Construction document QA/QC checklist
A milestone-ready checklist for architects, engineers, contractors, and owners, grouped the way review teams actually work. Copy it, trim it, and run it before every issue.
A construction document QA/QC checklist is a structured list of checks a project team runs on drawings and specifications before a milestone issue—DD, CD, permit, bid, or construction. Good checklists cover set integrity, cross-discipline coordination, each discipline's internal consistency, drawings against specifications, and conformance to owner, permit, and code requirements. The checklist below is written to be run by people, and to be uploaded to Groundbook AI as a review reference.
What the checklist is for
Most document errors are not design mistakes. They are consistency failures: a wall type changed on one plan but not the schedule, a beam deepened in the structural set while the mechanical route stayed put, a spec section that still names the product from two revisions ago. Each is cheap to fix on paper and expensive to fix in the field.
For industry background, the Construction Industry Institute's Forecasting and Minimizing Field Rework connects field rework with cost growth, schedule delays, productivity impacts, and repeated work.
A QA/QC checklist turns "someone should look at that" into a repeatable pass. It does not replace the professional review of the architect or engineer of record; it makes sure the routine questions are asked every time, on every sheet, before the set leaves the office.
The checklist
1. Set integrity
- Sheet index matches the sheets in the set, including consultant sheets and any deleted or added sheets
- Every sheet carries the same project name, number, issue date, and revision
- Revision clouds and deltas correspond to the revision block; superseded revisions are removed
- General notes, abbreviations, and symbols are current and used consistently across disciplines
- Every detail, section, and enlarged-plan callout points to a sheet and detail that exist
- North arrows, grids, levels, and elevations agree between disciplines
2. Cross-discipline coordination
- Structural framing (beams, transfers, slab edges, depressions) matches architectural plans and sections
- Floor-to-floor heights and top-of-steel or top-of-slab elevations agree between architectural and structural sets
- Openings required by mechanical, plumbing, and electrical (shafts, chases, sleeves, louvers) appear on architectural and structural drawings
- Duct, pipe, and conduit mains clear beams, joists, and ceiling heights shown on the RCP
- Equipment locations, weights, and pads are on the structural drawings; clearances are on the architectural plans
- Fire-rated walls, floors, and shafts are continuous across disciplines, and penetrations through them are identified
- Civil grades, utility inverts, and site structures agree with the building's finish floor and foundation drawings
3. Architectural
- Room names and numbers agree between plans, RCPs, finish schedules, door schedules, and enlarged plans
- Door, window, and hardware schedules match what is tagged on plans and elevations
- Wall types on plans match the wall-type legend, ratings, and acoustic requirements
- Dimensions close; critical clearances (accessibility, egress, equipment) are dimensioned, not implied
- Elevations, sections, and details agree with each other on materials, heights, and assemblies
- Accessibility routes, turning spaces, reach ranges, and toilet-room clearances are shown and dimensioned
4. Structural
- Member sizes on plans match schedules and typical details; connections are called out where required
- Loads, deflection criteria, and design codes in general notes match the specifications and calculations
- Foundation plan reflects final column and wall locations; footing steps follow the site grades
- Openings, penetrations, and edge conditions requested by other disciplines are framed
- Special inspection, testing, and deferred-submittal requirements are listed and complete
5. MEP and fire protection
- Equipment schedules match tags on plans and the specification sections that describe them
- Capacities, voltages, and connection sizes agree between mechanical, electrical, and plumbing sheets
- Risers, shafts, and mains are continuous floor to floor and land where the plans say they do
- Fire-protection coverage, riser locations, and rated-corridor conditions align with the life-safety plan
- Controls, sequences, and points lists describe the equipment actually scheduled
6. Drawings against specifications
- Every material, product, and system on the drawings has a specification section, and vice versa
- Ratings, performance values, finishes, and sizes agree between drawings, schedules, and specs
- Submittal, mock-up, and testing requirements in the specs are achievable with what is drawn
- Division 01 requirements (phasing, temporary work, closeout) do not contradict drawing notes
7. Code, owner, and permit requirements
- The code summary sheet matches the occupancy, construction type, heights, areas, and separations drawn
- Egress widths, travel distances, and exit counts on the life-safety plan are supported by the floor plans
- Owner standards, checklists, and program requirements are traceable to a sheet or spec section
- Jurisdiction comments from earlier submittals are resolved and the resolution is visible in the set
How to run it at each milestone
Do not run the whole list at every issue. Weight it by milestone:
- Design development: set integrity, cross-discipline coordination, and the code summary. This is where geometry gets locked.
- Construction documents: everything, with emphasis on schedules, details, and drawings against specifications.
- Permit: code and requirements section, plus set integrity so the plans examiner is not chasing missing sheets.
- Bid and buyout: drawings against specifications and scope boundaries, because that is where change orders are born.
- Construction: re-run coordination on any re-issue; a small revision on one sheet is the classic source of a field conflict.
Assign each section to the discipline that owns it, and keep a single log of open items with the sheet reference. A finding without a sheet number will not get fixed.
Where AI plan review fits
The list above is long because the set is long. Reading every relationship on a 300-sheet project twice is the part humans do least reliably, and it is the part Groundbook AI is built for: it classifies every file, connects sheets, schedules, specifications, and uploaded code sources in a project knowledge graph, and returns possible issues with the exact sheet and location. Upload this checklist as a reference document and the review will apply it across the set.
The findings are questions, not verdicts. The architect and engineers of record still decide what is an error and what is intent—the tool makes sure the first pass covered everything.
Related pages
Frequently asked questions
What is QA/QC in construction documents?
Quality assurance is the process a firm follows so documents are produced correctly; quality control is the check of the documents themselves before they are issued. A QA/QC checklist is the quality-control part: a repeatable list of items reviewed on the drawings and specifications at each milestone.
How is a QA/QC checklist different from a plan check?
A plan check is performed by a jurisdiction or third-party reviewer to confirm a permit submittal meets adopted codes. A QA/QC checklist is run by the project team on its own set, and it covers coordination, consistency, and owner requirements in addition to code items.
Can I upload my own checklist to Groundbook AI?
Yes. Upload a firm, owner, permit, or constructability checklist as a reference document, and Groundbook AI will apply it across the drawings and specifications in the project and return possible conformance issues with the source location.
Run this checklist across your next set
Set up a review yourself, or book time to talk through your project.