How to Reduce RFI Turnaround Time on Commercial Projects

An RFI that sits open for two extra weeks rarely causes a dramatic, visible problem. Instead, it quietly pushes back everything waiting on the answer, until the delay shows up somewhere else on the schedule, disconnected from its actual cause.

Reducing RFI turnaround time starts with visibility. Many RFIs stall not because no one is working on them, but because no one realizes how long they have been open. Making RFI age visible, not just RFI status, changes how teams prioritize their responses.

Routing matters as much as writing. RFIs that go to a general inbox and get manually forwarded lose days before anyone with the right expertise even sees them. Routing RFIs directly to the person or trade best equipped to answer cuts that dead time significantly.

Context prevents back-and-forth. An RFI that includes the relevant drawing reference, photo, and specific question gets answered faster than one that requires the reviewer to go find that context themselves.

Finally, connecting RFIs to the schedule, rather than treating them as a separate log, makes their urgency visible. An RFI that is blocking a trade starting in four days should look different from one with no immediate schedule impact, and your team should be able to see that difference at a glance.