By the end of this article you'll know how to configure ticket categorisation fields, make them mandatory, and use root cause and responsible party data to close out tickets properly.
What's new
You can now categorise every ticket by its Root cause and Responsible party. Both fields can be made mandatory, so every ticket created on your project carries the right accountability data from the start.
Your team defines the root cause options assigned to tickets. The responsible party is selected from a dropdown of companies already on the project, or you can add a new company without having to add them to the project first.
You can also make Estimate cost and Actual cost required fields for each ticket.
Why it matters
Root cause and responsible party fields let you trace tickets back to where things actually went wrong, not just the trade that did the work. It's what moves post-completion from a system that records work to one that helps teams actively improve.
This is where Visibuild helps builders see around corners: from categorised data, we can deliver meaningful insights, predictive guidance on how issues are likely to occur, and suggested actions so you can intervene at the right point with the right preventative action.
The difference between Resolve and Resolve and close
When a defect has been physically rectified on site, but the head contractor still need time to work out who was responsible and what caused the issue the ticket can be marked as Resolved
Resolve — use this when the defect is fixed and the client can see it has been addressed, but you have not yet determined the root cause or responsible party. The ticket stays open internally so accountability can be assigned before close-out.
Resolve and close — use this when the defect is fixed and both the root cause and responsible party have been confirmed. This finalises the ticket completely.
The distinction protects the head contractor from closing out tickets prematurely. The client gets visibility that work is done, while the internal team retains the time they need to assign accountability properly.
How to set it up
Making Root cause or Responsible party a mandatory field
To toggle on Root cause or Responsible party as a mandatory field for tickets, go to Company setup > Tickets > Templates > Additional ticket fields.
Creating your root cause options
Define the root cause categories your team will use when closing out tickets. These are set at the company level and apply across all projects.
Setting up Responsible party options
Responsible party options pull from companies added to your projects, and you can also add custom options for parties not yet on a project.
Assigning root cause and responsible party to a ticket
Once a ticket is resolved, you can assign the root cause and responsible party before closing it out. Use Resolve if you still need time to determine accountability, or Resolve and close to finalise the ticket with both fields completed.
What's next
Once your categorisation fields are configured, see Managing Post Completion Tickets for how to work through the full ticket lifecycle, or Filtering and Exporting in the Tickets Table to report on categorised data across your project.