Review criteria by tracing the requirement into the basis of design, drawings, schedules and specifications. Confirm its applicability, compare the receiving disciplines and record unresolved inputs or accepted departures. Keep the decision connected to every affected document.
Distinguish the requirement from the proposed response
An owner’s project requirements describe what the project needs to achieve. The basis of design explains the design team’s approach. Drawings, schedules and specifications express the selected solution. WBDG’s guidance on performance objectives connects requirements with design development and owner participation. Source checked October 13, 2026.
Keep those sources distinct in a review record. A project brief, an adopted code provision and a manufacturer limitation have different authors and approval paths. Record which kind of requirement you are investigating before proposing a change.
Eight checks for tracing a design criterion
| Check | Sources to compare | Question |
|---|---|---|
| Requirement owner | Owner brief, room data, design criteria | Who issued the requirement and who can authorize a change? |
| Current baseline | Brief revisions, addenda, design issue register | Which version is current, and does an addendum change the requirement? |
| Applicability | Requirement wording, project location and use | Which room, system, phase or operating condition does the requirement apply to? |
| Design response | Basis of design, drawings, schedules | Where does the design explain how it addresses the requirement? |
| Cross-document agreement | Brief, architectural and consultant documents | Do the receiving disciplines state compatible materials, dimensions and performance? |
| Evidence basis | Calculations, reports, manufacturer data | What supports a stated value, and do its assumptions match the design? |
| Unresolved input | TBC notes, missing detail references, requirement log | What decision or document is still needed, from whom and by when? |
| Accepted change | Decision record, revised requirements, affected sheets | Has an authorized departure been recorded and carried into all dependent documents? |
The worksheet gives the requirement and design response separate reference fields through the source-comparison column. Use the notes to retain the exact project meaning and its decision owner.
Make each requirement testable at its location
Write down the room, system, phase and operating condition to which the requirement applies. A building-wide criterion may need several design responses. A room-specific criterion may be satisfied in one location and unresolved in another.
Where the requirement includes a quantity or performance value, record its units and basis. Distinguish a project target from a calculated result or a scheduled equipment rating. If the supporting calculation or report is missing, record the evidence needed rather than inferring that the design meets the requirement.
Check the interfaces between disciplines
Follow a requirement into the disciplines that must implement it. An elevator brief can affect architectural shaft walls, structural anchorage, pit construction and floor levels. A selected wall system can affect structure, enclosure details and acoustic requirements.
The school science building review compared an elevator brief with architecture and structure. The sources described three shaft wall systems and inconsistent travel inputs. The issue was the unresolved relationship among documents, not a choice the review tool could make for the designers.
Control changes to the baseline
Record the current requirement revision, any superseding addendum and the decision that authorizes a departure. Identify the affected drawings, schedules, specifications and reports. Updating the brief alone leaves a conflict if the design still reflects the earlier requirement.
For an unresolved criterion, identify the required input, the responsible person and the next decision date. A “to be confirmed” note is a useful signal to track, but it does not supply the missing decision. Keep the item open until the governing documents and design response can be reconciled.
Use the record in a focused review
Start with requirements that affect a near-term decision, such as procurement, coordination or a milestone issue. Give the responsible designers a source pair and a precise question. After the decision, verify that every dependent document expresses it consistently.
Groundbook can compare the supplied set with your project references and checklist instructions. Upload the relevant brief and design documents, identify the criteria to check, and verify the returned potential findings. Explore checklist review and drawing-to-report review for these source relationships.