Inspection process
Definable feature of work
A definable feature of work, or DFOW, is a piece of the job the quality plan treats as a unit: it has a clear scope, its own trade and submittals, and its own acceptance criteria. Framing, underslab plumbing, exterior sheathing, and structural steel erection are each a DFOW. Breaking the project into DFOWs is how the three-phase control system decides what gets a preparatory, initial, and follow-up inspection.
Run it with the Photo Gate
Construction quality control plan
12 items · 15 photos required
Why it matters
You can't inspect "the building." Naming DFOWs gives QC a finite list of things to control, each with the submittals, standards, and checklist that apply to it, so nothing falls through the gap between trades.
How it shows up on site
The QC plan lists every DFOW and ties each to its three phases of control. As a feature comes up in the schedule, the super pulls its checklist, its approved submittals, and its acceptance criteria and runs the phase inspections against them.
Guides that use it
- How to run a construction inspectionRun a construction inspection end to end: know what you're inspecting against, walk the work in order, document what you see, and disposition every finding.
- How to write an inspection checklist that holds upWrite an inspection checklist crews actually use: tie every item to a real acceptance criterion, make each line a clear pass or fail, and build the photo proof into it.
- How to roll out inspections to your field crewGet a field crew to actually run inspections: start with one scope, make the tool dead simple, show the win early, and hold the standard until it's habit.
- How to run a three-phase inspectionRun the preparatory, initial, and follow-up phases of quality control on a definable feature of work so defects surface before they multiply.
Checklists that put definable feature of work to work
Free, field-ready checklists, each with the photo every item needs before it can be submitted.
Related terms
- Preparatory phase inspectionThe first of the three phases of control: a before-work review of submittals, materials, and criteria for a definable feature of work.
- Initial phase inspectionThe second phase of control: inspecting the first representative portion of a feature to set the workmanship standard for the rest.
- Follow-up phase inspectionThe third phase of control: recurring checks while a feature is built out, confirming it stays true to the standard set at the initial phase.
- Quality control planThe project-specific document that defines how a contractor will control quality: who inspects what, to which standards, and how it's recorded.
- Pre-cover inspectionThe last inspection of an assembly before it is concealed by drywall, insulation, backfill, or a slab pour that hides the work underneath.
- Mock-upA full-scale sample of an assembly, built and approved before production, that becomes the workmanship standard the real work is judged against.
Knowing the term is step one. Proving it 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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