Inspections are a non-negotiable part of any project. But what happens when your team or inspectors can’t be on-site? That's where remote inspections come in.
Whether you're working with subcontractors, managing multiple job sites, or simply looking for ways to improve efficiency, remote inspection technology allows you to maintain high-quality standards without always being physically present.
In this guide, we’ll cover:
What remote inspections are
How to conduct a remote inspection step-by-step
How to create inspection checklists
What tools and documentation are essential
Best practices to ensure quality and credibility
Subcontractors can carry out these inspection services remotely, using common cell phones or tablets.
Via Remote Inspections, you can see what you need to do to get the inspection done.
This approach requires the Subcontractor to rigorously document the proper completion of work on a mobile inspection app for your review and approval. It is an enhanced version of the inspection process that you or your inspectors use when you are there in person.
If you want the inspection completed as if you were there in person and in ways that prevent fakes, it requires enhancements to your checklists to make them a remote work checklist as it is a pretty unique solution.
Remote inspections can:
Improve productivity by reducing travel time
Enable faster issue resolution
Document compliance thoroughly
Keep projects moving without delays
Improve safety by reducing the number of people on-site
When done properly, remote inspections are just as reliable and often more thorough than in-person visits.
So how do you enhance checklists for virtual / remote inspections?
Subcontractors will need a remote work checklist for each phase of completed work. This usually ties into some milestone, pay-point, or feature of work. Each checklist is used to report the completion of that work.
On those checklists, checkpoints are required steps for documenting completion of the report, make sure to add checkpoints for every detail that you want documented. You need to be prescriptive, so the Subcontractor checks the same items that you would do if you were there in person.
Word the checkpoints in such a way that requires the Subcontractor to provide information that verifies that they are actually on site, doing the inspection and are reporting on the real item.
And also choose data that can only be collected by being present on site.
Examples include:
When using measurement devices, then record the actual measurements, accompanied with a photo of the reading on the device and preferably with a date, time and GPS stamp. These details are essential and will lend credibility to the report.
Ensure that the Subcontractor takes a lot of high definition pictures and photographs on every checkpoint detail. These pictures are your eyes on the jobsite, so be specific about what you need to see to be able to approve the work.
Supplement the pictures with a requirement for a picture survey of the inspected work.
Require the Subcontractor to sign-off that the inspection is complete and the inspected work meets project requirements (except for documented deficiencies).
Ensure that:
Mockup an inspection as a training model and walk your Subcontractor through the inspection process.
Review inspections as they come through. In this way you can give immediate feedback and help to get on the right track. Make sure though, that they are accountable for following the inspection process.
But remember, you are still responsible for final approval of each inspection, so don’t take a hands-off approach. Review the inspections as they come through. Blow them up to explore the details and sign-off only when you are satisfied.
As a by-product, you’ll probably find that you have better documentation of the properly completed work than you would normally have for your own inspections.
Beyond convenience, remote inspections deliver measurable value:
Faster approvals
Detailed documentation for every phase
Fewer delays
Improved accountability
Greater flexibility for your team
In many cases, companies find that remote inspections actually improve their quality management systems and are worth keeping long-term.
If you would like a demonstration of how you can implement a remote virtual inspection with the our construction inspection app, then please schedule a live Demo or Free Trial with us and benefit from our technical expertise. Completely without obligation.
We hope you found this blog article interesting and useful. If you have any questions, please feel free to get in touch. At FTQ360, we deliver remote inspections designed to improve your business and are serious about quality. If you are too, we'd love to talk.