Instructions and Dynamic Report Content

Some nSpec report types let you add custom narrative content directly to the report — paragraphs, sections, sub-sections, and figures. There are two related features here: the Instructions tab on QA worksheet reports (read-only training reference) and the Report Content tab on dynamic report types (fully editable custom content). This article explains both.

The Instructions Tab

The Instructions tab appears on QA Worksheet inspections (Stage 1 and Stage 2 report types). It's a read-only reference area that gives inspectors training material and roadmap diagrams for the worksheet workflow.

Where it appears

• QA Worksheet Stage 1 (report type 38) — Instructions tab includes the Stage 1 roadmap
• QA Worksheet Stage 2 (report type 39) — Instructions tab includes the Stage 2 roadmap

What's on it

• A link to the BECI Resource Library on SharePoint where the full training documentation lives
• The QA Site Visit Training Summary image
• The roadmap image for the appropriate stage (Stage 1 or Stage 2)

The Instructions tab is read-only. Users cannot edit the contents — it's static training material. Updates to the Instructions content are managed by your administrator at the tenant level, not by individual inspectors.

The Report Content Tab

The Report Content tab is where you add custom narrative content that appears in the published report. Unlike the Instructions tab, Report Content is fully editable and unique per inspection.

Where it appears

• Dynamic Report (report type 4) — full Report Content workflow
• Water Test reports (report types 32, 33) — Report Content alongside Recommendations
• Condition Survey reports — Report Content for narrative sections

Adding a Report Content Item

1. Open an inspection that has the Report Content tab
2. Click the Report Content tab
3. Click the + floating action button
4. The Create New Report Content modal opens
5. Fill in the fields below
6. Click Save

Report content fields

Field	Required	Notes
Select Type	Yes	Pick an existing content type from the dropdown, or choose "Create new type" to define your own
Enter new type	Conditional	Only appears if you chose "Create new type". Type a name like "Site Observations" or "Findings".
Is Sub Paragraph?	No	Yes/No radio. Yes turns this into a child of an existing parent paragraph.
Related Report Content	Conditional	Only appears if Is Sub Paragraph is Yes. Pick the parent paragraph from the dropdown.
Description	Yes	The actual paragraph text that will appear in the report
Figures	No	Up to 4 images with captions. Use Upload Images for new files or Photo Log to pull from existing inspection photos.

Auto-Numbering

Report Content items are numbered automatically. Top-level paragraphs get whole numbers (1, 2, 3, …), and sub-paragraphs get decimal numbers under their parents:

• 1 — first top-level paragraph
• 1.1, 1.2 — sub-paragraphs of paragraph 1
• 2 — second top-level paragraph
• 2.1 — first sub-paragraph of paragraph 2

Numbering updates automatically when you reorder or add new paragraphs.

Reordering Report Content

1. Find the content item in the Report Content tab
2. Click the action menu (three dots)
3. Click Move Up or Move Down

Numbering updates automatically as you reorder.

Figures

Each Report Content item can have up to 4 figures. Figures are images with captions that appear inline with the text in the published report.

Adding figures

• Upload Images — Select image files from your device
• Photo Log — Pick from photos already attached to other items in this inspection

For each figure:

• Add a caption that describes what the figure shows
• Set the position (1-4) using the position dropdown — figures appear in this order in the report
• Use the edit icon to crop, rotate, or annotate
• Use the delete icon to remove a figure from this content item

Editing Report Content

1. Find the content item
2. Click the action menu → Edit
3. Update text, type, sub-paragraph status, or figures
4. Click Save

Deleting Report Content

1. Find the content item
2. Click the action menu → Delete
3. Confirm in the dialog

Deleting a parent removes its sub-paragraphs. If you delete a top-level paragraph that has children, the children go with it. Promote sub-paragraphs to top-level first if you want to keep them.

Best Practices

• Use existing types when possible. Custom types make sense for unusual situations, but reusing types keeps reports consistent across inspections.
• Plan your structure before writing. Sketch out your top-level paragraphs and sub-paragraphs first, then fill in the content.
• Use Photo Log to reuse photos instead of re-uploading the same image to multiple content items.
• Reorder before generating the report — make sure paragraphs flow logically
• Caption every figure — captions appear in the published report under each figure

Troubleshooting

I don't see a Report Content tab

Solutions:

• Report Content only appears on certain report types (Dynamic, Water Test, Condition Survey). Check the inspection's report type.

I can't make a sub-paragraph

Solutions:

• You need at least one top-level paragraph before you can create a sub-paragraph (the dropdown of parents will be empty otherwise)
• Make sure the "Is Sub Paragraph?" radio is set to Yes

Figures appear in the wrong order in the report

Solutions:

• Open the content item in the Edit modal and adjust the position dropdown on each figure to put them in the right order

Related Articles

• Working with Inspections in nSpec
• Understanding nSpec Report Types
• Recommendations in Inspections
• Specimens and Figures
• nSpec Workflow Customization

---

Need help? Contact our support team at [e-mail]