Inspection process
First article inspection
A first article inspection is a complete, feature-by-feature check of the first item off a production run or the first installation of a repeating assembly. Every dimension, material, and requirement is verified against the drawings and specification before the crew or shop is cleared to make the rest. It shares the intent of the initial phase inspection but is most often used for fabricated or manufactured items, such as the first weldment, the first fabricated panel, the first assembly of a kind.
Run it with the Photo Gate
Structural steel inspection checklist
12 items · 27 photos required
Why it matters
If the first article is wrong and it isn't caught, the error is faithfully reproduced across the whole run. Inspecting one item in full, rather than sampling many later, is the cheapest place to find a bad detail, a wrong material, or a misread dimension.
What proves it
A first article is documented item by item: each requirement, the measured or observed result, and the disposition. The approved first article then serves as the reference for the production or installation that follows, and the record travels with the fabricated work into the turnover package.
Guides that use it
- How to inspect precast concreteInspect precast concrete from the plant to the field (product and finish, embeds and connections, erection tolerance, bearing, and joints), since the connections carry the building.
- How to run a first-article inspection and mock-upInspect the first fabricated item or build the first full-scale assembly in full so the approved sample becomes the standard the whole run is judged against.
- How to verify a mock-upBuild and verify a full-scale mock-up under production conditions, get formal acceptance, and keep it as the workmanship standard the real run is measured against.
Checklists that put first article inspection to work
Free, field-ready checklists, each with the photo every item needs before it can be submitted.
Related terms
- Mock-upA full-scale sample of an assembly, built and approved before production, that becomes the workmanship standard the real work is judged against.
- Initial phase inspectionThe second phase of control: inspecting the first representative portion of a feature to set the workmanship standard for the rest.
- Definable feature of workA discrete, separately inspectable task or segment of work with its own start, finish, and acceptance criteria within the QC plan.
- Source inspectionInspection of material or equipment at the fabricator's or supplier's shop before it ships, rather than waiting for it to arrive on site.
- Receiving inspectionThe check of materials and equipment when they arrive on site, confirming what showed up matches what was approved before it gets installed.
- Punch walkA walk-through of completed work where the team tags every remaining defect and incomplete item onto the punch list.
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.
30-day trial · No card required