What is a Construction Audit? And Types?

 

Construction Internal Audits are an integral part of any Quality Management System (QMS) and a fundamental requirement of the ISO:9001 Standard. However, things can be quite different if the audit refers to the quality management system (QMS) of a project or of a construction company.

 

Carrying out Internal Audits is critical for the identification of any issues and to prevent nonconformities before they actually occur.

 

Types of Construction Audits

1. Prequalification or Pre-selection Audits

These are internal audits that the organization or the Project is performing to assess the management system of a subcontractor or supplier (including Designers) before a contract is signed with them. Once such an audit has a successful outcome, then the subcontractor can then be considered for the specific works in the project and enter the tendering or bidding process.

 

2. Third-party audits for certification

These audits are when a third-party accredited organization is invited (or “hired” basically) to audit a construction project or a construction company to provide the ISO:9001 Certificate (many times required by the Client). These are very strict and thorough audits that usually cover other standards, such as ISO 14001 (Environmental Management Systems) and ISO 45001 (Health and Safety Management Systems). These audits are usually carried out on an annual basis and are required to renew the ISO Certification.

 

3. Project Internal Construction Audits

These are the internal audits that are usually carried out by the quality personnel of the specific Project (Quality or QA/QC Department) and their aim is to scrutinize the internal processes that have been set up for this Project only. This category also includes Audits on Subcontractors, Designers and Suppliers of the project/company, mainly

a) To ensure that the document control procedure is in line with the relevant international standards.

b) To ensure that the approved Project Quality plan, Inspection Test Plan and Project HSE Plan are

effectively implemented at site level and in place.

c) To ensure that the general and specific contract requirements, client requirements, and Specifications are complied with.

d) Systems audit, compliance audit, and product audit as per Client requirements.

e) To ensure that the criteria of international best practice standards for quality, health, safety, and

the environment are met at the site level.

 

4. Internal Audits from the parent company

It’s not uncommon in construction industry, for the Quality Department of the parent company) to audit a specific project team. These basically aim to monitor the performance of the project according to corporate procedures. These internal audits are also very common in Construction Joint Ventures, where each JV partner monitors the project’s system and performance.

 

5. Audits by the Client

These are Audits that are carried out by the Client or Client’s representatives in order to make sure that all contractual requirements regarding the quality management system of the Project are in place. Usually, during the Audit, the Contractor is represented by the Project’s Quality Department. The construction industry is unique in that regard because it is one of the industries where the “Customer” can perform audits during the production of the “Product”.

 

6. Mini internal Project Audits

These quick audits are also called “Surveillances” or “Works-Audits” and they are usually short audits from the Quality Department of a Project to ensure that the approved documentation (Method Statements, Inspection and Test Plan, Procedures etc) are followed on site. Sometimes, these are also performed as “Quality Tours or Walks”. It’s not uncommon for these ones to be performed (or witnessed) by the Client’s representatives as well.

 

7. Other Construction Audits

These are any other unplanned audits that don’t belong to the above categories. These are mainly unplanned audits that the management requests after an incident or a major NCR. These are useful for identifying the root causes of an issue or understanding trends that might be affecting a construction project or a company.