A supplier sends an updated product specification, but the purchasing team is still using last year’s file. Another supplier’s document expires next week, and nobody knows whether a replacement has been requested. The problem is usually the handoff: receiving a file and accepting it are two different steps.

This tutorial builds a small renewal queue in Airtable, with a miniExtensions form for submitting replacements. Staff keep the approved file and expiration date separate from the supplier’s proposed replacement. A new upload therefore does not make an overdue requirement appear current before someone reviews it.

The example uses fictional packaging suppliers and product specification sheets. It is an operational tracking design, not a compliance certification system or an automatic assessment of document validity.

What you will build

A coordinator checks an internal renewal queue, sends a record-specific form link to the supplier, and reviews the returned file in Airtable. The supplier updates an existing document requirement rather than creating another supplier profile or an unrelated submission.

The coordinator sends requests and makes acceptance decisions manually. This walkthrough does not configure reminder emails, scheduled actions, document extraction, or automatic approval. For a broader supplier account experience, see the supplier portal guide.

Prepare the tables

You need an Airtable base you can configure, a miniExtensions workspace connected to it, and a few harmless sample files. Start with a separate practice base or isolated example tables. Do not test with confidential supplier documents or a live reminder workflow.

Suppliers

  • Supplier: primary single-line text field.
  • Contact Name: single-line text.
  • Contact Email: email.
  • Coordinator: user field for the internal owner.

Add two fictional suppliers, Cedar Packaging and Harbor Cartons. These rows hold contact information, not one field per document.

Document Requirements

  • Requirement: primary single-line text, such as “Cedar Packaging — carton specification.”
  • Supplier: link to Suppliers, configured for one supplier per requirement. Airtable’s reciprocal link lets one supplier have several requirements.
  • Document Type: single select, initially “Carton specification” and “Print specification.”
  • Approved File: attachment.
  • Approved Expires: date, with time disabled.
  • Replacement File: attachment.
  • Replacement Expires: date, with time disabled.
  • Supplier Note: long text.
  • Review Status: single select with “Not requested,” “Requested,” “In review,” “Accepted,” and “Changes requested.”
  • Review Notes: long text for staff.
  • Last Requested and Last Reviewed: date fields, updated by staff.

Use one row for each supplier/document requirement. Cedar Packaging can have separate carton and print specification rows, each with its own dates and edit link. This avoids one replacement accidentally changing the other requirement.

The two file/date pairs are intentional. Approved describes the current accepted document; Replacement holds the next candidate. Do not ask the supplier to edit the approved fields.

Calculate the renewal window

Add a formula field named Days Remaining:

IF(
  {Approved Expires},
  DATETIME_DIFF({Approved Expires}, TODAY(), 'days')
)

Add a second formula field, Renewal Queue:

IF(
  NOT({Approved File}),
  "Missing approved file",
  IF(
    NOT({Approved Expires}),
    "Check expiration date",
    IF(
      {Days Remaining} < 0,
      "Expired",
      IF({Days Remaining} <= 30, "Due within 30 days", "Current")
    )
  )
)

This is a proposed business rule: an approved document enters the queue 30 days before expiration; the expiration day remains in “Due within 30 days,” and the following day becomes “Expired.” Change that policy deliberately if your process treats the expiration day differently.

Airtable’s formula reference documents the date functions. TODAY() recalculates periodically rather than acting as a precise midnight alarm. Check date-only behavior around your team’s day boundary before relying on it for deadlines.

Create separate request and review views

In Document Requirements, create an internal grid view named Renewal Queue. Open Filter and include rows where the Renewal Queue formula is not “Current.” Show Supplier, Requirement, Approved Expires, Days Remaining, Review Status, Last Requested, and the edit-link field you will add next.

Create another internal view named Replacement Review, filtered to Replacement File is not empty. Keep Approved File and Replacement File side by side, followed by both expiration dates and Review Notes.

These views answer different questions: “What needs renewal?” and “What has arrived?” An expired requirement with a new upload should appear in both until review is complete. Airtable’s view filters organize records; they do not delete filtered-out rows. Keep these staff views internal rather than sharing the whole queue with suppliers.

Build the replacement form

Before sharing with external users, confirm that the workspace has a suitable paid plan or an active free trial. The Free plan guide distinguishes builder-only testing from external sharing.

From the miniExtensions dashboard, select the workspace and base, then Create Extension. Choose a Form connected to Document Requirements and give it a clear title such as “Update your product specification.” The extension creation guide covers the setup flow.

Include Requirement for context, plus editable Replacement File, Replacement Expires, and Supplier Note. Make Requirement read-only in its field settings. Keep Approved File, Approved Expires, Review Status, Review Notes, and internal ownership fields off the supplier form. Give the upload field a short instruction: “Upload the proposed replacement. Our team will review it before updating the accepted specification.”

This is a deliberately small direct-link form, without login. In the Builder toolbar, select Share, enable Allow users to update existing records, and disable Allow users to create new records. See the create/edit settings.

Select Get Edit URL and copy the supplied formula into a new Airtable formula field named Replacement Link. Use the generated formula for this form, not an invented form identifier. Each requirement gets its own URL, and existing data fills the editing form. Follow the edit-record setup guide.

Publish the form before testing the shared links; later configuration changes also need publication to reach end users. The sharing guide explains draft versus published behavior. Treat an editing link as access to that form’s record. Send it only to the intended contact; a read-only label or omitted field is not a substitute for reviewing your full access requirements.

Run the manual renewal handoff

  1. The coordinator opens Renewal Queue, checks the requirement, and sends its Replacement Link through the team’s normal communication channel. Record Last Requested and set Review Status to Requested.
  2. The supplier opens that link, adds the candidate file and expiration date, and saves. The approved pair remains the basis for the queue.
  3. Staff check Replacement Review, set In review, and inspect the actual document. A populated attachment field alone does not establish that the file is correct or accepted.
  4. If acceptable, staff transfer the accepted file and date into the approved pair, record Last Reviewed, and set Accepted. Clear the replacement staging fields only after preserving anything your retention process requires.
  5. If changes are needed, retain the approved pair, record the reason, and ask for a corrected candidate using the same requirement link.

This small model holds the current approved version and one replacement candidate. If you must preserve every submission and decision, add a separate document-version history before rollout; do not treat replacing an attachment as a complete audit trail.

Check the workflow before sharing real links

Use fictional files and perform these acceptance checks:

  • A missing approved file enters the queue; a missing expiration date is flagged separately.
  • Dates yesterday, today, 30 days ahead, and 31 days ahead produce the intended categories.
  • Cedar’s carton link opens the carton requirement, not its print requirement or Harbor’s row.
  • Saving a replacement updates the same Airtable record and leaves both approved fields unchanged.
  • The replacement appears in Replacement Review while the overdue row remains in Renewal Queue.
  • A row leaves the renewal queue only when an approved file is present and its approved expiration date is more than 30 days ahead. A replacement upload alone does not change either approved field.

If an edit link fails, check that editing is enabled, the record ID belongs to the selected table, and the intended configuration is published. Test the record-specific link, not the main URL of an edit-only form. If uploads seem to disappear from view, check whether attachment Add-only mode is enabled; its display behavior differs from ordinary editing.

The useful outcome is a clear handoff: one requirement, one current accepted document, one proposed replacement, and an identifiable reviewer. Start with a small supplier group and confirm those transitions before adding reminders or a broader portal.