Quality Assurance (QA) and Quality Control (QC) have been core pillars of project delivery for decades, yet the industry continues to face costly rework, schedule delays, safety incidents, and warranty disputes. Despite better technology, more data, and increasingly sophisticated delivery methods, firms continue to struggle with quality outcomes.
So what’s actually happening? And more importantly—how do we fix it?
- The Myth of “Shared Responsibility” Has Diluted Accountability
Most firms say “Quality is everyone’s job.” It sounds collaborative, but in practice it often results in no one truly owning the outcome. Project engineers assume supers are checking work. Supers assume the trade foremen have it covered. Trades assume the GC will flag issues. And owners assume the contract documents guarantee a certain standard automatically.
Result: Quality becomes reactive, inconsistent, and dependent on individuals rather than systems.
What must change
- Assign clear, named QA/QC owners at both the project and trade levels.
- Make quality expectations contractual, measurable, and reviewed at buyout.
- Require trades to submit not just ITPs (Inspection & Test Plans) but proof-of-process documentation.
- The Industry Is Still Rewarding Speed Over Quality
Schedules continue to compress while labor experience declines. The message—intentional or not—is: “Just get it done.”
Workers cut corners because:
- Milestones matter more than workmanship
- Bonuses reward dates, not durability
- Teams fear triggering delay claims
- Training budgets are tight and field mentorship is rare
Result: The fastest path often wins over the correct one, and defects get buried behind finishes.
What must change
- Include quality metrics in performance bonuses (punch list severity, first-pass inspection rates, rework hours).
- Provide schedule buffers tied to historical rework data.
- Track true cost of rework and share it with owners and executives to shift decision-making incentives.
- QC Often Starts Too Late
Many firms still treat QC as a “check the work once it’s installed” task. By then, it’s too late—especially in complex systems like MEP coordination, structural embeds, envelope assemblies, and life safety integration.
Result: Problems emerge at the worst possible time: during commissioning or closeout.
What must change
- Move QC upstream: preconstruction reviews, targeted constructability analysis, BIM-enabled clash prevention, and coordinated submittal packages.
- Use early mock-ups—physical or digital—to catch performance issues before they’re repeated across the building.
- Deploy QC checklists before execution, not after.
- Documentation Has Become a Mess—And AI Is Exposing It
Technology has exploded: Procore, BIM 360, PlanGrid, Fieldwire, drone data, photo logs, 3D scans. But more data hasn’t translated into better decisions because the documentation is inconsistent, incomplete, or not trusted.
Common issues:
- Photos without context
- Reports written just to satisfy a procedural step
- Vague deficiency logs that allow interpretation
- Submittals not fully coordinated across trades
- As-builts that are nowhere near “as-built”
Result: Teams spend hours searching for answers that should be instantly visible.
What must change
- Standardize photo documentation (orientation, angle, scale, labeling).
- Use AI-assisted QA/QC to detect missing items, recurring defects, and documentation gaps.
- Create structured templates for field reports—short, descriptive, and consistent.
- Treat data hygiene as a foundational skill, not an admin burden.
- A Dramatic Decline in Skilled Labor Is Catching Up to Us
80% of contractors report difficulty finding qualified workers. This is not a temporary cycle—it’s structural. We have:
- Retiring superintendents with 30+ years of tacit knowledge
- Fewer apprentices entering the trades
- Increased reliance on workers with limited field experience
- Elevated project complexity (smart buildings, specialty materials, tight tolerances)
Result: The industry is asking people with less experience to build more complicated structures, faster.
What must change
- Rebuild craft mentorship programs: pairing new workers with senior foremen and supers.
- Require quality training during onboarding—not as a reaction to failures.
- Capture veteran knowledge into standardized best practices, visuals, and checklists.
- Owners and Designers Sometimes Undermine Quality Without Realizing It
Poor or incomplete design documents are a top driver of rework. Add value engineering, midstream user changes, and uncertain owner expectations, and projects spend months operating in ambiguity.
When the drawings are unclear:
- Trades guess
- GCs interpret
- Owners assume intent
- Architects issue clarifications late
Result: Quality errors get baked into the project long before execution.
What must change
- Hold early design quality workshops (designers + GC + key trades).
- Define “design completeness” thresholds before issuing for construction.
- Require owners to commit to performance requirements early to avoid repeated redesign cycles.
- Embrace integrated delivery methods where appropriate.
So How Do We Actually Fix QA/QC? A 6-Part Industry Playbook
Here is what high-performing firms are doing—and what the rest of the industry must adopt:
- Start Quality in Preconstruction
- Use model-based coordination
- Conduct trade partner scoping sessions
- Require submittal alignment meetings
- Forecast quality risks using past project data
- Make Accountability Unambiguous
- Assign QA/QC champions at multiple tiers
- Make roles and expectations part of the contract
- Include quality deliverables in trade buyouts
- Prioritize Training and Mentorship
- Standardize onboarding for field workers
- Reinvest in journeyman-to-apprentice mentorship
- Offer short, just-in-time quality videos and micro-lessons
- Standardize Processes and Checklists
- Visual checklists with photos and tolerances
- Clear QC hold points
- Consistent field report templates
- Daily quality huddles for critical path work
- Embrace Technology—But Clean Up the Data First
- Use structured digital QA/QC workflows
- Automate routine inspections
- Deploy 3D scanning and reality capture where feasible
- Leverage AI to detect anomalies and flag missing documentation
- Align Incentives With Quality Outcomes
- Let quality metrics drive bonuses, promotions, and contract renewals
- Report rework costs the same way safety incidents are reported
- Reward teams who achieve “zero-defect turnover” or “first-pass commissioning”
Conclusion: Quality Isn’t a Department—It’s a Culture
Construction firms aren’t failing because people don’t care about quality. They’re failing because:
- Responsibilities are unclear
- Systems are inconsistent
- Incentives are misaligned
- Training is inadequate
- Technology is underutilized
- Documentation is sloppy
- Experience gaps are widening
Fixing QA/QC requires leadership—real leadership—from owners, executives, trade partners, and field teams. The firms that get this right will deliver faster, safer, more profitable projects with fewer disputes and happier clients.
Those who don’t will continue paying the hidden tax of rework—a tax that is now costing the U.S. construction industry over $177 billion per year.
