How Permit Review Works Without AI
See how AI changes the permit review workflow for architects and engineers: from 4 to 8 hours per review to under 45 minutes.
Manual
4 to 8 hours per drawing set review
With TrussNote
Under 45 minutes
Why this comparison matters
The average commercial permit in a major US city goes through 1.8 resubmittal cycles. Each cycle costs 2 to 4 weeks and a resubmittal fee. Most of those corrections were findable before submission with a thorough pre-check. The problem is that a thorough pre-check against local code requires hours of manual cross-referencing that most teams skip when deadlines are tight.
Step-by-step comparison
Same task. Different workflows.
The manual way
With TrussNote
Gather applicable codes
Identify which code editions apply: IBC year, local amendments, fire code, energy code, accessibility standard. Pull the relevant chapters. In California, add CBC, Title 24, CALGreen, and Chapter 11B.
Gather applicable codes
TrussNote identifies the applicable code stack for the project jurisdiction automatically, including local amendments and any active state law overrides.
Review egress and accessibility
Check every exit door, corridor width, travel distance, exit discharge path, and accessible route manually against the code tables. Mark issues on a redline set.
Review egress and accessibility
Egress and accessibility compliance is analyzed from the uploaded drawing set. Issues are flagged by sheet and detail with the specific code section cited.
Check fire and structural requirements
Verify fire separation requirements by occupancy group adjacency, sprinkler coverage, structural connection details, and load path continuity. Cross-reference structural and architectural sheets.
Check fire and structural requirements
Fire rating requirements and structural connection details are cross-checked automatically. Conflicts between architectural and structural sheets are flagged.
Compile a correction list
Write up all identified issues in a correction letter format. Note the sheet, the code section, and the required action for each item. This step alone can take 2 to 3 hours.
Compile a correction list
A pre-submission correction report is generated with issues grouped by discipline, each with the code citation and recommended resolution.
What you end up with
Manual approach
- Redlined drawing set
- Manually compiled correction list
- No code citations unless added by hand
- Review quality varies by reviewer experience
With TrussNote
- Structured pre-submission report with issues by discipline
- Code citation for every flagged item
- Sheet and detail reference for every issue
- Consistent review quality across every project
Try Permit Review on a real project
Start a free trial and run this workflow through TrussNote today. No credit card required.