Requesting information

Every week on site there's a question waiting on an answer — a detail, a drawing, an approval — and the team can't move until it arrives. Nobody tracks what's still waiting or who owes it, so "still coming" slips from days into weeks, and the delay becomes yours.

What YPA does

• Reads every question out of your WhatsApp, emails and meetings — a request made in a voice note or a site meeting becomes a dated row on the register, not a memory.
• Gives each request an owner and a required-by date — who owes the answer, and when the team actually needs it.
• Shows the open list every morning — what's waiting, how old it is, what it's blocking — so "still coming" stops being an acceptable answer.
• Drafts the follow-up when a request passes its date — with the original question and date attached. You review and send it, so the chase goes out before the team stands, not after.
• Files every answer against its question — so if late information costs you time, the delay is provable from the register: the dates, the owner, the unanswered period. Not from your memory.

Why information is the slowest thing on site

Concrete and steel move on trucks. Information moves in people's inboxes. That's why the flow of information is where delays are born — a question asked on Monday, answered two weeks later, and the team stood for three days in between.

The contractor's problem isn't usually getting the answer. It's knowing what's still waiting, who owes it, and when it became overdue. Without a list, every answer is "still coming."

An RFI is your paper trail

An RFI (Request for Information) is a written question to the consultant, engineer or client — and it's your protection:

• It dates the question. If the answer is late, the delay is provable — from the RFI date, not from memory.
• It names who owes it. The question has an owner. The delay has an owner too.
• It feeds your claim. Late information is a recognised delay — but only if it's written down, dated, and unanswered for a provable period.

An oral "I asked him" is not a claim. A dated RFI with no response is.

What a YPA sheet looks like

Every request for information goes onto the YPA RFI Register — one row per item, dated, with an owner and a required-by date. This is the actual sheet format YPA generates (filled with example rows):

YPA — Your Project Assistant · RFI Register Example project · generated sheet format

RFI No	Date Raised	Discipline	Drawing/Spec Ref	Question	Raised By	Required By	Response	Response Date	Status	Blocks	Verified By	Source Tag
RFI-106	2026-06-28	Architectural	A-104 Rev B	Window sill level - Block A	Site Agent	2026-07-05	Sill at 900mm	2026-07-04	Answered	—	—	Manual
RFI-107	2026-07-02	Structural	S-202 Rev A	Lintel bearing detail - Block A	Site Agent	2026-07-09	Use 150mm bearing	2026-07-08	Answered	—	—	Manual
RFI-108	2026-07-08	Electrical	E-310 Rev C	Cable tray route - plant room	Site Agent	2026-07-15	Route per mark-up	2026-07-14	Answered	—	—	Manual
RFI-109	2026-07-14	Architectural	A-110 Rev B	Stone cladding joint detail	Site Agent	2026-07-21	Use 15mm open joint	2026-07-20	Answered	—	—	Manual
RFI-110	2026-07-18	Mechanical	M-208 Rev B	AHU location - roof	Site Agent	2026-07-25	As per layout	2026-07-24	Answered	—	—	Manual
RFI-111	2026-07-24	Civil	C-112 Rev A	Stormwater outlet invert	Site Agent	2026-07-31	—	—	Open	Block B storm line	—	Manual
RFI-112	2026-07-28	Structural	S-204 Rev C	Slab edge detail - Block B	Site Agent	2026-08-04	—	—	Open	Slab pour Block B	—	Manual
RFI-113	2026-08-01	Electrical	E-312 Rev A	Switchgear feeder sizing	Site Agent	2026-08-08	—	—	Open	Main DB energise	—	Manual
RFI-114	2026-08-05	Architectural	A-118 Rev B	Balustrade fixing detail	Site Agent	2026-08-12	—	—	Open	Stair A handover	—	Manual
RFI-115	2026-08-08	Mechanical	M-212 Rev A	Duct penetration - fire wall	Site Agent	2026-08-15	—	—	Open	Fire wall closure	—	Manual

5 open · 5 answeredYPA flags open rows past their required-by date →

Example only — illustrative rows in the real YPA RFI Register sheet format (one row per request, dated, owned, status-tracked).

What to do about it

• Put every question in writing — RFI it. The date and the owner are the protection.
• Keep the open list visible — a list you can see beats a memory you trust.
• Chase before the team stands — the follow-up goes out when the question is getting old, not when the delay has already happened.
• Track the age — "overdue" is a number, not a feeling. When it's provable, the delay is provable.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. RFI response times, notice periods and delay entitlements come from your signed contract — always check the contract before acting. YPA helps you track and draft; it doesn't issue or approve notices.