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Site diaries and daily reports

Record each day's labour, plant, weather, work done and events on site.

FreeSite diary and daily reports on Ashbrook +1 more
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Output: Signed daily site diary and daily report
Module: Field and site
Documents: Site diary
Daily report
Labour and plant returns
Standards and references: —

What it is

The site diary is the daily factual record of the project: weather, labour and plant on site, work done, deliveries, visitors, instructions, delays and incidents. It is written on the day by the people who saw it. Months later it is often the most reliable source for a valuation dispute, an extension of time or an accident investigation.

A good diary is short, factual and consistent. It records what happened, not opinions, and it is signed and archived so it cannot be changed later without trace. Daily reports built from it give the project manager and client a summary of progress and problems, and timesheets drawn from the same data feed cost reporting.

Who does it

Site manager / foreman: Writes and signs the diary each day.
Subcontractor supervisors: Report their labour, plant and progress for the day.
Project manager: Reviews daily reports and acts on delays and instructions.
Client's representative: Countersigns records where the contract requires it, especially daywork and site measurements.

How it runs

Record conditions
Note the weather at set times and its effect on work, such as a postponed concrete pour or a crane stood down for wind.
Record resources
List labour by trade and company, and plant on site as working or standing.
Record work done
Describe activities by location with photos, referenced to programme activities.
Record events
Log instructions received, information requested, delays, visitors, deliveries and incidents with times and names.
Sign and archive
Sign the entry on the day so it becomes a fixed record.
Issue the daily report
Send the summary to the project team and flag items that need action or a contractual notice.

How it differs by country

United Kingdom: The SCL Delay and Disruption Protocol stresses contemporaneous records, and site diaries are central to them. Under NEC4 the records the Contractor must keep are those stated in the Scope.
Germany: The Bautagebuch is standard practice and is part of the site supervision (Objektüberwachung) services under HOAI. It supports obstruction notices under VOB/B §6.
France: The journal de chantier records daily events, and the maître d'œuvre's comptes rendus de chantier form the record of site meetings, instructions and progress.
United States: Daily reports are standard on most projects and often required by contract. They support time and material records and, on federal work, payroll compliance checks.
International: FIDIC 2017 Sub-Clause 6.10 requires the Contractor to keep records of personnel and equipment on site, and Sub-Clause 20.2 relies on contemporaneous records to support claims.

Common mistakes

Writing the diary days later from memory.
Recording only 'progress as planned' without location, quantities or resources.
Omitting verbal instructions and who gave them.
Not recording standing labour and plant during a delay.
Leaving entries unsigned or editable, which weakens them as evidence.
Subcontractors keeping separate records that contradict the main diary.

In OpenConstructionERP

Module: Field and site

The Field and site modules capture the daily record. Daily Site Diary stores weather, entries, photos, video and reality capture in a signed archive, while Field Diary gives field workers a lightweight diary with PIN-gated access. Field Reports produces daily reports on weather, workforce, delays and safety. Field Time records cost-coded, signed timesheets for labour and plant. Voice Capture turns spoken site notes into structured drafts the worker confirms, and Phone Log records verbal instructions as dispute-ready records.

Daily Site Diary · Field Diary · Field Reports · Field Time · Voice Capture · Phone Log

The app runs at openconstructionacademy.com/app for course learners.