A bad detail call on a hospital job made me double check everything now

I was working on some mechanical plans for a new wing at St. Mary's about six months ago. The lead engineer marked a pipe run as 4-inch on his sketch, but his handwriting was rough. I drafted it up, and it got built. Turns out he meant 6-inch, and the whole section had to be redone on site. It cost the firm a big chunk of change in change orders. Since then, I make a phone call or send a quick email to confirm any unclear mark, no matter how small it seems. Does anyone else have a rule like this after a mix-up?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_anthony25d ago

Honestly that sounds like the lead engineer's fault, not yours. At my old firm, the rule was the person doing the sketch had to initial any unclear mark BEFORE it went to drafting. Putting the whole check on the drafter just slows everything down. A quick call is good, but the system should catch it earlier.

simon11325d ago

Totally agree about needing clear marks early on. Reminds me of a site where the surveyor's field sketch had a squiggle everyone assumed was a tree. Turned out it was a small shed location, which caused a massive headache later when the foundation guys showed up. That kind of thing just proves your point, a five second initial when the ink is still wet saves weeks of grief.

oscar_ellis16d ago

Putting the whole check on the sketch originator just adds more steps. A good drafter should be able to read the field intent and ask smart questions, which keeps the project moving faster. The extra call you make now is just adding a layer of needless delay.