Toward a Qualitative RFIs Content Analysis Approach to Improve Collaboration Between Design and Construction Phases

Requests for Information (RFIs) are formal processes, used in the industry of Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC), to obtain information not contained or inferable in the contract documents between the design and construction phases. RFIs produce rich, precise and structured sources of information. Analysis of RFIs content can help identify recurrent problems. The goal of this article is to present a method to identify problem areas during the construction phase of AEC projects through the analysis of RFI documents. Recent advances in the qualitative analysis of document content make this quest possible and fast. This article proposes to the scientific communities and AEC industry professionals, a systematic method based on the qualitative analysis of RFIs in order to propose some types of information to consider for a design more adapted to the construction phase. An example of the application in a steel construction project demonstrates the feasibility of this method and proposes some points to consider to improve the design of steel structures.