Well, it was bound to happen. I tried holding off as long as possible, but after writing several 'Note to Self' blogs which incorporate every imaginable pun, instance of wordplay, or grammatical trick, I've finally succumbed to using an old football cliché. But hey, it is college football bowl season, and even my beloved University at Buffalo Bulls are heading to the Great Idaho Potato Bowl in Boise this Saturday, December 21!
I've probably reviewed well over 15,000 shop drawings (submittals) throughout my career and have responded to an equal number of requests for information (RFIs). In a perfect world, each shop drawing should be returned within ten business days and each RFI in no more than half that time. Unfortunately, the construction industry, including the submittal and RFI review process is far from perfect.
Issues related to turnaround time for shop drawing review and RFI responses are as old as the days are long. At each weekly progress meeting, it is the architect's responsibility to update the owner and construction manager/contractor on the status of each submittal and RFI. Make no mistake about it - this is a hot seat and appearances matter. Reporting a delay in response to an RFI or being uncertain as to the status of a document could cause the owner to lose confidence in our ability to get the job done. So if you attend a progress meeting and you're holding up the job, be prepared to get hit with the contractor equivalent of a linebacker built like a Mack Truck. For this reason, the importance of returning shop drawings and responding to RFIs quickly cannot be understated. It is a critical component to maintaining the construction schedule.
University at Buffalo linebacker Khalil Mack (what you're facing if you don't return a shop drawing in time)
It is only natural that we occasionally drop the ball when reviewing a submittal or responding to an RFI. Sometimes it's of our own making, other times this occurs when we get blitzed with several hundred shop drawings at one time. Oftentimes, staffing shortfalls on our end are the result of not having a submittal schedule from the contractor in hand. But from my experience, one of the most detrimental, yet overlooked reasons for delays are the corrosive effects of confusing submittal packages and unnecessary RFIs. This is actually quite common, and we are routinely forced to work through it, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't try to address this problem. The answer might lie in the following question.
Should I punt an RFI or shop drawing submittal back to the contractor?
I pose this as question because each project has unique set circumstances that must be considered before punting. During the construction phase, politics, contractual requirements, and/or group dynamics cannot be ignored. Frequently, the appearance of not standing on ceremony or being a team player trumps the desire to punt.
In the absence of political or contractual issues, the decision to punt must be made as soon as an RFI or submittal enters the office. Waiting a week to make this decision diminishes the effectiveness of punting. However, when a punt is properly employed, it sends a strong message to the owner and contractor that the architect is serious about maintaining the construction schedule and moving the project along as efficiently as possible. The items below are guidelines that I use to determine if punting might be a viable option. Your list and guidelines might vary depending on the type and size of your project.
Consider punting on the following types of RFI questions (reason in parenthesis):
University at Buffalo punter Tyler Grassman (for those not familiar with the sport of American football, a punt is when one team kicks the ball back to the other team)
-field verification or quantities (contractor responsibility)
-scope unrelated to the project (question for owner)
-requests for scope to be added to the contract (question for owner)
-owner related questions (question for owner)
-information already shown in the contract documents and specifications (contractor responsibility)
-RFIs used to confirm decisions or conversations (contractor to issue memo or letter)
-RFIs that look like shop drawings (contractor submit as shop drawing)
-incomplete or missing information from RFI (contractor responsibility)
-internal contractor or construction manager question (contractor responsibility)
-means and methods (contractor responsibility)
-questions about bidding (contractor should separate bid RFIs from construction RFIs)
Consider punting on the following shop drawings (reason or action taken in parenthesis):
-submittals that are missing drawings or information (architect unable to complete proper review; return revise and resubmit)
-submittals requesting substitutions for products or materials (review only if the contract permits substitutions that are accompanied by highlighted data that indicates that the substitution is equal or greater than the base contract product - if not, return revise and resubmit)
-submittals with products not specified (return rejected)
-shop drawings sent as a supplement to a submittal already under review (if the time between the original submittal and the supplemental drawings is greater than three days, the additional documents must be submitted under a separate package number)
-re-submittals sent under a different package number than the first submittal (difficult for architect to track, return without review and have contractor submit under same package number as original package)
-same shop drawing sheet sent under two different submittal packages (unnecessary confusion and difficult for architect to track, ask the contractor which package they want returned not reviewed)
-submittals sent under incorrect spec section number (unnecessary confusion and difficult for architect to track, return without review and have contractor resubmit under proper spec section)
-submittals containing an unreasonably large number of shop drawings (varies for each project and size of design team performing construction administration, have the contractor break the submission into smaller packages sent in intervals over several weeks)
-the shop drawing is a copy of the construction document (depends on many factors including but not limited to, project/client, what software is used to produce construction documents, and how contract is written - seek consultation if in doubt)
In football, punting is often a result of a lack of execution by individual players on a team. But for architects, contractors, and owners, it might just be a game winning strategy. GO UB BULLS!
I've probably reviewed well over 15,000 shop drawings (submittals) throughout my career and have responded to an equal number of requests for information (RFIs). In a perfect world, each shop drawing should be returned within ten business days and each RFI in no more than half that time. Unfortunately, the construction industry, including the submittal and RFI review process is far from perfect.
Issues related to turnaround time for shop drawing review and RFI responses are as old as the days are long. At each weekly progress meeting, it is the architect's responsibility to update the owner and construction manager/contractor on the status of each submittal and RFI. Make no mistake about it - this is a hot seat and appearances matter. Reporting a delay in response to an RFI or being uncertain as to the status of a document could cause the owner to lose confidence in our ability to get the job done. So if you attend a progress meeting and you're holding up the job, be prepared to get hit with the contractor equivalent of a linebacker built like a Mack Truck. For this reason, the importance of returning shop drawings and responding to RFIs quickly cannot be understated. It is a critical component to maintaining the construction schedule.
University at Buffalo linebacker Khalil Mack (what you're facing if you don't return a shop drawing in time)It is only natural that we occasionally drop the ball when reviewing a submittal or responding to an RFI. Sometimes it's of our own making, other times this occurs when we get blitzed with several hundred shop drawings at one time. Oftentimes, staffing shortfalls on our end are the result of not having a submittal schedule from the contractor in hand. But from my experience, one of the most detrimental, yet overlooked reasons for delays are the corrosive effects of confusing submittal packages and unnecessary RFIs. This is actually quite common, and we are routinely forced to work through it, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't try to address this problem. The answer might lie in the following question.
Should I punt an RFI or shop drawing submittal back to the contractor?
I pose this as question because each project has unique set circumstances that must be considered before punting. During the construction phase, politics, contractual requirements, and/or group dynamics cannot be ignored. Frequently, the appearance of not standing on ceremony or being a team player trumps the desire to punt.
In the absence of political or contractual issues, the decision to punt must be made as soon as an RFI or submittal enters the office. Waiting a week to make this decision diminishes the effectiveness of punting. However, when a punt is properly employed, it sends a strong message to the owner and contractor that the architect is serious about maintaining the construction schedule and moving the project along as efficiently as possible. The items below are guidelines that I use to determine if punting might be a viable option. Your list and guidelines might vary depending on the type and size of your project.
Consider punting on the following types of RFI questions (reason in parenthesis):
University at Buffalo punter Tyler Grassman (for those not familiar with the sport of American football, a punt is when one team kicks the ball back to the other team)-field verification or quantities (contractor responsibility)
-scope unrelated to the project (question for owner)
-requests for scope to be added to the contract (question for owner)
-owner related questions (question for owner)
-information already shown in the contract documents and specifications (contractor responsibility)
-RFIs used to confirm decisions or conversations (contractor to issue memo or letter)
-RFIs that look like shop drawings (contractor submit as shop drawing)
-incomplete or missing information from RFI (contractor responsibility)
-internal contractor or construction manager question (contractor responsibility)
-means and methods (contractor responsibility)
-questions about bidding (contractor should separate bid RFIs from construction RFIs)
Consider punting on the following shop drawings (reason or action taken in parenthesis):
-submittals that are missing drawings or information (architect unable to complete proper review; return revise and resubmit)
-submittals requesting substitutions for products or materials (review only if the contract permits substitutions that are accompanied by highlighted data that indicates that the substitution is equal or greater than the base contract product - if not, return revise and resubmit)
-submittals with products not specified (return rejected)
-shop drawings sent as a supplement to a submittal already under review (if the time between the original submittal and the supplemental drawings is greater than three days, the additional documents must be submitted under a separate package number)
-re-submittals sent under a different package number than the first submittal (difficult for architect to track, return without review and have contractor submit under same package number as original package)
-same shop drawing sheet sent under two different submittal packages (unnecessary confusion and difficult for architect to track, ask the contractor which package they want returned not reviewed)
-submittals sent under incorrect spec section number (unnecessary confusion and difficult for architect to track, return without review and have contractor resubmit under proper spec section)
-submittals containing an unreasonably large number of shop drawings (varies for each project and size of design team performing construction administration, have the contractor break the submission into smaller packages sent in intervals over several weeks)
-the shop drawing is a copy of the construction document (depends on many factors including but not limited to, project/client, what software is used to produce construction documents, and how contract is written - seek consultation if in doubt)
In football, punting is often a result of a lack of execution by individual players on a team. But for architects, contractors, and owners, it might just be a game winning strategy. GO UB BULLS!