one would purchase those foods any longer. Of course, that is not the case, and people can go about buying their packaged foods with relative assurance that they are safe. This is because of the quality control processes implemented by the various food manufacturers. Those same procedures are used in the construction industry as well to ensure that:

Every project comes out the way that the customer expects
There is uniformity in how policies are implemented
The construction materials are of the highest standards of quality
The company can build a good reputation based on the quality of the work it has already performed
There aren’t complaints from customers after the project is done

Quality control is the catch-all term for the various procedures that one implements to make sure there are not any defective materials or practices being implemented at any stage of the construction project.

The Importance Of Quality Control

It is critical to remember that while quality control is typically used to ensure uniformity at every stage of the construction project, there are some exceptions to this rule. Carnegie Mellon University points out:

While conformance to existing design decisions is the primary focus of quality control, there are exceptions to this rule. First, unforeseen circumstances, incorrect design decisions or changes desired by an owner in the facility function may require re-evaluation of design decisions during the course of construction. While these changes may be motivated by the concern for quality, they represent occasions for re-design with all the attendant objectives and constraints.

Adaptations to the construction project may be necessary at times to provide the highest level of quality throughout the entire project. Quality control does NOT mean being completely inflexible, it just means providing the highest levels of quality throughout every stage of the process. Project managers who are able to do this will likely win more business for the firm in the future, given their attention to detail and insistence on delivering excellence to their clients.

What Is Quality Assurance?

Quality assurance focuses more on the implementation of policies to ensure that safety is always at the forefront of all decision-making from the start. The aim of all QA processes is to try to bring a safer environment in which everyone can operate. It is challenging to be certain, but that is why the people who are brought in for this job are expertly trained on what needs to be done.

Juran.com gives a brief explanation of what quality assurance is:

The emphasis of quality assurance is less on the end product, and more on the processes and systems involved in creating it. For this reason, auditing is an important part of the quality assurance function–particularly quality auditing, which examines an organization’s entire quality management system (QMS).

In the construction industry, there is nothing worse than getting towards the latter stages of a project only to discover that certain processes were missed to begin with. That can lead to the derailment of the entire project, and no one wants to see that. Thus, various methods of quality assurance have been implemented to attempt to prevent this from happening.

Types Of Quality Assurance

There are different approaches to quality assurance that work. Companies often experiment with various approaches to the problem. The method that one takes at any given moment often comes down to what is likely to work best given the needs of the project at that time.

Stress Tests

Putting an element of the project to the test before it is placed into the actual project. This allows people working on the project to test for themselves how the various elements of the project may stand up when put to the test.

The idea is to put materials under some of the toughest conditions that they may face while in real-world environments, in order to see if they are strong enough to withstand what the world may throw at them. Working with materials on this scale allows for companies to test various strategies and see what works best for what they are attempting to accomplish.

Changes In Company Culture

At times, companies may consider it to be in their best interests to alter the ways in which they do business. If they can change the culture around how they use and develop the materials that will go into their projects, then they can perhaps create better outcomes. Often, it all starts with a change in mindset among the employees. It is imperative to get everyone to think about the end-user of what they are attempting to build. The more that the focus stays on those people, the better the products produced (for the most part). They say that no man is an island, and no person within a construction company should feel that their role is unimportant. They all need to believe that everything that they do serves an end purpose that is vital to the company’s success.

What Makes Both Quality Control And Quality Assurance Necessary?

Think back to a time when you were in school. Draw your mind back to the days when you were assigned a group project to work on with your classmates. Perhaps you enjoyed this kind of work, or perhaps you dreaded it. Either way, you ultimately knew that getting the project done right would take teamwork, focus, and attention to detail. You could not let yourself or your teammates wander too far off track without risking a lack of progress on the project.

Quality control and quality assurance can be thought of in that way as well. They are safeguards against letting some small aspect of a project derail the larger framework of what you are trying to accomplish.

We actually practice quality control and quality assurance in our daily lives all the time, we just don’t necessarily think of it like that. When you take a few moments to re-read over an e-mail you are about to send, or even when you stop to think about your words before making a comment to someone, you are performing a version of quality control. You don’t want to offend anyone, and you don’t want to send something embarrassing via your e-mail address, so you take a little extra time to make sure everything is perfect before giving it the green light. When this same thing is practiced on a larger scale, we call it quality control or quality assurance.

Preventing Lawsuits And Other Headaches

We should not breeze past the fact that exceptional quality control and quality assurance policies can help limit the likelihood and the damage from any potential litigation levied against the company. Companies are hit with lawsuits every day, and construction companies are frequent targets of those lawsuits. Worse yet, construction companies can be on the hook for lawsuits years after they have completed the project they were assigned to do. Thus, it can almost feel as though they have no escape from the potential for lawyers hounding them over some faulty aspect of their work.

The only way to reduce the chances of a lawsuit being thrown at them is to ensure that the quality of the work is superb from start to finish. Quality control and quality assurance steps are necessary to act as a backstop against poor quality designs and/or work getting through. They are a protective mechanism that can help construction managers rest a little easier at night.

The small amount of extra time that it takes to perform QC and QA steps is nothing compared to the potential for losses stemming from a lawsuit. It is necessary to run a cost-benefit analysis in these situations, and there is no doubt that the benefits of performing QC and QA steps far outweigh any cost of doing so.

Construction managers have enough to worry about without having to take on the added stress of potentially getting sued on top of it all. Thus, the immediate implementation of concrete steps to take for both QC and QA purposes is incredibly important at this time. Companies need to have their policies firmly established and understood throughout the company, and that training process needs to begin immediately.

About GoCanvas

GoCanvas is a mobile platform that makes it simple for any business to automate how work is done, replacing outdated processes and expensive paperwork. The GoCanvas App works on all smartphones and tablets, helping companies easily collect information across their organization, share it instantly with others and gain real-time insights on their business operations. Get started today with solutions for quality control forms, quality control inspection apps, and other workflow management tools built specifically for the construction industry.

About GoCanvas

Since 2008, thousands of companies have chosen GoCanvas as their go-to partner for seamless field operations.

Check out even more resources

Connect with an Expert Today.

We’ll help you put together the right solution for your needs.

GoCanvas and Device Magic Join Forces to Strengthen Work Process Solutions

Posted on January 31, 2022November 14, 2024 by Danny Kanev

GoCanvas and Device Magic Join Forces to Strengthen Work Process Solutions

Business Operations

The GoCanvas and Device Magic team are thrilled to announce they are joining forces starting in 2022. Both companies will be uniquely positioned to offer industry-leading work process solutions for small, mid-market, and enterprise organizations.

The move will strengthen the mobile data capture and process automation solutions available for customers. The combined organization will be led by current GoCanvas CEO, Viyas Sundaram, who strongly believes joining forces will make it easier to align customers with the best fit solution to meet their needs.

“This powerful partnership will enable us to accelerate on our vision of serving customers better through more tailored support and faster product innovation,” explained Sundaram. “This exciting step reaffirms GoCanvas and Device Magic’s commitment to providing customers with a best-in-class product and service experience.”

This news means that we can DO more and BUILD more for you, our customer. Even better — zero action is required on your part and you don’t have to relearn or reconfigure anything in your regular day-to-day routine.

Achieve More with GoCanvas and Device Magic

The partnership between GoCanvas and Device Magic is built upon shared values, with a commitment to helping customers maximize their time so they can achieve more. Joining forces means we can help your business in a few key areas:

Do more with less. Eliminate tedious manual processes and redundant requests to get more work done faster.
Connect the people that matter to your business. Collaborate and communicate between your extended teams in real-time all in one place.
Grow your business with data insights. Get visibility into your operations, identify and address risks quickly, and improve your customer service.

Together, GoCanvas and Device Magic help thousands of businesses worldwide to unlock productivity, maximize growth, and minimize risk. We firmly believe that by joining forces, we can do more to help our customers modernize their operations.

What’s next for GoCanvas and Device Magic?

Aside from enhancing the awesomeness of our customer experience, clients won’t see any day-to-day product changes for now. We remain committed to delivering a best-in-class solution, so our customers can stay focused on what matters most – their business.

Both work process software options will continue to be offered as separate solutions under the GoCanvas and Device Magic brands and there will be no disruption of service to current customers. You will continue to see our regular feature launches and improvements for both the GoCanvas and Device Magic product suites.

Ultimately, this move empowers both companies to innovate and improve products faster. We will use our 25 years of combined expertise and resources to provide a best-in-class customer experience.

Who is Device Magic?

Device Magic, founded in 2011, helps businesses integrate and customize data collection to ensure accuracy and save time.

Device Magic’s software can plug-and-play with your current business environment. The platform is flexible, highly configurable, and offers seamless integrations to help businesses succeed. Offers like on-premise hosting, white labeling, and regional capabilities are some of the additional options that customers can take advantage of with Device Magic.

Curious to see it in action? Contact us here to set up your demo.

Who is GoCanvas?

GoCanvas, founded in 2008, enables businesses to manage and analyze their processes efficiently from one work management solution to save time and money.

GoCanvas provides software that gets businesses up and running quickly so they can start realizing their efficiency right away. The platform is easy-to-use with customer success enabled onboarding that ensures speed when implementing the software. Customers love the ability to create robust and embedded analytics to report on key business metrics.

Our Commitment to Your Success

GoCanvas and Device Magic are committed to transforming the way you work with our software. We recognize that in this fast-changing world, businesses need to modernize their operations to unlock their productivity and prepare for the unexpected – while minimizing risk and maximizing growth.

We want to help you maximize your time so you can achieve more for your business and prepare for every possibility. Our goal is to help you save money, keep your team connected, and reduce risks with real-time business insights.

We’re excited to embark on this powerful partnership to accelerate our vision of serving customers better through more tailored support and faster product innovation.

For media inquiries and general requests – Contact Melissa Meyer
For GoCanvas customer support – Contact Support@GoCanvas.com
For Device Magic customer support – Contact Support@DeviceMagic.com

About GoCanvas

Since 2008, thousands of companies have chosen GoCanvas as their go-to partner for seamless field operations.

Check out even more resources

Gown Your Business with GoCanvas Partner Program

Join our Partner Program and gain instant access to our global network of thought leaders and industry experts enjoying shared collaboration and collective success.

Partner Snapshot: Forte Supply Chain Solutions

Explore how Forte Supply Chain Solutions partnered with GoCanvas, combining in-house industry expertise with our white-label mobile forms to revolutionize their processes.

GoCanvas Integrations: Streamline your Workflow

Integrate with over 1,000 software applications. Enhance your GoCanvas experience by syncing real-time data to one or all of your business tools.

Connect with an Expert Today.

We’ll help you put together the right solution for your needs.

How Mobile Apps Simplify Calculations for Contractors

Posted on January 15, 2022November 19, 2024 by Danny Kanev

How Mobile Apps Simplify Calculations for Contractors

Business Operations

Many contractors today need to calculate square footage when taking on projects. For example, as a painting service business, you would need an accurate estimate of a building’s total square footage to calculate the cost of materials and labor. It’s entirely possible for contractors to do the math by hand, but there are more digital tools available today that can simplify the process and perform automatic calculations instead.

The Challenge with Calculations

Square footage calculations or really any calculations that need to be done on a job site can be measured simply using pen and paper. But basic mistakes or miscalculations can lead to inaccurate totals when calculating time or materials. Unfortunately, these issues can be difficult to spot right away and they only end up being discovered later on when the miscalculation is too late. This may be in the form of an inaccurate estimate or bill, or not providing the exact materials needed. All of this can lead to rework that needs to be done at a later date and costs your business time and money.

How Digital Apps Help with Calculations

More contractors are switching to digital apps and mobile form solutions to their job sites. This technology is easy-to-use and works by filling out forms using a mobile device or tablet. Since mobile forms don’t require an internet connection, they are an ideal solution for contractors without WiFi who need to work from a tablet to collect information on a job site.

When it comes to making calculations, mobile form solutions provide a standard set of fields to capture. Employees can enter the required information, and a calculation is automatically performed on the back end without having to perform any math. The best part is that mobile form builders are completely customizable to your business. You can also leverage pre-built templates for your specific use case that already have calculations built-in, like square footage.

Calculations are one example of using digital technology on the job site to ensure accurate data is collected. While it may be a shift from how things have been done, this change can transform how information is collected in the field and shared to the office.

How GoCanvas Apps Help with Calculations [+Examples]

GoCanvas is a leading provider of work process software for the construction industry. With thousands of pre-built forms for contractors, we make it easy to shift from paper processes to digital forms and automation. Our goal is to help contractors modernize their operations to achieve speed, efficiency, and growth. When it comes to making calculations, GoCanvas is a helpful tool for capturing data and automatically calculating an output. Here are some of the ways GoCanvas calculations are used in practice:

Room Measurement App

The room measurement calculator on the GoCanvas app store can be used to replace the manual process of measuring rooms by hand. You can use this app to automatically track surface area and calculate square footage as part of a room layout. This helps contractors save time when calculating the area of a space and taking the measurements of a room. The app can be used to track square footage calculations of any residential unit and you can easily customize the data captured in the app to fit your unique business needs. Plus, you can collect and attach photos using a mobile device to add another level of detail when documenting the space.

Estimates and Invoices

Other common examples of calculations needed on the job site are estimates and invoices. The GoCanvas estimate mobile app makes it easy to create electronic labor estimates from the job site using your smartphone or tablet. This app automatically calculates materials, parts, labor, materials, parts, and other work details. GoCanvas helps ensure the required fields are collected and accurate estimates are generated for the client. Once work has been completed, leverage the invoice app from GoCanvas for digital invoices and faster payments.

Timesheets

Timesheets are another simple example of a calculation that needs to take place on the job. The time card app from GoCanvas helps contractors, sub contractors, trade specialists and others fill out construction timesheets to track when they start work each day, which project they are working on, their lunch break, and their ending time. Instead of using an excel spreadsheet to calculate time cards, this mobile app allows employees to use a digital form that is synced automatically to the cloud. Integrate with Quickbooks or accounting software to further automate payroll and eliminate manual tasks.

Looking for something else? Search the GoCanvas app store for thousands of customizable apps for the construction industry.

About GoCanvas

Since 2008, thousands of companies have chosen GoCanvas as their go-to partner for seamless field operations.

Check out even more resources

Gown Your Business with GoCanvas Partner Program

Join our Partner Program and gain instant access to our global network of thought leaders and industry experts enjoying shared collaboration and collective success.

Partner Snapshot: Forte Supply Chain Solutions

Explore how Forte Supply Chain Solutions partnered with GoCanvas, combining in-house industry expertise with our white-label mobile forms to revolutionize their processes.

GoCanvas Integrations: Streamline your Workflow

Integrate with over 1,000 software applications. Enhance your GoCanvas experience by syncing real-time data to one or all of your business tools.

Connect with an Expert Today.

We’ll help you put together the right solution for your needs.

Business Operations | Project Management

4 Ways Technology Helps Retailers Thrive in the Modern Marketplace

If you own or operate a retail business, technology is no longer an amenity — it’s a core part of your operations and essential to turning today’s smartphone-wielding shoppers into customers. How can technology help?

Our eBook provides practical, technology-based solutions that retailers can use to:

Prepare for and pass inspections
Fulfill orders and deliveries
Manage and motivate employees
Engage customers

Complete the form to access your copy.

Guide to Media Release Forms [+Templates]

Posted on January 7, 2022April 22, 2025 by Danny Kanev

Guide to Media Release Forms [+Templates]

Many industries rely on release forms to protect their businesses from legal liabilities. Being on the wrong end of a legal suit can be costly and a huge distraction for a business. Release forms are widely used by the professional services industry to help protect the company’s interests in case of a dispute. This article covers what you need to know about media release forms for photography, video, and other forms of media. We will cover how you can manage these legal documents digitally using mobile forms and templates to get you started.

What Is a Media Release Form?

Also known as a general release, a media release form is a legal document that shields you from legal liability when undertaking a given project. It’s written consent or formal acknowledgment that the person signing it relinquishes their legal rights to the project’s materials. A release binds the releasee to the terms outlined within an agreement, giving you the creative latitude you need with your business project.

A release ensures that an actor, model, or a participant may not require you not to use footage after a change of heart. Or someone asking you to remove an image or a scene they’re featured in because it’s not flattering enough. Or the location where you shot a project decides they don’t want to be in it anymore.

What Types of Organizations Need Media Release Forms?

Release forms are a standard fixture in the creative sector. They’re by photography, film, music, documentary, and radio companies to ensure they wholly own the rights to any content they capture. It’s a bulletproof way to ensure the people taking part in a project don’t lay a legal claim to some of the material.

What is the Purpose of a Media Release Form?

Release forms help you avoid legal troubles that could result if a subject in your project were to withdraw their consent to use some material in your project. Without a release form, someone in your photos, footage, or audio clip could change their mind and forbid you from using that part of the footage.

If that were to happen, you’d need to restructure your entire project to accommodate their demand. That could often delay or derail your project, leading you to incur huge inconveniences or expenses. For instance, using a subject’s image or likeness could trigger legal proceedings and land you in hot water.

When Do You Need a Media Release Form?

You need a release form if any image, footage, or audio clip in your project is likely to be used commercially. In this context, commercial intent implies money-generating activities. These could include creating sales or promoting a product, idea, or event.

If there’s a remote chance of monetizing the content of your project, you’re better off getting the participants and the subjects to sign a media release form. It’s better to have a signed document and not need it than to need one, but you can’t trace the people in the picture or video footage.

You may not need a signed release form when capturing images or footage for editorial purposes. That is when they accompany a journalism piece or a news article. However, the distinction between editorial and commercial use can get blurry. Hence, you must distinguish the limits when licensing a project. For instance, an image with a group of people is fair game for a fashion magazine covering an event from a journalistic perspective.

However, if the magazine used the same image to advertise the venue hosting the event, or the company hosting the event, that’d amount to commercial use. With a signed media release form, you could monetize the image or footage, and both you and the people involved could make some money.

You also need to consider if the people or the property appearing in the image or footage are identifiable. Although what’s identifiable is a grey area, you can drill it down to a simple question. Can someone familiar with the property or person in your project identify them? If so, you should get the subject or property owner to sign a release form.

How Do You Write a Media Release Form?

There are many digital templates available online that you can use for media release forms. These templates can be used as a starting point for your business and you can customize them based on your needs or the advice of a lawyer. Consulting an attorney can help you ensure that your release form covers all bases.

For a release form to successfully protect your business, it must be legally enforceable in court if it comes down to it. Some of the crucial information in a release includes:

Name of the parties involved, i.e., releasor and releasee
Detailed information about the project
Explicit information of the permissions granted
Any special considerations, including payment obligations or credit, if any.
A space for all parties to sign

Get Started with GoCanvas Media Release Form Templates

Looking for a digital template to use as your media release form? GoCanvas can help you manage all of your release form documentation online through our secure cloud-based platform. Share documents, collect signatures, and manage the entire process using a mobile device or tablet – even without internet connection.

Designed with the professional services industry in mind, we offer a waiver and release app that is made specifically for professional photographers and photography studios. This app template outlines the conditions of the release, including the legal rights for usage and reproduction rights for images, voice, and videos. You can customize the form based on your unique business needs using our easy-to-use software for mobile forms.

If you’re looking for a different type of release form, GoCanvas has thousands of additional templates you can find in our online app store. Contact our team for more information or sign up today for a free trial.

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