Document Templates

Document templates in Contract Writing

Contract Writing supports three approaches for creating documents from templates, each designed for different use cases:

• Word-based document templates: The original template system that uses Word document templates associated with checklist items. Templates are managed through process models and auto-populated with data entered into Appian. This approach is best suited for structured documents that follow a fixed format, such as COR appointment letters.
• AI Document Builder templates: A template system that gives contracting personnel the ability to generate supplemental procurement documents directly within Contract Writing using AI-powered document generation. Templates are managed by administrators in the Contract Writing Settings site. This approach is best suited for supplemental documents such as memos, justifications, statements of work, and cover pages.
• Standard form templates: Pre-built PDF templates for government standard forms such as SF1447. Contract Writing generates these documents automatically when a solicitation or award is released, using field mapping to populate form data from existing procurement records. Standard form templates are not user-configurable. They ship with the application and are maintained by Appian.

These template systems operate independently. Word-based templates continue to function as they always have, AI Document Builder templates are managed separately through the Settings site, and standard form templates generate automatically during the release process.

AI Document Builder templates

AI Document Builder templates give administrators the ability to create master templates that contracting personnel can use to generate supplemental procurement documents directly from solicitations, awards, and agreements. Unlike Word-based templates, AI Document Builder templates are managed through the Contract Writing Settings site rather than through process models.

How AI Document Builder templates work

Administrators create and manage templates in the Template Management tab of the Contract Writing Settings site. Once a template is published and tagged as contract-writing, it becomes available to contracting personnel through the Create Document action on individual procurement records.

Contracting personnel can then generate documents using a guided wizard that walks them through selecting a template and creating a document in three steps. See Creating a document from a template for step-by-step instructions.

Tagging templates for Contract Writing

AI Document Builder templates must be tagged as contract-writing to appear in the Create Document action within Contract Writing. Without this tag, the template will not be visible to contracting personnel when they create documents from procurement records.

For instructions on creating, managing, and tagging templates, see Template management.

Enabling AI Document Builder

AI Document Builder can be toggled on or off in the Contract Writing Settings site depending on whether your organization uses AI capabilities. When disabled, the Create Document action is not available to contracting personnel. See AI Document Builder settings for more information.

Standard form templates

Standard form templates in Contract Writing are pre-built PDF templates for government standard forms. Contract Writing generates these documents automatically when a solicitation or award is released, using field mapping rules to populate form data from existing procurement records.

SF1447 template

Contract Writing 3.3 includes the SF1447 (Standard Form 1447) template for solicitation, offer, and award processes. The AS GCW Generate SF1447 Document process model handles PDF generation when a solicitation or award with the SF1447 form type is released.

The SF1447 template uses two sets of field mapping rules:

• Solicitation fields: Mapped by the AS_GCW_BL_mappingDetailsSF1447_Solic expression rule. These fields are populated when the solicitation is released.
• Award fields: Mapped by the AS_GCW_BL_mappingDetailsSF1447_Award expression rule. These fields are populated when the award is released. Award values override solicitation values for shared fields.

For details on selecting SF1447 during solicitation and award creation, see CW Quick Start User Guide.

Word-based document templates

Word-based document templates are the original template system in Contract Writing. Users associate a document template with a checklist item and auto-populate the document with data entered into Appian. This generates documents in a consistent format.

For example, to manage an award or solicitation a user has to create a Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) appointment document. The COR Appointment Letter template is provided to the user in the checklist item. The user can click a link to generate and populate the letter based on the template.

Adding new document templates

To add a template to a checklist item type:

1. Add a document template to AS CW Document Template folder. See instructions for creating documents.
2. In the folder properties for AS CW Document Template folder, note the folder ID.
3. In the document properties for each template that you added to the folder, note the document ID.
4. Using the folder ID and document IDs that you noted in the previous step, add an entry to the AS_GCW_R_DOCUMENT_TEMPLATE table for each document you added to the folder. See the Document Template Reference Data Table section.

Auto-populating new document templates

If you want the template to automatically populate with the data that is entered, update the AS CW Create Word Doc from Template process model.

To auto-populate the template with data:

1. Open the AS CW Create Word Doc from Template process model.
2. From the Template Smart Service Document node, add an MS Word 2007 doc for each template added to AS_GCW_R_DOCUMENT_TEMPLATE table.
3. In the Setup tab of the added node, add Template Configuration values and save the document to the AS GCW Temporary Document Template folder.
4. In the added node's Setup tab, add the fields you want to search in the template and the values you want to replace them with. You can use the sample template Capabilities Template as a guide.
5. In the XOR gateway Decision tab, add a new condition for each template.
6. In the Process Modeler, link the new node to the end node.

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