Answers to common questions about managing design-phase documents, corrections, submittals, and team coordination for architecture and engineering projects.
Olumba is a project management platform built specifically for architecture and engineering (A&E) firms during the design phase. It combines document management, version control, correction tracking, and team collaboration into a single cloud-based tool — replacing shared drives, email chains, and spreadsheet trackers that most firms rely on today.
Olumba is designed for project managers, principals, architects, engineers, permit expeditors, and design coordinators at A&E firms. It also supports external collaborators such as structural engineers, MEP consultants, and clients who need project-level access without seeing the entire organization.
Most construction management tools like Procore and PlanGrid focus on the construction phase — field coordination, RFIs, and punch lists. Olumba focuses on the design phase, where the primary challenges are managing drawing revisions, tracking plan check corrections, coordinating consultants, and keeping submittals organized before construction begins. Bluebeam is a PDF markup tool, not a project management platform.
Yes. Olumba replaces unstructured file storage with organized, auto-versioned document management. Instead of navigating nested folders and guessing which file is current, every document is categorized by project, discipline, and revision number. Team members always see the latest version, and the full revision history is preserved automatically.
Yes — Olumba uses AI to parse plan check correction letters, propose task lists, route assignments by discipline, and draft email replies. All AI proposals require your approval before anything is sent or saved.
No. Your data is used only to provide the Olumba service to your firm.
Olumba's parser achieves high accuracy on standard plan check letters. Each parsed item is presented for your review before being saved.
During plan check, architecture firms typically receive correction letters from the jurisdiction (city, county, or state agency) that require drawing revisions across multiple disciplines. Olumba tracks each correction as an assignable task, links it to the relevant drawings, and auto-versions every new upload so the team always knows which revision is current and which corrections have been addressed.
The most effective approach is to organize documents by project, then by discipline (architectural, structural, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, civil), and then by revision. Olumba enforces this structure automatically — when a file is uploaded, it is tagged with the project, discipline, and version number. This eliminates the "FINAL_v3_REVISED" file naming problem that plagues most firms.
When a new version of a drawing is uploaded to Olumba, the platform automatically increments the revision number and archives the previous version. Team members and external collaborators always see the latest revision by default, with the ability to view and compare any prior version. This prevents the common problem of consultants or team members working from superseded drawing sets.
Olumba provides a centralized task and deadline system where each submittal or deliverable can be assigned to a team member or consultant with a due date. The dashboard surfaces overdue items automatically, and notifications go out when deadlines are approaching or have been missed. This replaces the spreadsheet-based submittal logs most firms use.
After receiving a correction letter from the reviewing jurisdiction, Olumba allows you to create individual correction items, assign each to the responsible discipline lead or consultant, set deadlines, and track resolution status. Every correction has a full audit trail showing when it was created, who addressed it, and what documents were updated — which is critical for resubmittal.
Olumba is purpose-built for tracking plan check corrections in A&E projects. Unlike general project management tools like Asana or Monday.com, Olumba links corrections directly to project documents, supports discipline-based assignment, and maintains the audit trail that jurisdictions and clients expect during the resubmittal process.
In a typical A&E project, a single correction letter may contain items that span architectural, structural, MEP, and civil disciplines. Olumba allows you to split these items across discipline leads, track each one independently, and see a rolled-up status view at the project level. This prevents the common failure mode where one discipline's corrections block the entire resubmittal.
Olumba allows you to invite external consultants — structural engineers, MEP subs, landscape architects, and others — as project-level collaborators. They get access to the specific project they are working on, can upload documents and respond to corrections, but cannot see other projects or your organization's internal data. This replaces the practice of emailing large file attachments back and forth.
External collaborators are invited to specific projects and receive their own login. They can view, upload, and download documents for the projects they are invited to, respond to assigned corrections, and communicate with the project team through Olumba's messaging system — all without needing a full organization membership.
Olumba uses role-based access control at both the organization and project level. Organization members can be assigned as owners, admins, or members. External collaborators receive project-scoped access only. Document visibility, editing rights, and administrative functions are all governed by these roles, ensuring each person sees only what they need.
Most firms create their account, set up their first project, and invite team members within five minutes. There is no installation required — Olumba is a cloud-based web application that works in any modern browser. Existing documents can be uploaded via drag-and-drop and are organized automatically.
Yes. Olumba Align is free indefinitely — one active project, 3 correction letters, 3 pre-submittal checks. No credit card required. Paid plans start at $59/user/mo (billed annually) when you need more projects, full intake, and guest portals.
Olumba offers tiered pricing based on team size and storage needs. Every plan includes all core features — document management, correction tracking, team collaboration, and messaging. Visit the sign-up page for current plan details and pricing.
Yes. Olumba uses enterprise-grade encryption for data in transit and at rest, role-based access control, and a full audit trail for every document action. Your data is stored on secure cloud infrastructure and is never shared with third parties. Olumba is built on Supabase and deployed on Vercel, both of which maintain SOC 2 compliance.
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