RFI (request for information)

An RFI (request for information) is a formal written question from the contractor to the design team — architect or engineer — asking for clarification of drawings, specifications or site conditions before the affected work proceeds. RFIs exist because plans are never perfect: dimensions conflict, details are missing, and field conditions differ from the documents. Each RFI is numbered, dated and tracked through to a written answer, which does two things: it keeps clarifications from getting lost in phone calls and emails, and it creates a documented record of when a question was asked and how long the answer took — evidence that matters if design-related delays later become a claim. Slow RFI turnaround is a leading cause of field delays, so RFI logs with aging and ball-in-court tracking are a core feature of construction project management software.

Related term: Submittal