How long should architects and engineers keep project records?

The short answer: the longest clock wins#

Architect and engineer record retention is set by whichever clock runs longest for a given project. Statutes of repose cap how long after completion a claim can be brought, limitations periods often run from when a problem is discovered, owner contracts may add retention or delivery duties, and professional liability insurers publish risk-management guidance on keeping records.

Because repose periods differ by state and contracts differ by client, one firm-wide number rarely fits. Many firms keep a default for most projects and flag exceptions for public work, housing or clients with stricter terms. This is general information, not legal advice; counsel who knows the states where you practice should set the actual periods.

Which clocks set the retention period?#

Each clock answers a different question. Repose asks how long the firm can face a claim at all after completion, limitations asks how long after a problem surfaces, and contracts and insurers add conditions of their own. A good schedule names every clock that applies to a project, not only the one the firm happens to remember.

Which project records need the longest retention?#

The records that need the longest retention are the ones that show what the firm designed, what it reviewed and what it approved. In a claim, the issued drawing set and the construction administration trail usually matter more than renderings or marketing boards.

Ownership shapes who should keep what. Under AIA B101-2017 Section 7.2, the architect and its consultants are deemed the authors and owners of their Instruments of Service, so many firms hold the most complete design record even after the owner receives its set. Negotiated contracts can change that, so check the signed agreement for each project.

When does the retention clock start?#

The retention clock usually starts at a project event, not on the date a file was created. Depending on the state and the contract, that event might be substantial completion, a certificate of occupancy, final payment or termination of services. A firm that keys deletion to file dates will remove construction-phase records too early.

• 1Pick one trigger field per project, such as the substantial completion date, and store it in the project record in Deltek or your ERP.
• 2Note the project's state and any contract retention clause next to the trigger date.
• 3Calculate the date the records become eligible for destruction from the longest applicable clock, and have counsel confirm the rule.
• 4Review eligible projects on a fixed cycle and check for claims, holds or follow-on work before anything is destroyed.
• 5Log every destruction with the project, record types, date and approver.

Keeping records readable for the whole period#

A record kept in a form nobody can open is not really kept. Retention periods for design firms often outlast the software versions, cloud products and subscriptions that created the files, so the schedule should name the format each record family is kept in.

Cloud tools sharpen the problem. Procore Extracts saves most Procore items as PDFs while documents and photos keep their original file types, which suits reading but not later analysis. Autodesk's Data Connector delivers CSV tables that can be downloaded for up to 30 days after each extraction, so someone has to save them. Deltek's Backup Database utility exists only in on-premise Vantagepoint, so cloud customers need another route to a full copy.

Product retirements are the other risk. Autodesk moved BIM 360 Team and A360 Team files to read-only access and fully retired the products at the end of 2023, after which access to the files was removed. Firms that had not copied or downloaded their project files lost them from that location.

Illustrative: a structural engineering firm writes its schedule#

Illustrative: a fictional structural engineering firm works on commercial and public projects across several states. Its contracts and fees sit in Deltek Vantagepoint, its models and calculations in Revit and analysis software, its markups in Bluebeam, and its RFIs and submittals in owner-hosted Procore projects.

The managing principal asks counsel to set a default tied to the longest repose period among the firm's states, with a separate rule for public contracts. The firm adds a substantial completion field to every Deltek project, runs Procore Extracts at closeout for each owner-hosted project while it still has access, and saves final calculation packages as PDFs beside the native files.

The outcome is a schedule the firm can actually run. Destruction now happens project by project after review, and when a claim arrives on an older parking structure, the RFI log and sealed calculations are exactly where the schedule says they are.

What happens when the retention period ends?#

At the end of a project's retention period, each record family gets one of three outcomes: secure destruction with a log entry, a documented extension for a business reason, or a move to cheaper archive storage. Check for holds and pending claims before any of them.

Some firms now ask whether an old archive has value beyond risk management. Records that link RFIs, submittal reviews and change decisions show how professionals solve real design problems, which interests AI developers. Licensing them depends on client agreements and confidentiality terms, so SourceX starts with a metadata-only fit check and handles rights in the Rights step of the SourceX five-step transaction, before any preparation or delivery.