# Project release and approval

Review a completed job, release it, and get it approved so production can prepare tools.

Source: https://support.toolingmetrics.com/en/engineering/tutorials/project-release-approval/
Updated: 2026-10-29

**Prerequisites:** A job with at least one operation and tool assembly assigned.  
**Required permission:** Engineering → Jobs — User or above (Engineering → Projects to release and approve a project). Admins can release and approve any job; Managers and Users only the jobs they created, so a reviewer approving someone else's job needs Admin.

A **Setup Sheet** is the shopfloor instruction document generated for a job. It contains the operation sequence, tool assemblies, tool numbers, NC program references, and the tools list with storage locations. Getting a job onto the shopfloor is a two-step process: **Release** locks the job and submits it for review, then **Approve** publishes its tool assemblies and syncs the referenced products to inventory.

## Review before releasing

Before releasing, verify:

- All operations have a tool assembly, tool number, and cycle time assigned
- The job's machine is correct
- NC program references are attached if your shop requires them

Open the job and check the **Operations** tab for any operations flagged with warnings.

## Release the job

1. Open the job.
1. Click the **Release** button in the bottom toolbar.
1. Tooling Metrics runs a pre-release check. If any required fields are missing, a list of issues appears — resolve them and try again.
1. On successful release, the job status changes to **Released**, and the job, its operations, NC programs, and tool assemblies are locked from further editing (the same effect as manually applying **Lock**).

Release does not publish the job's tool assemblies or sync products to inventory — that only happens at the next step, **Approve**. If you need to make further changes first, click **Mark as Draft** to send the job back to **Draft** status.

## Approve the job

A released job is submitted for an engineering manager to review and approve.

1. Open the job.
1. Click the **Approve** button in the bottom toolbar.
1. On success, the job status changes to **Approved**. This triggers every tool assembly referenced by the job's operations to move to **Released** status, and every product referenced by those tool assemblies to sync to an inventory Item (created automatically if it doesn't already exist).

**Mark as Released** reverses the job's status back to **Released**, but it does not undo the tool assembly release or product sync — those effects are permanent once Approve has run.

## View the setup sheet

1. Open the job and click **Setup Sheet** in the bottom toolbar. Setup sheets have no menu entry of their own; the sheet is generated on demand and opens as a PDF in a new tab. It is available at any status.
1. The setup sheet shows: part details, job and machine information, operation table with tool assemblies, and the tools list with BOM — forecast and on-hand item quantities plus the current location of physical tools.
1. Print or download the PDF from your browser for the shopfloor.

For the full status flow — including Mark as Draft, Mark as Released, and Lock/Unlock — see the [Jobs Reference](https://support.toolingmetrics.com/en/engineering/reference/jobs/).

## Next

Next, set up your warehouse with the [Inventory](https://support.toolingmetrics.com/en/inventory/tutorials/) series, then stock it with the [Purchasing](https://support.toolingmetrics.com/en/purchasing/tutorials/) series. Once stock is in the warehouse, the shopfloor prepares tools with the [Production](https://support.toolingmetrics.com/en/production/tutorials/) series.