When to create a project
Create a project at the start of every tender or job. All the drawings, counts, measurements, zones and database links for that job live inside it, and the Excel export covers a single project. If you are unsure whether to split a job across two projects, keep it in one: Categories inside the project separate the drawings by discipline without splitting the export.
Where the button is
On the Projects page, the New Project button sits at the top right, next to Actions. If you have no projects yet, the empty No projects found panel in the middle of the page carries the same button.
Creating the project
- 1
Click New Project. The New Project dialog opens.
- 2
Enter a Project Name. This is the only required field.
- 3
Enter the Client if you have one (e.g.
Acme Construction Ltd). - 4
Enter a Project Type if it helps you filter later (e.g.
Lighting). - 5
Add a Project Description, up to 500 characters.
- 6
Click Create, or press Enter. The button reads Creating... while the project is saved.
Fill in Project Type consistently across projects. The Type filter on the Projects page lists every distinct value in use, so Lighting and lighting become two separate filter options.
The fields
| Field | Required | Limit | Where it appears |
|---|---|---|---|
| Project Name | Yes | 100 characters, unique | Name column, breadcrumb, project view header |
| Client | No | 100 characters | Client column, card footer |
| Project Type | No | 100 characters | Type column and the Type filter |
| Project Description | No | 500 characters | Description column, trimmed to two lines |
You can change any of these later. See Updating a project.
Validation messages
The dialog checks each field as you type and blocks Create until the problem is fixed:
| Message | Cause |
|---|---|
Project name is required | The name is empty. |
Project name must be less than 100 characters | The name is too long. |
A project with this name already exists | Another project has the same name. The check ignores capitalisation, so Riverside and riverside clash. |
Client name must be less than 100 characters | The client is too long. |
Project type must be less than 100 characters | The type is too long. |
Description must be less than 500 characters | The description is too long. |
The name check compares against the projects listed on your Projects page. If Show archived projects is on, archived projects are included in that check too.
What happens after Create
- A toast confirms Project Created with the message "the name" has been created successfully.
- ZeroCount opens the new project straight away. A short Loading project... overlay shows while the project view loads.
- The project view is empty apart from the upload zone. Drag drawings onto it or click it to browse. See Uploading drawings.
- Back on the Projects page the project appears with the status New, because none of its drawings has been worked on yet.
The dialog cannot be closed while Creating... is showing. Wait for the toast rather than refreshing the page.
Common issues
The Create button does nothing
One of the fields has failed validation. Look for red text under the field. The most common cause is a name that matches an existing project.
An error toast appears
Error with "Failed to create project. Please try again." usually means the connection dropped for a moment. Check the connection ring on your avatar at the bottom of the sidebar, wait for it to turn solid green, and try again. If it keeps failing, see Troubleshooting.
Next steps
- Uploading drawings — get the first drawings into the new project.
- Organising with Categories — separate drawings by discipline inside one project.
- Project statuses — why the new project reads New and when it changes.
- Updating a project — fix a typo in the name or add the client later.