Automated workflows streamline construction loan draw management by replacing slow, manual, paper-heavy processes with fast, digital, auditable ones. Key workflows include digital draw submission with automatic budget validation, automated inspection scheduling and mobile reporting, compliance and covenant validation, and integrated payment processing with real-time ledger updates. This reduces draw cycle time from weeks to days while eliminating errors.
Construction draw management has historically been one of the slowest, most error-prone processes in construction lending.
Here's what a traditional draw looks like:
Day 1: Contractor completes work and emails draw request with attachments Day 2: Someone receives email, downloads attachments, manually enters information into spreadsheet Day 3: Someone calls inspection company to request inspection Day 5: Inspection company has inspector available Day 7: Inspector visits site, takes notes by hand, takes photos Day 8: Inspector returns to office, writes report, emails to lender Day 9: Lender receives email, manually reviews against draw request Day 10: Lender creates approval form, emails to credit committee Day 11: Credit committee approves, emails approval back Day 12: Someone manually creates payment form, enters into banking portal, processes payment Day 13: Payment clears Day 14: Lender updates spreadsheet to reflect paid draw
Total: 14 days. Multiple manual steps. Multiple chances for error.
Then came automated workflows.
With automated workflows:
Day 1, 2 PM: Contractor completes work, submits draw request through app Day 1, 2:15 PM: System validates documentation, automatically schedules inspection Day 2, 10 AM: Inspector visits, uses mobile app to verify work, submits report same day Day 2, 10:15 AM: Lender is notified, reviews findings, approves draw Day 2, 2 PM: Payment automatically initiates Day 3, 9 AM: Payment clears
Total: 2 days. All automatic. Zero errors from manual entry.
The difference is automated workflows.
Automated workflows are processes where software automatically performs steps that used to require human intervention.
Instead of:
With automation:
The key difference: information flows automatically between steps. No manual re-entry. No email handoffs. No delays.
Workflow 1: Digital Draw Request & Submission
Traditional Process (Manual):
Automated Process:
Time Saved: 2-3 days of back-and-forth eliminated. Draw goes from "incomplete" to "ready for inspection" in hours instead of days.
Errors Prevented: Incomplete submissions, missing documents, over-budget requests never get approved.
Key Automation Features:
Workflow 2: Inspection Automation & Mobile Reporting
Traditional Process (Manual):
Automated Process:
Time Saved: Days of scheduling delay eliminated. Inspector report in lender's system same day instead of days later. No time spent on manual comparison—system does it automatically.
Errors Prevented: Scheduling confusion, lost reports, manual data entry errors, photos without clear documentation (geotagging proves where/when they were taken).
Key Automation Features:
Workflow 3: Compliance and Covenant Validation
Traditional Process (Manual):
Automated Process:
Time Saved: Manual compliance checking eliminated. Documents that need renewal are automatically flagged before they expire. No delays waiting for contractors to respond—system alerts them automatically.
Errors Prevented: Expired documents, missing lien waivers, over-budget draws, covenant breaches—all prevented by automated checking.
Key Automation Features:
Workflow 4: Digital Disbursement and Record-Keeping
Traditional Process (Manual):
Automated Process:
Time Saved: Hours of manual data entry and review eliminated. Payment processing that used to take hours now happens in minutes.
Errors Prevented: Data entry typos, duplicate payments, payments to wrong accounts, missed updates to accounting records—all prevented.
Key Automation Features:
Here's how all four workflows work together:
Contractor completes work
↓
Contractor submits draw in app (Workflow 1)
↓
System validates budget and docs automatically
↓
Inspection automatically scheduled (Workflow 2)
↓
Inspector notified on mobile device
↓
Inspector visits site next day
↓
Inspector verifies work using mobile app
↓
Inspector submits report from site
↓
System receives report, compares to contractor's claim
↓
System runs compliance checks (Workflow 3)
↓
If all checks pass:
System auto-approves or routes for 1-click approval
↓
If any issues:
System alerts lender and contractor
Contractor corrects issues
System re-checks
↓
Approval confirmed
↓
System initiates payment automatically (Workflow 4)
↓
Payment clears
↓
System updates ledger automatically
↓
System posts to accounting automatically
↓
System notifies contractor and stakeholders automatically
↓
Complete audit trail is created automatically
TOTAL TIME: 2-3 days (vs. 14+ days manual)
MANUAL STEPS: ~3 (vs. 40+ steps manual)
ERROR RATE: ~0% (vs. 5-10% manual)Time Savings
Error Reduction
Cost Impact
| Metric | Manual | Automated |
|---|---|---|
| Staff cost per draw | $200-300 | $25-40 |
| Cost of errors per year | $50K-150K | $5K-10K |
| Contractor satisfaction | Lower (slow approval) | Higher (fast approval) |
| Compliance risk | Higher (manual tracking) | Lower (automated monitoring) |
| Scalability | Limited by staff capacity | Scales with software |
Financial Example: 30 active projects, 150 draws per year
Before Automation (Manual Process)
Day 1-3: Contractor completes phase, tries to find all required documents (invoices, lien waivers from subs, photos). Takes multiple days because subs are slow providing lien waivers.
Day 4: Contractor finally has everything, emails draw request to lender with 8 different attachments.
Day 5: Lender's office receives 500 emails per day. Draw request sits in inbox unread.
Day 6: Someone finds the email, starts reading it. Manually downloads 8 attachments to desktop.
Day 7: Someone calls inspection company to request inspection. Reaches voicemail. Calls again.
Day 8: Inspection company calls back, says inspector not available for a week.
Day 10: Inspector finally available, visits site, takes photos and notes by hand.
Day 11: Inspector returns to office, manually types up inspection report, emails to lender.
Day 12: Lender receives email, starts reviewing draw. Manually compares contractor's photos to inspector's findings. Checks spreadsheet to see if budget is sufficient. Digs through file folder looking for prior lien waivers.
Day 13: Lender notices something unclear, sends email to contractor asking for clarification.
Day 14: Contractor responds to email.
Day 15: Lender approves draw (finally), creates payment form, manually enters payment information, authorizes payment.
Day 16-17: Payment clears.
Day 18: Lender updates spreadsheet and accounting system to reflect payment.
Day 19: Contractor finally receives payment, can pay their subs.
Total: 19 days. Contractor is frustrated. Subs are waiting for payment. Lender used 12+ hours of staff time.
After Automation (Sekady Workflow)
Day 1, 3 PM: Contractor completes phase, opens Sekady app. App shows required documents checklist. Contractor uploads invoices, photos, and prior lien waivers. System automatically validates everything is there. System checks budget and confirms draw is within limit. Contractor hits submit.
Day 1, 3:15 PM: System receives submission. System validates all documents are present. System automatically sends inspection order to available inspectors in the area.
Day 1, 4 PM: Inspector receives notification on mobile device. Inspector sees project details, contractor's photos, and inspection requirements. Inspector confirms availability for next day at 10 AM.
Day 2, 10 AM: Inspector visits site with mobile app. App displays contractor's claims and photos for comparison. Inspector takes geotagged photos. Inspector marks inspection items complete/incomplete on app checklist. Inspector verifies 100% of claimed work is actually complete. Inspector submits report from site.
Day 2, 10:15 AM: Lender receives notification that inspection is complete. Lender opens Sekady, sees inspection report with photos. System has automatically compared inspector's findings to contractor's claims—they match. System has automatically verified budget is within limits. System has automatically confirmed all prior lien waivers are on file. System shows "Ready to Approve."
Day 2, 10:30 AM: Lender clicks "Approve." System automatically initiates ACH payment to contractor's account (already on file). System automatically updates loan ledger. System automatically posts to accounting system. System automatically sends notification to contractor.
Day 3, 9 AM: Contractor wakes up to notification that payment has cleared. Contractor's account has $100K. Contractor can immediately pay their subs.
Total: 2 days. Contractor is thrilled. Subs get paid quickly. Lender used 0.5 hours of staff time.
1. Speed
2. Accuracy
3. Scalability
4. Consistency
5. Compliance
6. Relationships
7. Risk Reduction
Construction loan draw management used to be slow, manual, and error-prone. Automated workflows have transformed it into a fast, accurate, scalable process.
The difference is dramatic:
Sekady's automated workflows handle the entire draw-to-disbursement cycle without manual intervention at each step. Information flows automatically. Decisions are made with complete information. Approvals are automatic or one-click. Payment is initiated automatically. Records are updated automatically.
The result is faster funding, better relationships, fewer errors, and the ability to scale your business dramatically.
Ready to transform your draw management with automated workflows? Learn how Sekady automates the complete draw cycle by visiting our FAQ page or scheduling a demo to see the workflows in action.