Data requests: Creating and managing requests (for requesters)

This article explains how to create, send, track, and approve Data Requests in Scaler. It covers the full requester workflow from selecting assets to approving submitted data.

Any Scaler user with edit access to the relevant assets can create a Data Request. Admin rights are not required.

Recipients can be existing Scaler users or external stakeholders. External recipients are added as data request contributors. They access the request via a secure email link and do not need a Scaler account.

Tip You can also start a request directly from the Asset List. Select one or more assets, then click Send data request on the floating action bar at the bottom of your screen.

Choose the assets the request applies to. You can select individual assets, multiple assets, or filter before selecting. Use Client ID to correctly identify assets in large portfolios with similarly named properties.

The asset filter includes the following fields:

Choose which fields recipients should complete. Available sections are: Asset characteristics, Reporting Data, Certifications, Meters & Consumption, Assessments & Measures (GRESB-related fields), Tenants & Community (GRESB-related fields) and Custom fields, where applicable.

Selecting meters and consumption data: If you want to request meter details or consumption data, select the appropriate fields in this step. You will then proceed to Step 4: Meter scope, where you can specify which meters to include. If you do not select any meter or consumption fields, Step 4 is skipped.

Including Custom fields: You can include custom data fields that you have created. Custom fields are configured, by an Admin, under Data Collection Portal → Company → Settings → Data collection → Custom data collection fields.

Tip Only the fields you select will be visible to recipients.

This step only appears if you selected meter or consumption fields in Step 3.

The table is populated with all meters for the assets selected in Step 2. Select which meters you want recipients to provide data for. Required meter information is shown, but only the fields you selected in Step 3 will be editable by recipients.

You can filter the meter table by:

Assign one or more recipients to each asset. Different assets within the same request can have different recipients. You can bulk assign a single recipient across multiple assets, or add recipients individually per asset by entering their email address.

Warning Each recipient only sees the assets assigned to them. Verify assignments carefully before sending to avoid data going to the wrong person.

Click Send data request. Recipients receive an email with a secure link to their assigned assets. The email also includes a direct link to the relevant Scaler Knowledge Base article, so recipients can find guidance without needing to contact you.

Saving as a draft: You can save the request as a draft at any point and return to complete it later.

Tip: Set up templates To reuse the same field and meter scope across multiple portfolios, consider setting up template requests — named clearly as templates — and duplicating them to other portfolios. When duplicating to the same portfolio, assets and recipients are pre-selected and can be modified. When duplicating to a different portfolio, only the field structure and basic request information are copied.

You can edit a Data Request after it has been sent. What is editable depends on how far recipients have progressed.

All recipients unopened — All settings are editable, including assets and field scope.

Any recipient in progress — Only request details (title, due date, instructions, description) and recipient assignments can be changed. Assets and fields are locked to preserve data integrity mid-collection.

Any recipient approved — The request is fully locked and cannot be edited.

Warning Editing a sent request does not reset the submission status of assets that have already been completed.

Re-assigning a recipient: If a property manager has changed, you can re-assign an asset to a different recipient without cancelling the full request. Recipient reassignment remains available as long as the request has not been fully approved.

You can also delete an individual asset from a request without cancelling the entire request, or edit the required fields at the asset level after sending.

Duplicating a request: When duplicating an existing Data Request, you can select a different portfolio or a different set of assets before sending.

Using the collaborative link: Each sent Data Request has a shareable collaborative link. This allows a recipient to forward the request internally so multiple people can contribute without each needing a separate invitation. Share it directly from the Data Request overview.

Sent requests appear in your Data requests list. Each asset shows one of the following statuses:

Use the list view to track completion across all assets and recipients, and send reminders directly from the dashboard.

When an asset is submitted, open the review interface to see a side-by-side comparison of old and new values. For each field, you can:

If any fields are rejected, the recipient is notified and can resubmit. You review the resubmission before final approval.

Tip

You can approve and reject fields individually within the same submission. You do not need to approve or reject everything at once.

Warning

Submitted data is not written into Scaler until approved. Existing values remain unchanged during review, and analytics and reports continue using the previous data. If data appears missing after submission, this is expected — it will appear once approved.

Requesting changes on specific fields: You can add a comment per individual field when requesting changes, rather than applying a single comment to the whole submission.

Reviewing certifications: When reviewing submitted certification data, the Date obtained field is visible in the review panel. This field is required, so recipients cannot submit a certification without providing a date.

Reading the change log: When a recipient fills in a field that was previously empty, the change log shows empty as the previous value. This makes it clear that the field was blank before the submission.

How meter versioning works: When a recipient updates a meter attribute such as covered area, the system creates a new meter version rather than overwriting the existing one. Recipients can also enter a meter version end date when submitting changes.

Recipients can update the fields you selected, including asset characteristics, reporting fields, meter details and new meters, and consumption data. They can also upload supporting evidence (e.g. invoices) and add comments for context.

For a full description of the recipient experience, see Data requests: Completing a request (for recipients).