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How to review a submittal

Reviewing a submittal is confirming that what the contractor intends to install matches what the specification and drawings require, before it is fabricated or delivered. It is easy to rubber-stamp and easy to over-mark; both cause problems. A clean review catches the substitution, the wrong dimension, or the missing detail on paper, while it is still a red-line and not a demolition. This guide covers reviewing one item and returning an action the field can actually build to.

For project engineers, QC managers, and designers' agents who receive submittals and have to review, mark, and return them without becoming the schedule's bottleneck.

Step by step

  1. Confirm completeness before you review content

    Check the submittal is the right item, the right revision, complete, and carries the contractor's own review stamp. A submittal the GC never checked first is one you send straight back — reviewing on the design team's behalf is not the GC's job to skip.

  2. Read it against the specification section

    Open the governing spec section and drawings and compare line by line — product, model, grade, dimensions, finishes, and any listed performance requirement. The question is narrow: does what is proposed meet what was specified.

  3. Flag substitutions and deviations explicitly

    Any product that differs from what was specified is a substitution and gets called out, not quietly accepted. A proposed deviation needs the designer's decision on its merits; the reviewer does not waive a spec requirement by missing it.

  4. Check the coordination the submittal implies

    Confirm the item fits what it connects to — dimensions against the opening, embeds against the structure, connections against the adjacent trade. A submittal that is right on its own but clashes with the next trade is still a problem you own.

  5. Mark a clear, defensible action

    Return one unambiguous status — approved, approved as noted, revise and resubmit, or rejected — with comments tied to the specific requirement. "Approved as noted" means the noted changes are mandatory, so the comments have to be precise enough to build from.

  6. Route it and record the disposition in the register

    Get the reviewed submittal back to the contractor and log the action, date, and revision in the submittal register. Anything short of a clean approval loops back around, and the register tracks the resubmittal until it closes.

  7. Confirm the approved revision reaches the field

    The review only pays off if the crew installs from the current, approved revision — not a superseded set. Tie the closed submittal to its definable feature of work so the preparatory phase can confirm the right paper is in hand before the trade starts.

What gets missed

  • Reviewing a submittal the GC never stamped, doing the contractor's coordination review for them.
  • Approving product data without checking it against the actual specification section it has to satisfy.
  • Missing a substitution buried in a data sheet and unintentionally waiving a spec requirement.
  • Treating "approved as noted" as done without confirming the contractor incorporated the noted changes.
  • Letting a feature start against a superseded revision because the approved one never reached the field.

Questions people ask

Does reviewing a submittal mean approving the means and methods?
No. A submittal review confirms the proposed product or fabrication conforms to the specification and design intent — it does not relieve the contractor of responsibility for quantities, dimensions to be confirmed in field, or construction means and methods. Say so on the stamp where the review is on the design team's behalf.
What is the difference between "approved" and "approved as noted"?
"Approved" means build it as submitted. "Approved as noted" means build it with the marked changes incorporated — the notes are mandatory, and the contractor is expected to comply without a resubmittal unless the notes are extensive enough to require one.

Terms worth knowing

Checklists that make this a one-tap job

Free, field-ready checklists, each with the photo every item needs before it can be submitted.

QC planConstruction quality control planRoles, definable features of work, three-phase control, nonconformance.12 items15 photosITPInspection and test plan (ITP)Activities, acceptance criteria, hold points and the record per row.11 items8 photosSteel ITPStructural steel erection ITPDelivery through closeout for structural steel erection, with hold and witness points.10 items10 photosPunch listPunch list templateRoom-by-room closeout items with the before-and-after that closes them.15 items21 photos
See the whole checklist library

Related guides

Reading the steps is one thing. Proving you walked them is the job.

RTI holds the submit button until every mandatory item is answered and the photos are attached, then chains the record so it can be proven untouched later.

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