Automation for Submittals and RFIs: How AI Is Changing Everything

Ask any architect what they dread most, and you'll hear it: submittals and RFIs. They're the vampires of the construction process — sucking up hours, daylight, and sanity.

Every correction cycle means more redlines, more rework, more meetings. Even the best-run firms lose weeks here. But AI for architects can finally break this bottleneck.

The pain of the old way

Submittal and RFI management has always been manual. It's endless comparisons — between drawings, specs, and emails. It's a thousand micro-decisions that shouldn't need a human brain.

The real cost

Think about your last major project:

• Hours per submittal review: 45-120 minutes of comparing specs to shop drawings
• RFI response time: 60-180 minutes hunting for the right answer in your documents
• Correction cycles: 2-4 rounds per submittal on average
• Lost productivity: Senior staff constantly interrupted for "quick questions"

Until now, no tool could truly understand that context. Generic document management systems just store files—they don't comprehend them.

The AI shift: from manual to intelligent

AI in construction reads, compares, and understands. It doesn't just tag PDFs — it analyzes them while you remain in control.

Here's what changes when architects and engineers deploy AI for construction to manage submittals and RFIs:

1. Automatic submittal validation

Before AI: Open the submittal PDF. Open the spec section. Compare line by line. Check the drawings. Cross-reference details. Make notes. Repeat for the next section.

With AI for architects: Upload the submittal. Ichi's AI instantly:

• Compares against your specification sections
• Flags any discrepancies or missing information
• Highlights potential code compliance issues
• Suggests specific questions to ask the contractor
• Generates a draft review letter for your approval

You review and approve—the AI does the analysis, you make the final call.

Result: 45-90 minute reviews become 10-15 minute reviews.

2. Intelligent RFI responses

Before AI: Read the RFI. Search through project documents. Check the drawings. Review the specs. Look up code sections. Draft a response. Get approval. Send it out.

With AI: The contractor asks: "What's the required fire rating for the corridor walls on Level 3?"

AI instantly:

• Searches your drawings for corridor wall details
• Finds the relevant spec section
• Checks applicable building code requirements
• Drafts a response with specific citations: "Per Detail 7/A3.2 and Section 09 21 16, corridor walls require 1-hour fire rating per IBC Section 1020.1"

Result: 60-120 minute responses become 10-20 minute reviews and approvals.

3. Proactive conflict detection

This is where AI really shines—catching issues before they become problems.

The system continuously monitors for:

• Spec-to-drawing conflicts — When drawings and specifications don't match
• Inter-trade coordination issues — When mechanical ductwork conflicts with structural beams
• Code compliance gaps — When proposed materials or assemblies don't meet requirements
• Schedule implications — When submittal delays might impact critical path items

Real-world impact

Architecture firm: 40-person practice

Before Ichi:

• 280+ hours/month on submittal reviews
• 180+ hours/month on RFI responses
• Average 4.2 correction cycles per submittal
• 6-8 day average RFI response time

After Ichi:

• 110 hours/month on submittal reviews (61% reduction)
• 65 hours/month on RFI responses (64% reduction)
• Average 2.1 correction cycles per submittal (50% reduction)
• 2-3 day average RFI response time

Total time saved: 285 hours/month = 3,420 hours/year

At an average fully-loaded cost of $85/hour for architectural staff, that's $290,700 in annual savings that can be reinvested in design excellence.

How it works in practice

Let's walk through a typical scenario:

Scenario: glass railing submittal

The Submittal Arrives: Contractor submits shop drawings for the building's glass railing system—150 pages of technical specs, test reports, and installation details.

AI Review Process (5 minutes):

1. System extracts key information from the 150-page submittal
2. Compares against specification section 05 73 00
3. Checks guardrail height requirements from drawings
4. Validates load testing against IBC Chapter 10
5. Flags that the proposed glass thickness (3/8") is less than specified (1/2")
6. Notes that color finish doesn't match specified "clear anodized"

Your Action (10 minutes): Review AI findings, confirm the discrepancies, and approve the generated review letter requesting corrections.

Total Time: 15 minutes instead of 90 minutes

The technology behind it

Modern AI for construction uses:

• Natural Language Processing (NLP) to understand construction terminology and context
• Computer Vision to read and interpret drawings, details, and technical diagrams
• ICC-Licensed Code Databases for accurate building code references
• Machine Learning that improves with every project your firm completes
• Semantic Search to find relevant information across thousands of pages in milliseconds

That's why at Ichi, we built this

We built AI-powered submittal and RFI workflows that act like an extra team member — one who never sleeps, never complains, and loves paperwork.

Our system integrates with your existing project management tools and learns your firm's standards over time. The more you use it, the better it gets at predicting what you need.

With automation doing the grunt work, architects can get back to what they actually love — building ideas, not bureaucracy.

Getting started

You don't need to automate everything at once:

1. Start with one project type — Pick your most repetitive projects (multifamily, commercial office, etc.)
2. Begin with RFIs — Often the quickest wins and easiest to measure
3. Expand to submittals — Once your team is comfortable with the workflow
4. Scale across projects — Deploy firm-wide as confidence builds

The future is intelligent, not just digital

For decades, construction technology has been about digitizing old processes. AI for construction doesn't just digitize—it reimagines.

Instead of storing PDFs, AI in construction understands them.
Instead of routing emails, it drafts responses for your approval.
Instead of tracking issues, it prevents them—while you maintain control.

AI for architects, engineers, and plan checkers acts as an intelligent copilot. It handles the tedious analysis, comparisons, and drafting. You handle the judgment calls, design decisions, and final approvals.

The firms that embrace AI in construction with tools like Ichi won't just work faster—they'll design better, collaborate smarter, and build the cities of tomorrow while everyone else is still buried in yesterday's paperwork.