What is an RFI?

A question that needs a formal, tracked answer: the roles, the statuses, and how ball in court keeps it moving.

1 min read

An RFI (Request for Information) is a question that needs a formal, tracked answer. Not a hallway chat, not a message that gets buried: a numbered item with a named owner, a deadline, and a permanent record. Think "confirm rebar spacing at grid C4" when the drawing is ambiguous and the crew is waiting.

Two roles, one question

Every RFI has a Raiser, the person who asked the question, and an Assignee, the person who owes the answer. The raiser cares about getting unblocked; the assignee is accountable for responding. Watchers can follow along without owning anything.

Ball in court: whose move is it?

Ball in court always shows who holds the next move. When you raise an RFI, the ball is with the assignee. When they ask for clarification, it comes back to you. Nobody has to remember whose turn it is, and nothing stalls because both sides thought the other was on it.

The four statuses

RFIs point at real documents

An RFI can reference the exact documents it concerns, straight from the document register. The assignee opens the same drawing and revision you were looking at, so the answer lands on the right sheet, not a guess.