A Step-by-step Guide to Quality Control Procedures for Work Inspection Requests

On construction projects, such as low- and high-rise buildings or even on horizontal projects like building roads, bridges, skyways, ports and embankments, Work Inspection Requests (WIR) are routinely required. Understanding and following the correct procedures for submitting your Work Inspection Requests is important.

These procedures are sometimes confusing, especially if you are not an expert on the document controlling system for Work Inspection Requests.

There are also various types of document controlling systems for different projects, but Work Inspection Requests are the ones that would definitely require proper document controls.

In my previous blog, there are about 10 different project forms that I mention on how a WIR is supposed to be used. Also, remember that a WIR is necessary when you submit the project for regular billing, so taking great care with your WIR is extremely important.

By the way, I advise continuing reading until almost the very end of this article because I’m gonna giving tips for you to boost your knowledge about this topic.

Below are the steps you need to take for your Work Inspection Request to be properly controlled:

1. Site Engineer or Project Engineer Prepares a Draft WIR

Once a part of the project is completed, the Project Engineer or Site Engineer will prepare a draft of the Work Inspection Report or he/she may write a description of the inspection on a drawing or sketch of the work completed. He/she will then hand it over to the QA Engineer.

He/she will highlight the specific location of the area to be inspected, indicating the gridlines on the drawing.

2. QA Engineer or QAQC Engineer will prepare the Work Inspection Request

On a huge project I was recently involved in (a more than a 1 billion-dirham project) we had a Quality Assurance Engineer prepare the Work Inspection Request. But, on smaller projects you would have the QAQC Engineer take care of preparing the WIR. In that project, I greatly enhanced How To Fill-up Inspection Request for the First Time and so can you.

Once you receive the WIR from the Project Engineer you can write the description into your approved WIR template.

The first thing to do is ask the document controller (DC) for the next WIR reference number. Or, if you are the one controlling the WIR number, then you can just use the reference number that comes next.
Then write in the date and the date of the inspection, which sometimes occurs after 24 hours. Next you describe your activity. Don’t forget to write the activity number from the Inspection and Test Plan.

3. Main contractor Document Controller to Submit WIR to Consultant

The document controller shall be responsible for submitting the Work Inspection Request to the engineer or consultant. He/she will make a copy from the original WIR as a “received copy,” which he/she will hand over to the consultant’s document controller. At this stage of the process, the main contractor’s document controller and the consultant’s document controller will talk.

4. The Consultant’s Document Controller to Record the WIR

The document controller of the consultant shall receive the WIR and he/she shall stamp the received copy. The WIR will then be recorded in his/her log and eventually return the WIR received copy after confirming that the reference number is in true succession and correct.
While the original WIR shall be sent to the Engineer or Consultant for Inspection.

5. The Main Contractor’s Document Controller to Log the WIR

Once the WIR received copy is returned to the document controller of the main contractor, he/she will record all the details on the WIR in his/her log. He/she should make sure that the log is up-to-date with all the details indicated on it.
At this stage, the log is being updated with the date the WIR is submitted along with the revision, which is at zero status (revision 0).

When the original WIR is returned with comments (the engineer or consultant has definitely completed the inspection), then the DC will give a copy of the WIR’s front sheet to each concerned staff member, especially the QAQC Engineer because he/she is the one who will follow up with the rectification if the WIR needs to be revised and the status resubmitted. He/she will eventually resubmit the WIR once the rectification is completed.

If the WIR is returned with “Approved with Comment status” a copy shall also be given to the concerned staff members to inform them of what the comments are. Although it is approved, there are still requirements that need to be taken care of.
The DC will update the log putting in all the necessary details, such as the “date returned” and the comments, which shall be recorded in the log. But, this is optional because it will require a lot of work to record all the comments. A single DC can’t always perform that task due to his/her work volume.

The original WIR shall be stored in Archive 1. It is stored in the file box labeled 2. Also, scan the WIR and store in the shared folder so that each staff member may access it in the network.

6. QA or QAQC Engineer to resubmit the WIR

Now, at this time a commented WIR will only be submitted if the comments are addressed. Take a copy of the revision 0 of the same WIR and then save as Revision 1 (Rev. 1) and then update the date and time of your desired time of inspection.

7. Start over at Step 3

The main contractor’s document controller shall start over again at Step 3. He/she will follow the process again, but this time it is for the Revision 1 Work Inspection Request until it reaches Step 6. If the WIR still gets a “revise and resubmit” status, then go back to Step 3 and so on and so forth.

In most cases, the Work Inspection Request does have a revise and resubmit status. So, you as a QAQC Engineer have to make sure that the site you are going to inspect with your consultant is fully ready in order to avoid resubmissions of the WIR, which obviously delays the project because you cannot proceed with the following work without the Work Inspection Request you submitted being approved.

Quality Engineers Tips:

• Work Inspection Request or WIR is used to include in the application of periodical project billing, ensure that it is approved.
•  Always follow up your WIR, a  WIR with revise and resubmit status is advised to immediately resubmit.
• In filling up the WIR, ensure that you check it many times before you submit.

In addition, you have to ensure that all WIRs are in approved status because that’s how your project is going to get paid for.