How to run a daily pre-start in Foreman

Build the pre-start once for your site managers. Each morning they fill it in on their phone, and it's saved against the job.

Published 26 October 2026 4 min read

In Foreman, a daily pre-start is a form your site manager fills in on their phone before work starts. An Admin builds the pre-start once as a form template, limits it to site managers, and locks the date so it can't be backdated. Each morning the site manager picks the job, works through the checks and signs. Every pre-start is saved against the job with the time it was sent.

Only an Admin can build the template. Site Managers and Admins fill it in.

Build the pre-start template

Open Forms and tap Manage forms. On a phone, Forms is under More.
Tap + New form and name it "Daily pre-start".
Under Who can fill this, choose Site managers + admins only. Your crew won't see it in their list.
Under Form type, choose Project form.
Add the blocks below, then tap Preview and Save form.

A pre-start that works on most sites:

Date, with Lock to submission date ticked.
To-dos for the site checks: fencing and signage, access, weather, edge protection, plant and tool tags, services, SWMS reviewed, permits, inductions, first aid.
Text for today's tasks, hazards and the controls you agreed.
Text for anything the crew raised.
Photo for anything the checks turn up.
Signature for the site manager.

Already have your pre-start on paper or as a PDF? A connected AI assistant can build the template from it. See what you can ask your AI assistant.

Each morning

Open Forms and tap Daily pre-start.
Pick the project. Starting from the project's Project forms card picks it for you.
Work through the checks, fill in today's work and add photos.
Sign and tap Submit.

Submit stays greyed out until the required fields are done. The form needs a connection to send, so finish it in one go.

Getting the crew to sign on

A Signature block captures one signature. Two ways to record who was at the pre-start:

The site manager lists them. Add a Text block for attendees' names, and the site manager signs once.
Each worker signs their own. Build a short "Pre-start sign-on" form for All site crew, with a locked Date and a Signature. Each crew member submits it on their phone after the talk.

Find past pre-starts

Open Forms and the Submissions tab. Tap Filter, choose Form: Daily pre-start, and set the Dates and Project. Admins see every site. Site Managers see the sites they manage. Each project's submissions are also in its data export, as a CSV.

Good to know

Pre-start or toolbox talk? A pre-start is every day and about today. A toolbox talk is usually weekly and goes deeper on one topic. Build them as two forms.
Prefer paper on some sites? Print the free daily pre-start checklist, which uses the same checks.

Read more about Foreman's safety forms, or see how to build a form template for every block you can use.

Frequently asked questions

Can I keep the pre-start to site managers only?

Yes. When you build the template, set Who can fill this to Site managers + admins only. It then only appears in the Forms list for site managers on their projects and for Admins. Your crew won't see it, and each pre-start is saved against the job with who sent it and when.

How do crew sign on to the pre-start?

A Signature block captures one signature. Either add a text field for attendees' names and have the site manager sign once, or build a short pre-start sign-on form for all site crew, with a locked date and a signature, that each worker submits on their phone after the talk.

Can a pre-start be backdated?

Not if you tick Lock to submission date on the Date block. The field then always shows the day the form is sent, and the person filling it in can't change it. Every submission also records the time it was sent.