ARE After Hours | 004

Project Quality Control

By: Giovanni Zora
June 4th, 2026

My Experience with Project Quality Control
I feel like I have had very little experience with project quality control in my work. The most relevant example I can think of is Steve reviewing my drawings and redlining my plans, which essentially served as an internal QA/QC process. Another experience that may relate to quality control occurred while I was at Redstone Architects. I participated in what I believe was either a substantial completion review or a punch list walkthrough with Peggy at the Genesee County Juvenile Justice Center on Pasadena Avenue in Flint, Michigan. During the walkthrough, we inspected the facility and identified items that had been completed, were missing, or required correction before the project could be considered complete and turned over to the owner.

My understanding is that QA/QC is primarily performed early and throughout the design process to identify and resolve mistakes before they become larger issues. While errors can still be discovered during construction, catching them later can lead to schedule extensions and change orders initiated by the contractor. This can increase costs for the owner and may result in claims against the architect if the owner believes the additional costs or delays were caused by design errors or omissions.

What is the QA/QC process?
The QA/QC process is periodic. The programming phase sets the requirements of the project that will be adhered to throughout the design process. You want to minimize the chance of extending the project design schedule. You want to make sure the program meets the owner’s goals, is clearly outlined, and is, of course, realistic. QA/QC procedures are even more important on BIM projects, since you need a BIM manager who ensures the project team is following established standards and protocols. I would say this was Blake Hill from McIntosh Poris Architects during my time there working on the Fisher 21 Lofts project. Additionally, owner reviews take place after the schematic design has been completed, nothing before.

When a project proceeds to bidding and construction, the architect’s QA/QC process shifts from evaluating the quality of their own documents to evaluating the quality of the bids and construction itself. The amount and types of requests received from the contractor during the CA phase will tell you how well you performed QA/QC during design, essentially showing how many RFIs you receive. The fewer RFIs and clarification requests that arise during construction, the more likely it is that the drawings and specifications were thoroughly coordinated and reviewed during the design phases.

QA/QC Processes, not protocols:

  • Charettes: collaborative meetings to encourage the open sharing of ideas. They can improve the quality of the project by promoting stakeholders to share their ideas about what’s appropriate for a portion of the project
    • during the DD phase a charrette with the structural engineer could be held to determine the most appropriate way to frame the bulkhead of the project
  • Peer Revies: such as critiques, reviews, and audits, are more formal QA/QC reviews where the project’s documents are reviewed by senior staff members
    • Critiques: the least formal of the three, and are often frequent one-on-one sessions between the PM or PA and designers — think of studio and how a professor would critique my work at a one-on-one desk crits
    • Reviews: involve a small group of staff members and are less frequent than critiques; they typical occur before milestones to evaluate the design and documentation of the project and determine if tit meets the firm’s standards — think of studio pin-ups and having a few classmates review your work
    • Audits: typically performed by a senior staff member who is not a part of the project team; they are typically conducted after SDs, and aim to determine how well the design responds to the client’s stated objectives

What can a CM do?
CMs can assist architects in performing constructability reviews by providing insight into means and methods, procurement issues, sequencing, and labor availability. You can also rely on a CM during the design phase of a project since they get involved early in the pre-construction process. Keep in mind on a CM project the CM is responsible for cost estimating, not the architect.

According to C401, the architect is not responsible for accuracy of consultant’s work.

However, as the architect, it is your responsibility to produce a coordinated set of contract documents that respond to the owner’s requirements. This means ensuring that your consultants’ work is coordinated with your own documents as well as with the work of the other consultants. Because of this responsibility, it is common practice for architects to implement QA/QC measures for consultant drawings and specifications. For example, we must review mechanical and electrical drawings to ensure they coordinate with the lighting plans and the overall architectural design. Since the architect is a generalist, part of the QA/QC process is reviewing the consultants’ work (preferably only before project milestones) to identify conflicts and coordination issues before they become problems during construction.

Review from PJM Section 5 Quiz

Conflict can easily arise in a design-bid-build project delivery due to competitive bidding between contractors. This creates situations in which contractors have low profit margins, which can lead them to push back on any decisions that could lower their profits even further. Allowing for bid alternates gives contractors some wiggle room in their bids if design or other changes should arise during construction. 

Concrete Workability

  • Strength Test: performed after the concrete is cored and sampled at specific time intervals. This kind of test determines the compressive strength of the concrete
  • Slump Test: utilized to measure the consistency of concrete before it sets; checks the workability and can also be used as an indicator of an improperly mixed batch
  • Air Entrainment Test: particularly important in frost-prone climates; can be utilized to make sure the batch meets the specifications for a proper mix
  • Temperature Test: the temperature has more of an effect on the setting time and the final strength that the concrete will achieve

According to AIA B101, the architect’s review of shop drawings should be “only for the limited purpose of checking for conformance with information given and the design concept expressed in the Contract Documents.”

Contractor responsibilities that should be reviewed at the pre-construction conference

  • Submittal Schedule: contractor must submit a schedule for the required submittals for shop drawings, product data, and samples
  • Construction Schedule: contractor is responsible for submitting a construction schedule for the project
  • Insurance Bonds and Permits: contractor is responsible for securing the required construction bonds and insurance for the project
  • Schedule of Values: contractor must submit a schedule of values for the architect’s reference when reviewing contractor payment applications

Historic Buildings are a talked about topic in the AREs. Particularly when I took Programming and Analysis division, and we see it come up during the Project Management division as well. To recap, there are four major historical “treatments” an architect should utilize on a historic building project, they are:

  • Rehabilitation
  • Reconstruction
  • Restoration
  • Preservation

There is no special formula or acronym to memorize these, but I start out by knowing it as RRRP, that is, three Rs and one P. Starting backwards with the letter “P,” which stands for preservation: preservation is about maintaining the building as it already is. When you decide to preserve, the building is typically already in good condition, and the proposed use of the space doesn’t require any additions or major alterations. When an addition or significant change is involved, rehabilitation is required since you are typically repairing or updating the building’s features or attributes. For example, Fisher 21 Lofts is considered rehabilitation since it has been adapted for a new use, that being residential lofts instead of a factory as it once was. Another “R” treatment is reconstruction, which is what it sounds like. You are reconstructing the historic building to its original state using historic documentation. Essentially, the building needs to be recreated because it no longer exists or is severely damaged. Lastly, restoration is used when alterations have already been made to a building and the goal is to remove those changes and revert the property back to its historic form.

A constructive 1st step in the programming process would be to conduct benchmarking tours of similar facilities, especially when dealing with new technologies, since it can provide the team with specific, quantitative insights into the program requirements.

International Building Code – Occupancy Groups
What I’ve noticed from this quiz is that the 2021 International Building Code is really important to read through. For example, per the IBC, “Rooms and spaces within places of religious worship providing such day care during religious functions shall be classified as part of the primary occupancy.” The occupancy for a place of worship falls under A-3 Assembly, since it involves groups of people gathering for worship. I wouldn’t know this information, first, if I didn’t work at the City of Detroit BSEED department, where I vividly remember learning that places of worship are permitted in residential zoning districts, but they are still classified as Assembly (Group A) under the IBC because they involve gatherings of people for worship, often in larger groups, and second, if I wasn’t well-versed with the International Building Code.

Remember there is a difference between occupancy groups and zoning. Occupancy groups are part of the building code and focus on how a building is used from a life safety standpoint, like fire protection and occupant load, while zoning is about land use and what is allowed in a certain area by the city. So even if a place of worship is classified as A-3 Assembly under the IBC, it can still be permitted in a residential zoning district depending on the local zoning rules and allowances.

ADA Standards for Accessible Design, 2010m Section 606; ANSI 606

  • Faucets may be lever, push, or automatic (10-second minimum)
  • Knee clearance is required as follows: first 8 horizontal inches – not less than 29 inches; beyond 8 horizontal inches – not less than 27 inches
  • Clear space of 30″ x 48″ must be provided for approach

Knowing the difference between standards…
There are four types of standards that I know of:

  • Advisory Standard
  • Regulatory Standard
  • Performance Standard
  • Industry Standard

Advisory standards are those that are not used to regulate or enforce a minimum requirement or dictate a specific means or method of construction. They are not requirements and are typically not included in building codes.

Rather than describing performance, a regulatory standard focuses on regulating a specific type of system or process. Most NFPA standards, such as NFPA 13 for sprinkler systems, fall under regulatory standards.

Performance standards describe the ways materials or assemblies are tested to determine a relative level of performance. The most common testing standards are published by ASTM or Underwriters Laboratories.

Industry standards cover the production of materials that are brought to the marketplace, such as wood, steel, or other building materials. Examples of industry standards include ACI 318 for concrete and AISC 360 for steel.