By the end of this article you'll be able to build a well-structured project location tree in Visibuild, whether you're doing it directly in the platform or via a CSV upload for larger, more repetitive projects.

The location tree is the main framework for storing, viewing, and completing quality within Visibuild. Every inspection, defect, task, and NCR on your project lives inside a location. Getting the structure right at the start means your team can navigate the project clearly, your data is clean, and your reporting makes sense.

A good location tree is logical, consistent, and has the right level of detail — not so granular that it becomes unmanageable, not so broad that it loses meaning. Once built, it can be edited at any point during the project lifecycle, so there's no need to get it perfect from day one.

For most projects, building the location tree directly in the Visibuild web app is the fastest approach. Follow the steps in the video below to build, edit, and publish your location tree.

If your project has a large number of repetitive locations, such as apartments, piles, or rooms across multiple levels, building via CSV is significantly faster. You can use Excel's autofill functionality to generate hundreds of locations in minutes.

To get started, go to Project setup > Location tree and download the CSV template. Build out your locations in Excel, then send the completed file to your Visibuild Project Coordinator for upload. This typically takes 24 hours.

The right structure depends on the type of project and the elements being built. Below are examples covering the most common scenarios.

Pre-commencement locations provide a place to house documents and records before physical works begin, giving the project team easy access throughout and a complete quality journey at handover.

Individual pile locations allow the project team and subcontractors to track progress pile by pile. QR codes can be generated for each location to speed up the inspection process and remove the risk of logging against the wrong record.

Structure locations broken down by element type give the project team and subcontractors clear visibility of QA progress across the concrete structure.

For facade works, structure your locations to align with the frequency of checks being completed on site — by gridline, elevation, time period, or apartment. These typically align with the fitout and services locations on the same project.

The optimal setup for fitout and services work is on a per-room basis. This gives the project team full visibility of QA progress within each space. In the example below, it's immediately clear which trades are underway and which inspections are yet to commence in each apartment.

The location tree is flexible enough to handle lot management for infrastructure projects. Split by major areas first, then break down into sub-lots as needed.

Offsite locations allow the project team and suppliers to complete and track QA for elements fabricated away from site, giving the head contractor visibility before those elements arrive.

Completion locations provide a home for handover documents and final records, giving the project team easy access at practical completion and a complete end-to-end quality record for the project.

Once your location tree is built, see How to edit your location tree for making changes as the project evolves, or How to add companies and users to your project to get your team set up.