Construction documents · Iowa
For Iowa, resolve the reviewing jurisdiction before packaging the drawings. Groundbook’s PDF review can support coordination, while the actual submission must follow the state or local office’s own format and completeness requirements.
Your codes, connected to your drawings
Groundbook can review your drawings against the state and local code PDFs you upload. Add the adopted code books and amendments that apply to your project, then review potential issues with links to the supporting sources.
Upload the applicable code PDFs alongside the drawing set. Include the edition, local amendments, and project requirements.
Set code PDFs to Code and Use as reference. Mark the drawings you want reviewed as Check this file.
Follow the linked drawing and reference, check applicability, and have the responsible professional verify the issue.
State and local references
Examples of references you can bring into Groundbook. Confirm the adopted edition, effective date, and project scope with the reviewing authority, then upload the applicable PDFs.
Bring the applicable Iowa administrative rules with the adopted International Building Code or residential reference.
Include the separate trade-code references for the disciplines being checked.
Code names link to official agency or publisher resources. Reviewed September 9, 2026. The reference set comes from the files you supply.
Iowa reference guide
Iowa DIAL’s building-plan-review page explains circumstances for state review and identifies local jurisdictions that require submission to their own enforcement office. Use that guidance to establish the route for the site.
Iowa DIAL: Building Code Plan ReviewDIAL’s submission instructions describe its application system and requirements for complete construction sets, including signed and sealed paper plans. Follow the current agency instructions even when your Groundbook review uses PDFs.
Iowa DIAL: submit a construction plan reviewSources reviewed September 9, 2026. Confirm current requirements and project applicability with the reviewing authority.
Prepare a useful review
Use this preparation list for Groundbook alongside the official permit checklist.
Supply the DIAL or local applicability determination, current adopted references, and the receiving office’s submission checklist.
Include the construction issue of all relevant disciplines, schedules, specifications, and reports. Flag placeholders and partial packages so their limits are visible.
Track the agency’s seal, signature, and file or paper requirements separately from review PDFs. Have the design professionals prepare the official deliverables.
Identify which files are being checked, which are references, and which revisions are superseded. Include reviewer comments and responses where they explain an unresolved decision.
Use the drawing-register templateFrom documents to decisions
Compare stated design information with the code and local references you supply. Verify scope, exceptions, and the source behind each potential issue.
Review code referencesLook for incomplete information and conflicting requirements before submission. Assign each verified finding to the responsible designer.
Prepare for submissionCheck relationships across drawings, schedules, specifications, and reports. Resolve the source conflict and carry the decision into the issued set.
Review the whole packageBefore you start
No. They are inputs to an AI-assisted document review. DIAL publishes separate application and construction-set requirements; use the current state or local instructions to prepare and submit the official package.
Supply the current drawing set and schedules, relevant specifications and reports, the applicable code and amendment PDFs, and the reviewing authority’s checklist. Identify the edition, project scope, and permit stage. Groundbook reviews the supplied evidence; do not assume every local requirement is already available.
No. Groundbook surfaces potential conflicts and omissions with links to source documents for professional verification. It does not issue permits, certify compliance, provide permit-expediting services, or replace the authority having jurisdiction.
Official source directory
Review jurisdiction and local-routing guidance.
Application system and official construction-set requirements.
Bring your drawings and the references that govern the project.