Construction Defect List - Procore

Here, we dive into what a defect list is, how key stakeholders interact with defect lists and what you can do to improve the defect list process. What Is a ... ArticleConstructionDefectList:WhatIsaConstructionDefectListIntroductionConstructionDefectList101:WhatItIsandHowtoUseItHowDoStakeholdersInteractWithaDefectList?HowCanYouImprovetheDefectListProcess?ConstructionDefectListSoftware:MakingtheFinalWalkthroughaBreezeChapter1ConstructionDefectList101:WhatItIsandHowtoUseItWhenyou'remanagingaconstructionproject,itcanfeellikethetasksneverend.Newissuesarisethatneedtobetackled,andthenthereareoldtasksthatsneakuponyouandrequirearevisit.Withsomanymovingparts,youneedsomethingtomakelifeeasierandthefinalconstructionwalkthroughabreeze.Enter,defectlists. Inconstructionprojectmanagement,defectlistsareacommonpracticetohelpyouensurethatalltheprojectspecificationsmatchthecontract.Here,wediveintowhatadefectlistis,howkeystakeholdersinteractwithdefectlistsandwhatyoucandotoimprovethedefectlistprocess.WhatIsaDefectList?Adefectlistisanitemisedchecklistofoutstandingtasksneedingattention.Alsocalledasnaglistordeficiencylist,aconstructiondefectlistincludesanyworkthatwasnotcompletedaccordingtospecificationsoranyitemsthatneedcorrection,suchasincorrectinstallsorimproperbuildingfunctionality.Defectlistitemsareusuallysmallerfixes,andthisisbecauselargerissuestypicallycomewithurgencyandhavealreadybeenaddressedthroughavariation. Hereareafewexamplesofcommondefectlistitems:RepairbrokenwindowReplacechippedbaseboardsTouchuppaintonceilingsReplacethecrackedbathroommirrorClearoutdebrisinthebackpatioAsyoucansee,adefectlistiscomprisedofsmall,lingeringto-dosthatneedattentionbeforeaconstructionfinalwalkthrough—or,whatissometimesreferredtoasa"punchout".Withthisinmind,everyprojectmanager'sgoalistoachievea"zerodefectlist"beforethefinalwalk-throughtakesplace.Chapter2HowDoStakeholdersInteractWithaDefectList?Noonepersoncanbesolelyresponsibleforensuringallitemsarecrossedor"punched"offthedefectlist—thatwouldbeoverwhelming.Therearemultiplekeystakeholdersinvolvedinthedefectlistprocess,includingowners,headcontractors,subcontractorsandarchitects. OwnerTheowner's,ortheclient's,mainresponsibilityistobepresenttowardstheendoftheprojectandinspectthework.Astheprojectapproachescompletion,theownershouldvisittheworksitetosurveywhathasbeendone.Thisisagoodtimefortheownertoinspectwork,askquestionsandprovideanydirectionorfinalrequests.Theseitemsmaketheirwayontothedefectlist.HeadcontractorTheheadcontractorhasmanyrolesinthedefectlistprocess. Becausetheyactasaliaisonbetweentheowner,subcontractorsandarchitect,theyarecentraltotheentireprocess.Theirresponsibilitiesinclude:Populatingtheowner'srequestsandcommentsintothedefectlistExaminingwhat'slefttobedoneandaddinganyadditionalitemsnecessarytothedefectlistAllocatingremainingtasksandresponsibilitiestosubcontractorsDeterminingarealisticprojectcompletiondatebasedonthedefectlistandcommunicatingthatinformationtoallstakeholdersinvolvedEnsuredefectlist completionbeforethefinalconstructionwalk-throughSubcontractors Subcontractorswillreceivealistoftasksfromtheheadcontractorandneedtoaddresseachtaskbythetimerequested.Subcontractorsshouldalsobepreparedtoansweranyquestionswhenitcomestotheselineitems.Forexample,ifasubcontractorisassignedtorepairpavementcracks,theownerorheadcontractormayaskhowtherepairwasdone. Theremayalsobesomecaseswherethesubcontractordoesn'tcompleteatasktotheexactspecificationsonthedefectlist.Thismightbebecausetherequestwasn'tviableandtheyusedexpertiseandbestjudgmenttogetthejobdoneinthemosteffectivewaypossible.Inthesecases,thesubcontractorshouldbepreparedtoarticulatehowandwhy. ArchitectDuringthefinalconstructionwalkthrough,thearchitectisneededtoconfirmthatwhatwasdesignedwasactuallybuilt.Beforethefinalwalkthrough,architectsarealsoresponsibleforapprovinganychangesinconstructiondesignthatwerenecessary,andthisneedstobeaccountedforduringthefinalwalkthrough.Chapter3HowCanYouImprovetheDefectListProcess?Defectlistsarefundamentaltoanyconstructionproject.WhileasimplelistonapieceofpaperoranExcelspreadsheetcansuffice,largeprojectscanhaveextensivedefectlistitemsthatcangetlostonpaperorinexcel.Therearewaystomakethedefectlistprocesseasieronyouandforeveryoneinvolved. Documentasyougo.Althoughitcanbetemptingtoputoffcreatingadefectlistuntiltheveryend,yourteamcanworkmoreefficientlyifyoubegincreatingyourdefectlistearlieron.Byimplementingadefectlistfromthestart,youalsosetatoneforstandardsandworkflowforeveryoneinvolvedonthejob.Documentingasyougoisknownasa"rollingdefectlist"or"defect-as-you-go"method.Itinvolvesalittlemoreworkupfrontwithconsistentcheck-insonworkdutiesandprogress,butitpaysoffdividendsintheend. Assigntaskstotheappropriateperson.Sometimesitemsgetaddedtoadefectlistinaflurry.EveryoneknowsthatitneedstogetdoneASAP,buttheydon'tknowwhoisresponsibleforit.Nomatterhowbigorsmallthetaskis,eachitemonadefectlistneedstobeassignedtoaspecificperson.Ifit'sataskthatinvolvesmultiplepeople,makesuretoassignclearroles.Forexample,ifthreesubcontractorsareassignedtoatask,istheresomeonewhoshouldbetakingtheleadandownershipofthetask?Rolesandresponsibilitiesshouldalwaysbeclearlyspelledout,asyoucanneverjustassumethateveryoneisonthesamepage.Accountabilityiscritical.Beclearonyourasks.Wediscussedassigningtaskstotherightpersonbutoncethosetasksareassigned,areyousuretheycompletelyunderstandthenatureoftheask?Themoredescriptiveandthoroughadefectlistis,thesmoothereverythingflows.Forinstance,doesthepersonyouassignedseveraltaskstoknowwheneachtaskneedstobecomplete?Dotheyunderstandwhichtaskstakepriorityoverothers? Thisiswhereitcanbehelpfultohaveapremadedefectlisttemplateyoucanfillin.Thatway,youknowyou'recoveringallofyourbasesandbeingasthoroughaspossible.Themoreinformationyouextend,themorelikelyyourprojectwillendinsuccess. Useimagestodocumentissues.Doeseveryoneknowwhichbedroomyoumeanbythe"backbedroom?"Arethechipsorstainscalledoutinthedefectlistrecognisabletoall?Sometimes,evenaswedoourbesttodescribesomething,itwon'talwaysclickrightaway.Or,someonemightnothavetheeagle-eyethatyouhaveandnotunderstandtheissueathand. Thisiswhereimagescanhelpquicklycommunicatethewhat,how,whereandwhyofwhatneedstoberesolved—andcutdownonconfusion.Additionally,havingphotosprovidesyourteamwithreceiptsofwhatissuesactuallyexistedandwhatwasdonetoresolvethoseissues.Thiscanhelppreventyoufromhavingtoredoworkandcanalsohelpjustifywhythingsweredonethewaytheywere.Optimisetheprocesswithsoftware.Whilepenandpapercangetthejobdone,itonlyendsupaddingextraworkandstresstoyourplate.Penandpapermakeithardtokeeptrackofallthemovingpartsinvolvedinadefectlist,anditmakesitdifficulttoprovidereal-timeupdatestokeystakeholdersinvolvedintheproject.EvenanExcelspreadsheetfallsshortoftheotheroptionsthatareouttherenow.Cloud-basedconstructiondefectlistsoftwarekeepseveryoneinformedandaccountableatalltimes.Chapter4ConstructionDefectListSoftware:MakingtheFinalWalkthroughaBreezeProcore'sconstructiondefectlistsoftwareallowsyoutokeepaclearlistofdefectlistitems,assignresponsibilities,trackstatusandmore.Withasimple,intuitiveinterfaceandpre-loadeddefectlisttemplates,youcangenerateandupdatedefectlistswithminimaleffort.Sinceourdefectlistsoftwareismobilefriendly,youcantakeyourdefectlistwithyouontheworksite,whereyoucanassigntasks,takephotosanddocumentissuesdirectlyinthefield.Learnmoreabouthowyoucancreateadefectlistinsecondsthatwillensureyouazerodefectlistbeforeyournextconstructionfinalwalk-throughConstructionDefectList:WhatIsaConstructionDefectListOverviewIntroductionChapter1ConstructionDefectList101:WhatItIsandHowtoUseItChapter2HowDoStakeholdersInteractWithaDefectList?Chapter3HowCanYouImprovetheDefectListProcess?Chapter4ConstructionDefectListSoftware:MakingtheFinalWalkthroughaBreezeStartgrowingwithProcoretoday.Withtoolstomakeeverypartofyourprocessmorehumanandasupportteamexcitedtohelpyou,gettingstartedwithanyprojecthasneverbeeneasier.RequestaDemo©2022ProcoreTechnologies,Inc.PrivacyNoticeTermsofServiceAustraliaPrivacyContactUsOpensinanewwindowOpensanexternalsiteOpensanexternalsiteinanewwindowMovetointernalsection