RFIs

A Request for Information (RFI) is the way a question on site gets a documented, attributable answer. Where defects track "this needs fixing" and work orders track "this is engaged for repair," RFIs track "we need a decision before we can proceed."

Instead of losing design questions in email, every RFI in IssuesId is a threaded, searchable conversation linked back to the drawing, defect, or stakeholder it relates to.

The lifecycle

RFIs move through three states:

01Open — raised, awaiting a response.
02Responded — an answer has been posted to the thread.
03Closed — the question is resolved and the answer is on record.

A closed RFI can be re-opened if new information emerges or the answer turns out to be incomplete — the thread continues from where it left off, with the re-open itself recorded.

Raising an RFI

From a defect, a drawing pin, or the RFI inbox:

→Add a subject and a clear question.
→Attach drawings, photos, or documents that frame the problem.
→Pick the recipient — a named user, a role, or a contractor.
→Set a due date if the answer is time-critical.

The RFI lands in the recipient's inbox. They're notified by email (and in-app if they're online).

Threaded conversation

Every reply, attachment, and status change lives in the RFI thread. The thread is the audit record:

→Who asked.
→Who answered.
→What was attached at each step.
→When each message landed.

Threads support attachments inline — drop a marked-up drawing or a photo and it lives with the message, not in a separate folder somewhere.

Filtered views

The RFI inbox splits into the views you'd expect from any threaded system:

→Inbox — RFIs sent to you, awaiting your response.
→Sent — RFIs you've raised.
→Drafts — RFIs you've started but not yet sent.
→Trash — soft-deleted RFIs (recoverable).

Each view is scoped by your role, so you're never wading through other people's traffic.

Linking to defects and drawings

An RFI raised from a defect carries that defect's ID and location forward. An RFI raised from a drawing pin carries the drawing reference and the pin coordinates. The link is bidirectional — open the defect later and the related RFI appears in its history.

This is the trail that matters when a defect close-out depends on a design decision: the defect record points at the RFI, the RFI points back at the defect, and both have full thread evidence.