Document Templates

Overview

Document Templates let you define a reusable blueprint for the formal documents your organization creates — such as Standard Operating Procedures, Work Instructions, or Policies. A template controls the document numbering prefix, default review and approval settings, training behavior, and the section structure that every new document starts with.

By setting these defaults once, you make sure documents of the same kind look and behave consistently, and that the people creating them don't have to re-enter the same settings every time.

You'll find Document Templates under Document Control. The main page shows summary cards (Total Templates, Active, With Training) and a table of all your templates.

Key concepts

Template statuses

Every template has a status that controls whether it can be edited and whether it can be used to start new documents.

Status	What it means	Can you edit it?	Can it be used for new documents?
Draft	The template is still being built or refined.	Yes	No
Published	The template is finalized and live.	No	Yes
Archived	The template has been retired.	No	No

note

A published template is locked. Because it may already be referenced by documents, you can't change its details. If you need to make changes, archive it, then unarchive it to return it to Draft.

Template fields and settings

Field	What it controls
Name	The template's display name (e.g. "Standard Operating Procedure").
Document Prefix	The leading code for document numbers. Supports the placeholders {SITE_CODE} and {DEPARTMENT_CODE} (e.g. SOP-{SITE_CODE}). Use uppercase letters, numbers, and hyphens.
Department	The department this template belongs to (optional).
Related Standard	A standard this template maps to, such as an ISO clause (optional).
Training Available	Whether documents from this template require training.
Retraining on Version	Whether a new version requires staff to be retrained.
Periodic Review Period (months)	How often documents must be reviewed.
Review Limit (days)	How long reviewers have to complete a review.
Approval Limit (days)	How long approvers have to approve.
Auto Effective on Approval	Whether a document becomes effective automatically once approved.
Show Section Titles	Whether section headings appear in the finished document.

Section types

Each template is built from ordered sections. Available section types:

Type	Use it for
Text	Written content, edited in a rich-text editor.
Attachment	One or more uploaded files.

How to create a document template

1. Open Document Templates under Document Control.
2. Select Create Template in the top right.
3. Under Basic Information, enter a Name and a Document Prefix. As you type the prefix, the app checks that it isn't already in use — a green check means it's available, a red mark means it's taken.
4. Optionally choose a Department and a Related Standard.
5. Under Default Settings, set the training, review, and approval options that should apply to documents created from this template.
6. Under Sections, build the structure of the document:
   • Select Add Section to add a section.
   • Give each section a title and choose a type (Text or Attachment).
   • For text sections, enter default content in the editor.
   • Use the up and down arrows to reorder sections, and the trash icon to remove one.
7. Select Create Template at the bottom to save. The template is created in Draft status.

tip

Every template needs at least one section, and each section must have a title before you can save.

How to publish a template

A template must be published before anyone can use it to start a document.

1. Open the template from the Document Templates table.
2. Confirm the details are correct. While it's in Draft, you can edit the name, prefix, settings, and sections directly on the page — your changes save automatically.
3. Select Publish in the top right and confirm.

After publishing, the template is locked and shows the Published status.

How to use a template to start a document

1. Go to Documents and start creating a new document.
2. In the document's properties, open the Document Template menu and choose a published template.
3. The document automatically inherits the template's settings — its numbering prefix, related standard, periodic review period, and effective-on-approval behavior — along with the template's section structure.
4. Continue filling in the document details and save.

How to archive or unarchive a template

When a template is no longer in use, archive it so it can't be selected for new documents.

1. From the Document Templates table, open the row menu and choose Archive — or open the template and select Archive in the top right. Confirm the action.
2. To bring an archived template back, open it and select Unarchive, or use the row menu. The template returns to Draft status, where it's editable again. You'll need to publish it again before it can be used for new documents.

warning

Archiving doesn't affect documents that were already created from the template — it only prevents the template from being chosen for new documents.